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“Oh,” Jeremy suddenly said, looking pointedly at her flat stomach.
“What?” she asked. “What is it, Dad?”
Jeremy hesitated for a moment, then said, “Dana, your mother was the same way when...” He trailed off, leaving the statement unfinished.
Dana furrowed her brow, waiting for him to continue. Finally, he found the words he needed.
“When she was pregnant with you.”
The realization hit Dana like a sucker punch. She and Cross had never been shy about sex and they didn’t use protection. Of course she was bound to get pregnant. Dana sat down, processing everything.
“Head to the pharmacy on the first floor,” her father suggested. “Make sure it isn’t a false alarm.”
“Good idea,” she said. “Do you need anything?”
Jeremy shook his head. “I’m good. Go.”
Dana made her way to the pharmacy. She had purchased a pregnancy kit, and as she headed toward the bathroom, she felt her heart pounding in her chest. Her mind was a whirlwind of questions.
How would Cross react if he found out she was pregnant? They never discussed the prospect of children before. Would he be mad? Happy?
Dana decided she needed to find out if she was pregnant first before worrying herself to death. Inside the bathroom, she followed the instructions on the kit carefully. As she waited for the result, the seconds seemed to stretch into an eternity. She stood there, her gaze glued to the small plastic device in her hands. Finally, the result appeared on the pregnancy kit.
It was positive.
Dana’s eyes widened, and her heart skipped a beat. Feeling numb, Dana retraced her steps back to her father’s room. Sitting down beside her father, she took a deep breath and found the strength to tell him about the pregnancy.
“Dad,” she began, “it’s positive.”
Jeremy regarded her. “You don’t seem happy.”
Dana let out a heavy sigh. “It’s not that I’m unhappy,” she explained. “It’s just that I haven’t processed the news yet. I don’t even know how Cross will react.”
“Dana, you know I distrusted Cross at first, but he’s a good man, and he’s crazy about you. You don’t have to worry about a darn thing,” he told her.
Dana only hoped Jeremy was right.
****
Cross and Priest stepped into the elegant jeweler’s store. He gazed at the display cases of fancy stuff, never expecting he’d be in a place like this one day. At least Priest was by his side and that helped Cross feel less overwhelmed.
“Can’t believe it,” Priest said as they looked at the array of engagement rings. “It feels like it was just yesterday you asked for my help to get Dana and her father away from the Crows. Now you’re tying the knot.”
Cross’s eyes scanned the rings. After getting that important call from Jeremy, he had finally made up his mind.
“She’s the most important thing to me,” Cross said. “And after our confrontation with Panther and his crew, I realized I need her to be a part of my life. I want to build a future with her, Priest. I want her to know she’s the love of my life and I’m committed to her forever.”
Priest looked embarrassed for him, but Cross didn’t care that he came off as a little sappy. Priest was just jealous Cross had finally found a woman worth sticking around for.
After careful consideration, Cross finally settled on a simple diamond ring. “Thanks for your input, Priest. It means a lot,” he told his best friend.
Cross and he parted ways. His next stop was a nearby Chinese takeout restaurant. Dana and he had made plans to have dinner at her apartment. As he exited the restaurant with the bags of food in hand, he couldn’t help but think about the phone call he had with Dana earlier. She had sounded anxious after telling him they needed to talk. He got worried for a moment, but then Jeremy’s call came. Dana didn’t know he knew about her news.
Half an hour later, Cross arrived. He greeted her with a rough and bruising kiss, loving her response.
“You got a lot of food,” Dana remarked.
She helped him take out the containers from the bag but before they could sit down and eat, Dana took a deep breath. She turned to face Cross.
