Total pages in book: 30
Estimated words: 27555 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 138(@200wpm)___ 110(@250wpm)___ 92(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 27555 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 138(@200wpm)___ 110(@250wpm)___ 92(@300wpm)
My own frown appeared, wondering if this was the day she would unleash her true high-maintenance side. I stood just as she turned and rushed back to the bathroom, taking the coffee mugs with me. I took a few gulps, letting the hot liquid scald my throat and wake me up, not that I needed it because fear wove its way through me like a cobra, tightly coiling around me until every worst-case scenario played in my head.
Rob was curled up on the bed with the blankets pulled up until only her hair was visible. I sat on the bed beside her, placing one hand on her hip, dragging it slowly up and down her leg. "I'm worried about you, Rob. What's going on?"
For a long time, she said nothing, and then a sniffle sounded. And another.
I was like every other man on the planet when it came to a woman's tears, completely ill-equipped to handle them. "Rob, just talk to me." This time I waited her out, sure the silence would force her to speak.
Eventually, she peeked her head out and gasped at my nearness. "Levi," she whispered so softly I would've missed it if I hadn't been watching her.
"Yeah, Rob, I'm here." I brushed her hair from her face with my fingers. "Do you need something? Water? Oatmeal? Soup?"
Her brows furrowed in confusion. "Oatmeal?"
I shrugged. "Isn't that something people eat when they're sick?"
"I don't know," she sighed at the same time she attempted a laugh. "I'm not sick, Levi. Well, I am sick, but not the kind of sick you're thinking about. I'm, well, I'm pregnant." She paused for just long enough that the word "pregnant" echoed in the room. "That's why I passed out, and that's why I've been so tired."
"Pregnant." I said the word again and again, willing it to make sense to me.
"Yeah, I know," she said, seemingly on a roll. "I wasn't expecting it either. I mean, I've been going through a major dry spell for more than a year, really more like seventeen months, not that I'm counting or anything, but sheesh, to go from a vibrator to pregnant was not on my BINGO card this year. We haven't been seeing each other very long," she said, filling the silence.
"Rob."
"I'm not even sure if we're actually seeing each other or what, but I do know that I like you. More than I realized until I was faced with the thought of losing you, but I'm not trying to guilt you, Levi. This, having this baby, feels right, and I'm going to do this. No matter what you decide, I'm going to do this." She blew out a breath, seemingly finally exhausting every word in the English language before she fell back against the bed.
The weight of her stare was heavy, but I couldn't look at her. Hell, I couldn't move because shock had nailed my feet to the ground.
"Right," she sighed. "Well, you let me know what you think or what you've decided once you've had a chance to, um, think about it." She slipped and slithered until she was free of the covers, bending over until she had last night's clothes bundled in her arms. "Okay then."
As soon as Rob was gone, my feet moved. I stood and paced back and forth in my bedroom while I tried really hard not to freak out. A baby. Rob was pregnant with my baby. What the hell am I gonna do with a baby? I didn't even really have a father, so what do I know about being somebody else's dad? Did she really want to have a baby with me? A baby. I didn't even know what to make of Rob's announcement. On the one hand, I was relieved as fuck that she wasn't dying, but on the other, she was pregnant with my baby, and I wasn't sure if I was prepared to be anyone's father.
Did it really matter if I was ready or not? Rob wasn't ready either, and she was ready to face it all on her own. It was a bigger upheaval for her, impacting her body and her livelihood. Her freedom, in fact. But she seemed decisive about it.
The baby.
If she could do it, so could I. "Shit." I rushed downstairs to stop Rob before she got too far. I stopped abruptly when I found her sitting on my sofa with her legs crossed and her eyes closed. "Problem?"
She flashed a sheepish half-smile. "I forgot that you drove us here last night. But I can call someone to come get me if that's easier." She shot to her feet. "You have a lot to think about."
"It's fine, I'll give you a ride. Are you hungry?" I didn't know how my voice was so calm, so even, but I managed, and it helped Rob relax.