The Girl Next Door - Emma Hart Page 0,3

that delivery for six p.m.—with an extra side of crispy beef strips so he didn’t steal mine—I sat back on the sofa to wait.

I figured it would be best if I just said it, then handed him the food.

I still wasn’t sure it’d sunk in fully for me yet. Having the proof right in front of me was weird, and so was having to throw out all my coffee. I could smell it in the pods and I just couldn’t take it anymore.

I’d soothed that hurt somewhat by ordering one hundred and twenty hot chocolate pods from Amazon.

God bless two-day shipping.

Why one hundred and twenty? I had no idea. It’d seemed like a good idea at the time.

It was going to be a long eight months. I wasn’t even sure if I could bring a baby into these apartments. The floors and ceilings weren’t the best, and the last thing I wanted to do was interrupt the lives of the crazy seniors who lived here.

While I was sure they’d coo all over a baby, it was just another thing on my list that I’d tentatively titled, “Now What The Fuck Do I Do?”

Time ticked by so slowly. I felt like a stalker listening out for the opening and closing of his apartment door, and when it came, signaling he was home, my stomach lurched.

Thankfully, I wasn’t sick.

I wasn’t sure I could deal with that today, too.

The Friends opening scene hit my TV, and I recognized it immediately. It was the one where Rachel told Ross she was pregnant. I grabbed the remote and turned the channel with a derivative snort.

The universe was just mocking me now, the shady bitch.

There was nothing interesting on TV, so I went to take a shower. The water was hot and soothing, and some of my stress dissipated with the steam as it curled up and out of the cubicle.

My phone alarm went off. That meant it was ten minutes until food and I’d already spent too long standing under this water, so I quickly got out and wrapped myself in towels. It took me minutes to change into clean leggings and a slightly oversized sweatshirt that said, “I’ve got a good heart, but this mouth…”

It was a personal favorite of mine to wear to dinner with my grandmother.

I towel-dried my hair and brushed it up into a topknot, securing it with a velvet scrunchie that was something out of my childhood.

I was pretty sure it was Tori’s. I certainly had no intention of reliving the questionable fashions of the nineties.

I was done just in time. Five knocks sounded at my door, and I answered it. Gratefully taking the food from the delivery guy, I grabbed a few bills from the bowl by the door and handed him his tip.

With a smile, he left.

Leaving me standing across from Kai’s door.

It was now or never. I didn’t have a choice. I had to get this over and done with or I knew I’d never tell him.

I grabbed my keys and shut the door behind me, pausing to lock it. My heart was pounding against my ribs, and I wasn’t sure if my nausea was from nerves or hormones. Or the Chinese food.

God, please let it not be the Chinese food.

I was already giving up coffee. There was no way I could give this up, too.

I closed my eyes and rapped my knuckles against his door before I changed my mind.

Oh, God.

This was happening. I was really telling Kai the truth.

I opened my eyes just in time for him to answer the door.

He grinned, surprise lighting his blue eyes. “Ivy. What’s up?”

“Can we talk?”

His eyebrows shot up. “Right now?”

I nodded, wrapping one arm around my stomach as a comfort.

“I’m not—”

“I brought food.” I held up the bag lamely. “Chinese.”

Kai glanced over his shoulder into his apartment. “I can’t really—”

“I’m pregnant.” The words blurted out of me before I could stop them.

His eyes widened. “What?”

“And it’s yours,” I finished in a softer tone.

“What?” came from a female voice inside his apartment.

I inhaled sharply.

Right.

He wasn’t alone. He had a date in there.

That’s why he didn’t want to talk.

“Oh.” I took a step back, my cheeks burning something fierce. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know you had a date. I’ll just—go.”

“Ivy, wait—” He reached out for me, but I turned and ran into my apartment, fumbling with my keys for only a second before I stumbled inside and slammed the door behind me.

Stupid, stupid, stupid Ivy.

Tears stung my eyes. I squeezed