The Truest Thing (Hart's Boardwalk 4)

Word was out that Jess was pregnant. Her bump was now too significant to hide. Her morning sickness had lasted longer than average, and she’d assumed she would struggle with it for her entire pregnancy. But miraculously, it stopped about a week ago. Unfortunately, she wasn’t sleeping well, finding it difficult to get comfortable at night.

Despite her exhaustion, I’d never seen her happier.

And knowing what she was about to tell me, I wished I could say the same.

Jess took my hands in hers, leaning into me, concern creasing her brow. “You’re pregnant, Emery.”

I wanted to be brave.

I wanted to be cool, calm, and collected.

And maybe I would have been if it hadn’t been Jess in the room. The one person I trusted.

I burst into tears and caught a brief flash of tears in Jess’s before she enveloped me in her embrace.

“Oh, it’s okay, sweetie, it’s okay,” she soothed, rocking me.

However, it wasn’t okay. I’d always imagined that the day I found out I was pregnant, it would be the happiest day of my life. That I’d be sharing the moment with the man I loved.

Instead, I’d gotten knocked up by Jack Devlin.

And I kind of hated him.

I sobbed harder.

Jessica tightened her hold on me. “Oh, Em, sweetie.” She choked up. “Talk to me. You have me so worried.”

After a moment or two, I pulled myself together and out of Jess’s hug. She reached for a box of tissues on her desk and handed them to me.

Five weeks ago, I’d missed my period. I was ashamed to admit that in the aftermath of sleeping with Jack and finding he’d abandoned me, again, I’d also completely forgotten that we hadn’t used protection. Jack probably assumed I was on the Pill, but as a longtime single woman with no menstrual or hormonal issues, I’d never had to be on it. Still, we should have used a condom.

Because Jack wasn’t exactly a monk.

This realization only hit me when I missed my period.

I’d had hope that it was stress. That had happened to me in the past, my period delayed because of stressful events in my life. I didn’t purchase a pregnancy test. I was in complete denial.

Until the morning sickness.

I’d gone to Jess as my doctor but also because she was my best friend.

“What about the other thing?” I waved my hand at her computer screen. I’d asked Jess to give me a pregnancy test and a sexual health check.

“We’ll know soon enough about those tests,” she assured me. “Now, talk to me before I assume terrible things.”

Remembering her past with her sister, I hurried to assure her. “Oh, Jess, no. It was consensual.”

She exhaled. “Okay. Excellent. Big relief.” Tea

rs shimmered in her eyes and her lips trembled. “I’m sorry, sweetie, I don’t mean to get emotional.”

I laughed through my own tears. “Oh, I understand.”

Jess gave me a sad, watery smile. “We’re pregnant together.”

A flicker of excitement cut through my fear and disappointment that this was happening so differently from how I’d imagined. I was going to be a mom. I had someone coming into my life that I could give all my love to. This little person. And I was determined to do a hell of a lot better than my parents did with me.

It didn’t change the fact that the circumstances were less than ideal. “Yeah.” And then I blurted, “I slept with Jack.”