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“Didn't feel right?” Elodie mumbled. I’d seen her angry before, but never like this. She shook with it. “Do you know what Dion, I give up. I'm going to see Lola.” Bending, she kissed Jax’s lips. “Try and talk some sense into him, Jax, because I fucking give up.”
“Tell her–” I didn't finish the sentence. What could I tell her to say to Lola. Nothing. Because what needed saying I had to say in person. Idly, I reached for one of the bottles still littering the table. The beer would be warm, but it would take the edge off.
“Oh, fuck no.” Jax launched himself at me before the bottle could touch my lips. It skidded across the floor, leaving a puddle of stale beer in its wake. “Go and make sure Lola is ok. Me and Dion are going to have a long fucking talk.”
LOLA
“Lola’s pregnant.”
Groaning, I threw a glare at Celia. Curled up on her threadbare sofa, I would have thrown something more than a glance at her if I had been home, but this was her place and I didn't want to accidentally break something that meant something to her.
Not that she wouldn't deserve it. She ‘d opened her mouth as soon as she had let Elodie in. Elodie froze in the open doorway, hovering between the snow covered outside and the warmth of inside and I shivered.
Mostly from the cold, but not entirely. The way Elodie was looking at me made me uneasy.
“Celia.” Pulling my knees up to my chest, I rested my chin upon them and stared at my best friend.
“Will you come in or go out?” Celia shivered. “You're letting out all the warm air and–”
The door slammed as Elodie stepped forward. Shrugging off her coat, she continued to stare at me like I was an alien creature.
“You’re pregnant?” she finally said.
“Yes.” Celia got there first, and I threw another death glare at her.
“No, I mean I don't know.” I shrugged and even saying it out loud hurt. It made it feel more real. “Maybe, but it's probably nothing. Stress or something.”Another shrug. I desperately wanted my last words to be true.
“Are you trying to convince me or yourself?” Taking another step into the room, Elodie swept her eyes across the tiny space.
“Herself,” Celia piped in unhelpfully. If she carried on like she was, then I was going to throw something at her. Possibly a lamp, but more than likely a cushion. I wanted her to shut up. I didn't want to actually hurt her. “It's why she won't do a test.”
“Lola.” Elodie groaned loudly. “Why won't you do a test? Surely that is the first thing you should have done.” Seeing the sudden glistening of tears in my eyes begin to spill over, she rushed forward. Plopping herself down next to me, she enveloped me in a tight hug. “Oh sweet girl, I know it's scary and–”
“It's not that.” Angrily, I wiped away the first tears. “It’s–”
“Dion is many things.” A flicker of unease swept across her face and I stiffened, frowning. “Like a royal screw up, but he is going to make a great dad.”
And there it was. I agreed that he would be. I’d seen firsthand how happy he looked holding Isla’s baby. The way his eyes had lit up when he looked at him. He’d wanted that little boy to be his. He’d told me as much. He’d laughed about it and made it seem like a fleeting moment of weakness, but when I had seen them together, it had hit me.
Isla, no matter what she had done to him, how much hell she had put him through, was still important to him. He cared about her still. Maybe even loved her.
“I know.”
“You think he will think you did it on purpose?”
I stilled under the weight of her eyes. The thought had crossed my mind. More than once. We’d only been together a few weeks.
Taking my silence for an answer, Elodie squeezed me one last time. “Dion won’t think that, Lola. He will be happy, I know it. I mean, it might come as a shock.” Her dark, golden speckled eyes found mine. “Weren't you careful?”
“Yeah, I'm on the pill and,” I went back to hugging myself. “I'm sure it's nothing. I am on the pill and–”
“You need to take a test.”
“Surely it's too soon? I'm not even late yet and anyway it's boxing day and.”
“Excuses, Lola. You are making excuses. There are tests that can tell you really early these days and you are taking one now, today. Right here so we can be there for you, no matter the outcome. Dion should be here as well.” The darkness was back in her eyes. “But he can't be, not until he’s back to himself. So you will have to make do with me and Celia.” She winked at the younger woman, who grinned back. “We will be right here. So what do you say? Fancy peeing on a stick for me?”
“What's happened to Dion? Is he ok?” I ignored her questions and asked one of my own.
