One Moment Please (Wait With Me #3) - Amy Daws Page 0,36
the back of the house, loaded with cozy furniture that’s covered up for the winter.
“You have more furniture outside than inside,” I point out dumbly.
“It came with the house,” he says from right behind me, eliciting a little jump from me.
A slight shudder runs through me when I catch a whiff of his spicy aftershave. He has his hands stuffed in his pockets, and the way he’s looking at me makes me feel two feet tall.
“Can I get a water maybe?” I croak, my nerves causing all the spit in my mouth to turn to cotton.
His brow furrows before he turns on his heel and heads to his kitchen, giving me room to breathe.
God, this is awkward. The urge to leave pushes at me so badly, but I need to at least confirm the fact that he doesn’t want anything to do with the baby. I don’t want to be raising this kid on my own and have him show up out of the blue asking to play catch with the little guy.
Or girl.
Oh my God.
Do I want a boy or a girl? I’ve never even had a boyfriend long enough to ponder these kinds of things. I’ve only recently given it the gender-neutral term, peanut.
Josh returns, handing me a bottle of water. “Do you want to sit down?” he asks, gesturing toward the chair. “How’s your ankle?”
I move away from him and wave him off. “It’s fine. The swelling has gone down a lot already.”
“Good.” He gestures to the chair again, and I sit because…well, knowing how klutzy I am, sitting is probably wise when I’m in the presence of this domineering man. I chug half the water and try to ignore the fact that he’s watching me again.
“How are you feeling?” Josh paces the empty room in front of me.
“Fine, I guess,” I reply meekly. “I mean…now that I know I’m pregnant, I’m fine. I still can’t believe I was walking around like those women on that show I Didn’t Know I Was Pregnant. Can you imagine if I’d have just popped into the ER six months from now, complaining of abdominal pain, and you would have been like…oh, bt dubs…you’re having a baby right now.”
Josh hits me with a flat look. “I have never used the phrase bt dubs.”
“It means by the way.”
“I know what bt dubs means. I’m just saying I’ve never used it.”
“Okay, you’re hip,” I state defensively and shake my head because we’ve gotten off track. “All I’m saying is now that I know I’m pregnant, I understand why I’ve been feeling a bit off these past couple of months.”
“What are your symptoms?” he asks.
“I was sick over Christmas, which I thought was the flu, but looking back, I now realize that was probably morning sickness. That’s gone away now.”
“It usually does once you’ve passed the first trimester,” he responds back flatly. “Any other issues?”
My brows lift. “Just sore breasts and a bloated belly, which is nice to know it’s not just coming from the extra Oreos I’ve been eating.”
“All normal,” he states with a nod. “So first, we should talk about your options.”
“My…options?” I ask, really hoping he’s not about to say what I think he’s about to say.
He shoots me a serious look. “You don’t have to keep the baby. There’s adoption, abortion.”
“I’m not having an abortion,” I reply through clenched teeth, nowhere near interested in having that conversion. “After seeing that baby move during the ultrasound this week and staring at the peanut’s picture, I could never.”
Josh nods, his eyes softening around the edges. “Is adoption something you’ve considered?”
My hand instantly moves to my belly. “No.”
Josh stares at me with a blank look on his face that I hate.
I run my hand through my hair. “Look, I can handle this. I’m not some young teen mom. I’m twenty-seven years old, and I’m finished with my education. I’ll be fine. This baby and I will be fine. And I don’t expect anything from you, okay? I know I poured my heart out to you in the ER about how messed up my life is right now, but that was just the pain talking. My situation is temporary, so I don’t need anything from you.”
“Except of course a job and a place to live and probably money to live off until this baby is born.”
My jaw drops. “Excuse me?”
“You made it pretty clear the other day your situation is dire. And since I’m a part of this now, your problems become my problems,”