Tempting Perfection

Knoah moved her blonde hair over her shoulders. “The new house is coming along.” She grabbed Garrick’s hand and snuggled into him. They were so good for each other. “I decided to take a step back at work and only do the event planning. Basically, I’m simplifying my life. Now I’ll be home with Garrick in the evenings, and I can travel with him on his upcoming trips. It’s a good change.”

“I’m happy for you. That’s amazing.”

Knoah poured us mimosas, and I froze. I looked at Kurt, who’d perfected his deer-in-the-headlights expression, too.

Yeah, we’re terrible at this.

“Let’s toast. To friends finding their way,” Knoah said.

Garrick held his glass out next to hers while Kurt and I stared at ours where they remained on the table. An awkward silence descended on the group. The only thing I could think of was my bun joke, which was terrible.

I stared at Kurt, who stared at me. And I knew our friends were watching us.

“A toast,” Garrick said, reminding us politely to pick up our glasses.

Like before, Kurt was catatonic. I stammered, “I…uh…”

Bumping Kurt with my elbow, I tried to get him to say something, but he was worse than me. “We…uh…”

Realization dawned on Knoah, and it was reflected in her eyes. Hesitantly, she asked, “Are you…?”

“If your question is ‘Am I hungry or pregnant,’ then yes. Yes, I am both of those things.” There. That was a little better than blaming Kurt and discussions of super sperm.

Utter joy transformed Knoah’s face, and I sagged with relief. I felt a little foolish thinking she might have been upset. Knoah got up and hugged me to her. “When? How? I mean, I know how.” She pointed at Kurt. “No details. And no telling me something gross I don’t want to know about.”

Super sperm was definitely something Knoah would not want to know about. Stay factual. “It happened in November, and I found out a few weeks ago. You guys are the first to know besides the band members. Which is a long story, but they found the pregnancy tests. And considering I’m the only girl staying on the bus, it was a little obvious who was preggers. Lana knows as well.”

Knoah poured me a glass of orange juice. “A new toast. To finding happiness.”

“To finding happiness,” everyone echoed.

* * *

Kurt talked with Garrick while Knoah and I had some girl time. We sat cross-legged in my apartment.

She picked up her glass of wine. “So, you doing okay?”

“Yeah. I was so scared in the beginning. But I’m good now. I was at the doctor to get my shot, and they did a urine test—I was eight weeks pregnant.” Inside I was still a bit unsure if Knoah was putting up a front. The last thing I wanted was her to be upset by our news. The depression that set in after she lost her baby had been bad. I chewed on my lip, unsure what else to say.

“Sawyer, I don’t want you to be uncomfortable about being pregnant around me. I’m okay.” Scooting next to me, Knoah put her arm around me. “I mean it. Garrick and I have been going to therapy together. I’m in a good place. If it’s meant to be, it will. And if not, there are so many options. When it’s time to take that next step, I’ll know it. I still have hope for the future, so let’s celebrate. You’re having a baby. A baby. You’re going to be a mother, and I want to be there every step of the way.”

I grabbed her hand and rested my head on her shoulder. “You’re an amazing friend.”

“And I can’t wait to throw you a baby shower.”

Things were going to be just fine.

* * *

We knocked on Cameron’s door. He opened the door, and I rushed into his arms, nearly knocking him over.

“Hey there. You okay?”

Shit. Shit. Shit.

We hadn’t decided on how to tell Cameron. This baby was sucking the memory cells from me. Recover, Sawyer. “Yes, I just missed you. Where’s Monica?”

Monica called out from the kitchen, “In here. Dinner’s almost ready.”