Falling in Love (Rockford Falls 5)

Nicole looked at me funny.

“What?”

“How late are you?”

“What?”

“Your period. How late are you?”

I sank into my chair and checked my phone. “About nine days,” I said in disbelief.

“Were you using protection?”

“I’m on the pill!”

“Did you forget to take it?”

“Only like one time. I was just a day late getting it refilled is all. That’s nothing,” I said. “Right?” My voice was kind of high and panicked.

“You stay here. I’m going to the drug store and I’ll be back.”

“Nic—"

“Trust me,” she said with a knowing nod that made me super nervous.

“Take the sandwich with you? I can’t stand the smell. But it’s just food poisoning.”

“Let me guess. You have ‘food poisoning,’” she used air quotes, “for a few hours in the morning, and then you’re just tired?”

I chewed my lip.

“Yeah, like I said. Be right back. Quit freaking out until you know something for sure, okay?”

“Yeah. I’ll calm right down,” I said sarcastically.

In the ten minutes it took Nicole to get back, I bit off all my fingernails. She handed me a bag and I took it into the staff bathroom. It didn’t even take the full three minutes for the two blue lines to appear on the stick. I tried to shake it like a thermometer to see if it would change. Then I wrapped it in the bag and stuffed it in the trash and washed my hands and put a bunch of paper towels on top of the bag in the garbage. I was shaking when I came out of the bathroom.

“It’s positive,” I said.

“It’s going to be okay.”

“No. I can’t do this. I mean, I can’t talk about it or think about it now. I have to do story time for the kids. I’ve got to set up the craft. We’re coloring rocks with markers today. And we’re reading, I don’t know, something with a fish in it. I can’t remember. I’m so tired, Nic. And so freaked out. I just—have to put that aside till after work. Then I can have the hissy fit I deserve.”

“Call me after work. Can I tell Trixie?”

“Yeah. I’ll call you both, and it’d be easier if she knew already,” I sighed.

I spent the rest of the day working on autopilot, a robot in a daze. When I was finally off work at seven, I tucked the library in and went home. I had a ton of messages from Drew and some missed calls. I couldn’t possibly deal with him right now. Not until I had my head on straight.

Once I was home, I flopped on the couch and called Nicole and conferenced Trixie in.

“Hey, mama,” Trixie said. “Look at you. I remember that feeling. Good times,” she said.

“It hasn’t been that long for me either,” Nicole sighed. “I lost my shit when I found out I was having Coop. Noah and I pretty much couldn’t be in a room together without arguing. I mean, there’s a slight chance that if the ceiling hadn’t fallen on me, he never would have admitted he loved me.”

“I don’t want anything to fall on me,” I whined. “I don’t want this to be happening! He keeps texting and calling.”

“Isn’t that what you want your boyfriend to do? I mean, being attentive is a good thing,” Trixie said.

“Yeah, if you’re not keeping a big damn secret from him,” I wailed. “It’s like he’s watching me or something. I didn’t go over to his place last night or have him come over here so he’s probably wondering what’s up.”

“Here’s a novel idea,” Trixie said, “you tell him the truth. You’re having his baby.”

“You have to tell him,” Nicole agreed. “Noah found out by accident when I was in the hospital. I wish I’d told him myself. It really hurt him that I kept it secret and didn’t tell him immediately. I underestimated him, and I was only focused on myself.”

“We’re only been back together for about five minutes!” I said. “I can’t tell Drew I’m pregnant!”

“Babe, you’re gonna have to,” Trixie said.

“Can you do it? I’ll send him flowers with a card that says, sorry, I accidentally got pregnant.”

“You’re joking,” she said flatly.

“I’m mostly joking. I’m ten percent hoping you’d do that for me.”

“No fucking way, sweetheart,” Trixie said. “You’re a big girl. Tell him the truth.

“Agreed a hundred percent,” Nicole said. “I made myself miserable thinking Noah didn’t want to be with me, and I could’ve had his love and support, but I was in my head too much and didn’t give him the chance.”

“I didn’t exactly run and tell Damon either,” Trixie admitted. “And we were married.”

“Things were going so well for us,” I said. “I can’t just drop this in his lap now,” I said miserably.

What was I going to do?

24

Drew

“I never eat dessert. We’ve been low carb for two years,” Greg said as he shoveled in a bite of Rachel’s killer cherry pie.