to ruin it,” I tell her.
“She threatened to report us?” she asks.
“Yes.”
“And you really were separated?”
“Almost divorced, and it will be finalized soon,” I promise her. “I was gonna tell you after everything calmed down, once I knew she couldn’t hurt you.”
“I can’t believe you resigned and left…”
“I didn’t want to leave you like that, but I didn’t really have a choice.”
“You did it to protect me?” she asks.
“Yes, and I’m sorry. Every second since I left you that day…I’ve missed you so damn much.”
“I’ve missed you too,” she says followed by a sniffle. “But there’s another reason why I’m here.”
“Oh?” I ask. “You didn’t just want to see me?”
“Well, yeah, but there’s something I need to tell you…um, are you supposed to be on camera right now?” she asks, nodding over my shoulder. When I look behind me, Dave’s camera is still propped up on his shoulder, and his hand is on his hip in an obvious expression of aggravation.
“Oh yeah, I was sort of in the middle of a live broadcast…”
“Gage!” Reagan exclaims and slaps me on the shoulder. “Go. We can talk later.”
“Good,” I tell her before stealing a quick kiss from her lips. “Please don’t go anywhere.”
“I won’t,” she promises, so I take my place, getting back into position.
“Sorry,” I tell Dave.
“Going live in two minutes. You better be glad we’re on a thirty-second delay, and I warned them to go to the traffic report instead,” he says.
“Thank you, and it won’t happen again,” I assure him, exhaling in relief that I’m not out of another job and that thankfully everything might work out with Reagan and me after all.
I try and calm my racing thoughts before Dave gives the cue, and we go live.
“Earlier today, local residents and business owners were shocked when they heard an explosion. Thankfully no one was injured, but the damage to the neighboring shops will likely cause them to have to shut down while they undergo repairs. Meanwhile, officers are still on scene trying to determine if the blast was the result of a bomb or malfunctioning equipment.”
Hold on. Reagan said she missed me, but that there’s another reason why she’s here. Something she needs to tell me. It must be something pretty damn important if she drove all the way up here to say it face-to-face instead of over the phone.
My eyes cut back over to Reagan, and as soon I see her palm lovingly caressing her lower belly I know without a doubt…
“Oh my God. She’s pregnant,” I mutter aloud when it hits me. “You’re pregnant?” I ask Reagan as I gravitate toward her again. Her eyes widen, and she looks at her friend and then to me again. Everyone at the scene is silent, except for Dave, who I hear whisper-yelling my name, but this is more important.
“You…you’re…and it’s mine…and we’re gonna have a baby?” I stammer.
“Yes,” Reagan says with a tearful smile. And hearing that one word sends me sailing through the clouds. I hand Josie the microphone so I can pull Reagan into my arms, likely crushing her from the force of my hug.
“What the fuck?” Josie asks. “You’re pregnant and didn’t tell me?” she asks.
“I’m sorry,” Reagan says in response to her friend’s question or to me.
“I’m not,” I assure her. “This is…wow, I don’t know what to say. I love you more than anything, and this is absolutely incredible.”
“Really?” Reagan asks, her voice muffled by her face still buried in my shirt.
“Yes, definitely.”
“Good,” she says, and I relax my hold on her just a little so she can breathe and talk. “I wasn’t sure how you would feel…”
“You and I are perfect together, and I can’t wait to have a family with you, even if it is sooner than expected.”
“Oh, good,” she says on a heavy exhale. “I knew I wasn’t wrong about you. You’re my soulmate, and I love you, even if it took a stupid love potion to finally bring us together.”
“A love potion?” I ask with a chuckle, and Reagan blushes.
“Well, yeah. I drank it right before the pineapple incident, and then we had to have sex within a week for it to work.”
“So your rush to be with me, it was never about your grade, but a…love potion?”
“Yes.”
Thank fuck. Now her urgency is starting to make sense, even if it was all because of her silly superstition.
“Sweetheart, you and I never needed a potion,” I tell her. “You’ve always been mine, you just didn’t know it.”
“Now I do,” she