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Chapter 17
Blair
IhavetotellBen.
This thought runs on a loop through my head as one of my interns, Jen, fills me in on the drafts she has set up for a client. She’s agonizing over a sentence here and there and I recognize the anxiety of being the new kid on the block and give her a gentle smile.
“You’re doing great,” I reassure her.
In reality, the client we have her working on is easy. They give documents only a cursory glance before approving them, so I’m not worried at all. But still, it’s good to have someone on my team who cares so much about her work.
“Are you okay?” Jen asks anxiously, eyes searching my face.
I blink and realize I was zoning out. Slowly, my team has been catching on that something is off. There’s no way someone gets sick as regularly as I have these past several weeks and it just keeps getting worse. Not addressing the situation seems to have made it worse.
I have to tell Ben but I’m absolutely dreading it.
“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine. Sorry. Just a long day today.”
Jen gives me a small smile and gathers her papers, anxious to get back to work. As soon as she’s gone I close my office door and shut the blinds.
“Fuck,” I groan, dropping back into my chair, a hand on my stomach. Weird. I never thought I’d be one of those pregnant women who touches her stomach all the time. But then, I’m not sure I ever thought I’d be pregnant at all.
Nick’s words come swimming back to me:
Yeah, once, I thought I’d settle down and have kids. But I’m getting a little old for it now, so…
Why, at that moment, had I wanted nothing more than to climb over the center console and into his lap? To reassure him that he definitely wasnottoo old, and still looked so tantalizing that it was hard to hold myself back from him.
Something deep inside me softened when he said those words.
Shaking off the memory, I know I have to harden myself instead—to keep pushing him away. Collin Weaver’s threat is still very real. If he thinks I’m trying to rope Nick into some kind of gold-digger situation, he’ll cut his own son loose to save his fortune. The old asshole will probably have his money buried with him.
But soon, I won’t be able to hide this pregnancy. I’ll start showing. So, I need to come up with a plan. To tell Ben, maybe come up with a backstory. Luckily not many people with the firm know anything about my life outside of here. They might wonder why I’ve never mentioned a boyfriend or partner, but I can do my best to ignore the curious glances.
Then an idea comes to me…
Standing, I open my office door and head toward the break room. Always a good place to start some good old-fashioned gossip. Might as well get ahead of the game.
It’s close to lunch and a few people are already sitting at tables or couches, pulling snacks out of the fridge or heating up meals. Constance, by the windows, throws a curious glare my way. Word has gotten around that Ben is seriously considering me for the next promotion and she’s not happy about it.
At the next table over is Todd. Lucky for me, he’s a notorious gossip, and we’re on good terms. I grab a strawberry yogurt from the fridge—the only thing I can keep down lately—and slip into the chair across from him with a friendly smile.
After chatting for a bit about our caseloads and how burnt out we both are from the overload of work, Todd asks what I’ve been up to lately, outside of the office.
I mention a few good movies I’ve seen lately. “How about you? Anything fun going on?”
“Well, my husband and I have been trying to figure out what resort we want to go to in August. He’s arguing for Puerto Escondido but I know he’ll try to drag me on hikes and have me sweating my ass off if we go there. I was thinking more like Hilton Head, somewhere closer to home where I can just lay on the beach.”
It’s the perfect opening. I give him a big smile and nod along with him.
“I get it, the guy I’m seeing is the same way. A traveler, not a vacationer, you know?”
A spark of interest in his eyes. I’ve got him.
He casually asks about the guy and I find myself describing the man of my dreams. Someone who can take care of me, but lets me be independent. Who challenges me, but supports me emotionally. Todd seems skeptical that someone can be that perfect so I throw in a few flaws. “He can totally be bossy and over-protective, though,” I say.
There’s a low snort behind me and Todd and I both look at Constance, who has clearly been listening in. She lifts a brow.
