Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 77717 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 389(@200wpm)___ 311(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77717 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 389(@200wpm)___ 311(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
I blink once. Twice. Three times. “Seriously?”
“Yeah,” he says and confusion takes over his face. He really has no idea. He hasn’t put two and two together. “I don’t get what this has to do with me.”
It’s like I have no control over my body. My right hand comes up and swings, flat palm hitting him in the face. The slap stings, and causes Noah to jump back in surprise.
“What the fuck?”
“I’m pregnant and you are the father,” I saw slowly through gritted teeth.
If I thought Noah looked surprised before, I was mistaken. The color drains from his face. Then he shakes his head.
“No, I’m not.”
“We hooked up. And now I’m pregnant. You are the father.”
His eyes dart around the room. “But that was over a month ago.”
“Yeah, these things take some time.”
He runs a hand over his face. “Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck.” Then he looks up at me. “Are you sure it’s mine?”
I raise my arm to slap him again but Noah catches my wrist. “Yes, I’m sure. There are no other possibilities. I’ve only been with you in the last six months.”
“You’ve had sex once in half a—never mind. Are you sure?”
My eyes fill with the tears I’ve been battling. “Positive.”
Noah slides his hand up my wrist and laces our fingers. The tears roll down my cheeks. He pulls me to him, wrapping me in a hug that I didn’t know I desperately needed.
“It’ll be okay,” he says. “I don’t have a fucking clue how, but it’ll be okay.”
I slide my arms around his muscular torso, inhaling slowly to calm myself. Noah smells intoxicating, like soap and cologne, mixing with the scent of leather from his motorcycle jacket. My heart pounds in my chest, pressed against his, and it’s beating just as hard.
His lips sweep against my neck, so soft I almost don’t feel it.
Almost.
I shiver, and fight against the warmth that tingles inside of me.
I lose.
“You’re pro-choice, right?” he starts.
“Do you want me to slap you again?” I ask, yanking my hands from his.
“But you are, right?”
“Yes, I am, and my choice is to keep this baby.”
Noah swallows and moves his head up and down. “Just making sure. Because I want you to keep it.”
“Oh,” I say, having expected a different response from him. Silence falls between us, broken by the loud squeaks of Vader chomping on a rubber ball. “What do you want to do?”
“I’ll do whatever you want,” he answers without skipping a beat.
“And why would you do that?”
He looks away. “No reason … well, no reason other than my child is growing inside of you. I … I want to try, Lauren. So, what do you want?”
I shake my head. “I don’t even know. Do you think you’ll, uh, be involved, help me raise the kid, be there during the birth … that sort of thing?” I quickly look into his eyes, afraid of what I’ll see. “I don’t know what else goes into this. I’m going off of movies I’ve seen.”
“Yeah,” he says. “I think so.” He rubs his forehead. “You’re sure it’s mine?”
I tip my head up, jaw trembling. “Yes. You can get a fucking DNA test if you want. But I promise you it’s yours. I haven’t had sex, or even gotten past first base, with anyone but you in a very long time.”
He nods, considering my words. “I want to be there for all of it. If it’s mine, I mean, since it’s mine, I want to do whatever I can.” He takes my hand again and turns to me, blue eyes clouding over. “My father was never there for me. I don’t want this kid to go through that.”
A tear escapes and rolls down my cheek. Noah catches it and brushes it away. He pulls me in and kisses my forehead, then puts one hand over my stomach.
“I want to be here for both of you.”
“I want you to be here too,” I say softly, and it hits me just how much I want things to work out. But we only have nine months to figure this out, to see if we’re not only compatible with each other, but capable of loving each other enough to commit and raise our child together.
“Did you tell Colin yet?”
I shake my head. “Only Katie.” My voice quakes and I realize I’m trembling head to toe. “I have to tell my parents soon. Holy shit, they’re going to freak.”
Noah moves closer. His thigh presses against mine and he puts an arm around my shoulders.
“I’m sorry, Lauren.”
“Thanks,” I say. “It takes two, ya know. And neither one of us were thinking straight that night, so I don’t blame you entirely.”
“Not entirely? So partially?”
“Oh of course. You got me drunk then took me on that oh-so romantic motorcycle ride in the rain. I was pretty much a goner from the start.”