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I chuckled. “Well, that’s exact.” I rubbed my eyes and then shifted to my side after fluffing my pillow a bit. “Why are you fretting?”
“I’m not fretting,” she quipped back.
I reached over and tapped my finger on her nose. “Yes, you are. What’s on your mind? Did you not sleep well?”
“Oh, I slept just fine, thank you.”
I studied her; something was definitely up. “Okay, then why do you look distressed?”
“You didn’t wear a condom last night.” Her voice was soft, but the words seemed so loud in my head. Holy shit, I hadn’t worn a condom last night. Jesus, what an idiot I was. Was she upset because we had unprotected sex, and she wasn’t sure if I was clean or not? She said it had been two years since she was with someone, but maybe she had an STD that she was being treated for.
“I’m clean, Roxy. I have to get tested for my job, and we were tested about three months ago. I haven’t been with anyone since then.”
“I wasn’t worried about that, Lee. I figured you were clean. I am too, just so you know.”
“Okay, but I don’t get why you seem upset.”
She rolled her eyes. “You didn’t wear a condom, Lee. I’m not on birth control right now. I went off it about a year ago when I started having a lot of weird side effects. I’ve always had trouble taking birth control, and I’ve had to change it up every few months. Since I wasn’t seeing anyone, I just went off of it.”
Time seemed to slow as she finished, and images of me out by the barn with a little boy beside me flashed through my mind for a split second before I returned to the here and now. I took Roxy’s hand. “I’m sorry that we didn’t talk about this last night. We should have, and I apologize for not asking, but Roxy, I’m not upset.”
Her brows snapped so high they disappeared under her blond bangs. “How are you not upset? I am.”
“Why would you be upset?” I asked her.
“Why?” Her voice rose slightly, and she glanced at the bedroom door before lowering her voice again. “Because we barely know one another, and despite what we said last night about wanting to see where this goes, I do not want us tohave tosee where this goes because I got knocked up.”
“Roxy, I don’t know your cycle, so I don’t know what the chances are that you could have gotten pregnant, but if you want me to, I can run down to the pharmacy and pick up one of those morning-after pills.”
She glanced away and frowned. “No, I can’t do that.”
“Why not?”
She turned to me. “If for some reason I could be pregnant, and it is quite possible with where I am in my cycle, then taking one of those pills would be like killing a baby. I can’t do that.”
I sat up against the headboard, straightening the covers over my hips. “I wasn’t going to say anything, because I have to respect you and your body, but I agree with that statement. I know a lot of women do it, and I would never judge a woman for it, but to me, I feel the same way.”
“Then what if I’m pregnant?”
I took her hand and kissed the back of it. “Then we will figure it out, Roxanne. Don’t stress over this, okay? In fact, let’s put it out of our minds, and I’ll make sure to keep condoms with me. There is no reason that you should put yourself on medication when I am quite capable of using them. From now on, we’ll be safer.”
“You’re sure you’re not upset?”
“I am absolutely not upset; besides, if I were upset, I’d have to be angry at myself too. I never asked; in fact, I never even thought about it.” I cocked my head to the side. “Which is odd because I have never done that before.” I pulled her closer to me. “I think that is because you and I are on a different level than I have ever been before. It’s like I’ve known you for years, not days.”
The stress immediately disappeared from her face, and she threw her arms around my shoulders, burying her face in my neck. “I’m sorry.”
“Hey,” I kissed the side of her head, “don’t you be sorry. We can chalk this up to a mistake on both our parts. No worries, and if there is something to worry about later, then we will discuss it then.”
“Thank you, Lee,” she whispered against my ear, and I pulled back to kiss her. Just as our lips touched, someone began to bang on the bedroom door.
“Henley!” It was Kayley. “Get downstairs, it’s time to cook breakfast. I need to get on the road soon, and you know I can’t leave without your biscuits and gravy.”
Roxy began to chuckle as I yelled back, “Give us five minutes, and we’ll be down.” As if the mention of food woke her stomach, it growled loudly.
Her hand flew to her abdomen. “I guess I need to agree with your sister. It’s time to cook breakfast.”
She climbed out of bed and began to collect her clothes, but I stopped her as I pulled on my jeans from the night before. “You don’t need to get dressed. Everyone will be in yesterday’s clothes or pajamas. We are not formal around here. Throw on some pants, and you’re good to go.”
