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  “Wow, you’re really trashed,” she said in this singsong voice. She didn’t sound or look drunk, and he knew that this situation could go very wrong really quickly.

  “Yeah, and when I said not interested, I meant it.”

  She came closer and sat on the edge of the bed. His cell vibrated, and thinking it was a text from Lena, he grabbed it. But his hand and eye coordination was shot from the drinking, and the fucking thing fell to the floor. The bitch grabbed it before he could react, had the thing answered and started talking.

  “Hello?” she said in a soft, very erotic voice, one that pissed him the hell off.

  “Give me my fucking phone,” Rory slurred out, his head pounding and the room spinning. He hadn’t drunk this much in months, and it clearly wasn’t sitting well with him.

  “Who is this?” the blond bitch said.

  He went to snatch the phone, feeling his anger rise, but she darted off the bed, her grin wide, and one he wanted to smack off, if he wasn’t a good guy and didn’t fuck with girls.

  “Lena?” the blond bitch said. “Lena, he’s a little busy right now—”

  “You fucking cunt,” Rory said and grabbed the phone away, his anger overriding his intoxication. “Get the hell out.”

  The blonde’s eyes widened. She opened her mouth to say something, but clearly thought better and turned to leave.

  Rory was breathing hard, his blood pumping through his veins, and the room still slightly spinning. He put the phone to his ear, closed his eyes, and sat back on the bed.

  “Lena, baby …” He didn’t even know what to say. “She’s some damn bitch who came into the room I’m at and was starting shit. Nothing happened.” He could hear her breathing, but for several seconds, she didn’t say anything. “Lena baby?”

  “Are you at a party? Drunk, too?”

  He exhaled and stared at the ceiling. “Yeah, a bunch of the guys from the jobsite got together for the night.”

  She didn’t say anything after that.

  “Baby, nothing happened. You know that right, trust me?”

  It took her several seconds to answer. “Rory, I trust you, no matter what, but I really needed to talk to you tonight, and I can tell you’re drunk.” She exhaled. “Right now isn’t a good time for this conversation.”

  She sounded like she was crying, and that had him sobering.

  “Baby, are you upset because of that fucking bitch?” She didn’t answer right away, but he could hear her crying still. “Fuck, please don’t cry.” He hated that he was so drunk, that he couldn’t be there for her.

  “Listen, I thought I could do this on the phone, thought we could talk, but I can’t right now.” She sniffed. “Call me tomorrow when you’re sober, Rory. I love you.” And then she hung up, and he was tempted to crush his phone. He shoved his cell back in his pocket, rested his head in his hands, and cursed again. Whatever she wanted to talk about, whatever was making her cry, he had a feeling it didn’t have to do with this bullshit that just happened.

  12

  Lena woke at first because of a dream, one where she’d been running and running, but stayed in the same place. As she stared at the ceiling in her bedroom, sweat covering her forehead and chest, having her shirt damp, she realized it wasn’t actually the dream that had woken her up, but the pain in her abdomen.

  It wasn’t unbearable, but the longer she lay there, the minutes passing, the worse it became. Covering her belly with her hand, she closed her eyes and breathed out. They were horrible cramps, and as another wave slammed into her, she couldn’t help but think of Rory.

  The conversation just a few hours ago played through her head, that little bitch’s voice on the end of his cell making her angry, sad, and ready to break something.

  She sat up, gripped the sheet beneath her with one hand, and clenched her jaw. An involuntary cry left her, and sweat started to coat her forehead and between her breasts. Before long, she was huddled over her bed, her arms around her waist, and a small cry leaving her because of the pain.

  That was when she looked between her legs and saw the blood between her thighs. Wiping her finger over the inside of her leg, she brought her hand up and looked at the red substance that looked almost black under the moonlight.

  “Mom,” she said in a soft voice, her fear and panic mounting. “Mom!” She screamed out this time, feeling like she might pass out, but forcing herself to stand. The blood trailed down her thighs, and the pain picked up again. Her bedroom door burst opened, her light was turned on, and her mother and father stood there. She turned and stared at them with what she knew were wide, frightened eyes.

  “Lena, oh my God,” her mother said and came forward, her eyes seeing the blood, her fear and panic as clear as what Lena felt.

  Lena held up her hands and stared at the blood covering her fingers. “Something’s wrong.”

  “Risk of miscarrying.”

  “Risk of miscarrying.”

  The doctor stood in front of Lena and her mother, his white lab coat bright, stark … emotionless, just like his expression and voice. His bedside manner sucked. He’d said a shitload of stuff since he’d walked into the patient room, but that was all she heard.

  Risk of a miscarriage.

  He stared down at a clipboard, wrote something, and then finally looked at her.

  He started talking about what she’d need to do, precautions that would need be taken so she didn’t lose the baby.

  A baby.

  Pregnant.

  On instinct, she placed her hand on her belly.

  “Did you have any questions?”

  Lena stared at the doctor for a second and then turned and looked at her mother.

  “It’s okay, honey. If you have any questions, now is the best time to ask.”

  Lena stared down at her hands for a second, and when she had enough courage, she looked at the doctor again. He looked stoic as though this was a run-of-the-mill conversation he had any day of the week.

  “I’m still pregnant?”

  He nodded. “The ultrasound and bloodwork looked okay, but you’ll need to take it easy for the next few days, and drink plenty of fluids. We’ll schedule a follow-up at the end of the week to make sure everything still looks good.” He stared at her and gave a small smile although it looked blank. Bland. “The nurse will come in with more homecare instructions and a couple of prescriptions I’d like you to start. As well as starting prenatal vitamins right away.”

  “Is it something I did wrong?”

  The wall the doctor had on his face slowly faded as he gave her a genuine smile. “No. You didn’t do anything wrong. These things happen at times, and no amount of medical training can explain why.”

  She nodded, her tongue feeling too thick to say anything else.

  The doctor left a few minutes later, and the silence stretched out between her and her mother.

  Lena didn’t know what to say. She was in a pair of light blue hospital pants and a hospital gown. Lena hadn’t even told Rory about being pregnant, and now she had to tell him that she almost lost their baby. The tears came fast and hard, and when her mom pulled her close, wrapped her arms around her shoulders, and told her everything was going to be okay, Lena wanted to believe that.

  When she was able to get control of herself and stopped crying, she pulled away from her mother.

  “Have you told Rory about the pregnancy?” her mother asked in a soft, caring voice.

  She shook her head. “I just barely found out.” She expected her mother to maybe yell at her, tell her it’s stupid that she wasn’t careful, that she should have been smart and used protection, but all her mom did was hold her again, kiss the top of her head, and tell her things would be okay again.

  “We’ll get through this, sweetheart. Everything will be okay. We’ll make sure it is.”

  Lena pulled back and looked at her mom. “You’re not mad at me, Mom?”

  Her mom smiled and shook her head. She wiped the tears that were still on Lena
’s cheeks. “No, honey. I’m just worried about you. But I know you’ll be okay because you’re strong. And this little one,” her mother said and placed a hand on her lower belly. “This little baby is strong, too, just like you.” She smoothed a hand over Lena’s hair. “It’ll be hard, I’m sure, but it’ll be okay, sweetheart.”

  Lena looked at her hands, feeling her mother’s words resonating in her. She couldn’t help but believe them.

  “He’ll be there for you. That boy loves you so much.”

  That had Lena smiling. “But his job in Colorado…” She took a deep, fortifying breath. “If I tell him, he’ll want to come back here and be with me, I know it.”

  “And as he should, sweetheart. But whether he does or not is his choice, but you have to tell him. He needs to know about the baby.”

  Her mom was right, of course, but it was the truth that he’d want to come to her, be with her. She didn’t want him leaving his job behind when there was nothing he could actually do right now anyway. Besides, he had been so determined and anticipated making something of himself with it. She didn’t want to ruin that for him, but she also wouldn’t keep this from Rory either.

  He deserved to know. He deserved the truth.

  13

  The feeling of his cell vibrating right by his face had Rory opening his eyes and searching the bed for his phone. He found it wedged under his pillow, grabbed it, and lifted the brightly lit screen to his face. The time read it was three in the morning, and the image of Lena’s gorgeous face on the screen stared back at him.

  He sat up, still slightly drunk, but he’d guzzled water and popped some pain relievers when he’d gotten home, so he was in much better shape than he had been hours ago.

  He scrubbed a hand over his face to wake up a bit more, and hit the accept button to answer the phone.

  “Lena, you okay, baby?” His voice was deep and guttural from sleep and still being partly buzzed. But the longer he sat up, the more he focused and the better he felt.

  “Rory …” She exhaled slowly, but he could hear the tension, the tightness laced in that lone word.

  That had everything in him coming to alert. This wasn’t about their conversation earlier in the night, he knew that with everything in him. No, his girl was calling him in the middle of the night because shit had happened.

  He stood, his heart beating fast as adrenaline pumped through his body. “Lena, what’s wrong? Are you okay?” There was more crying, and he was feeling frantic now. Rory was thousands of miles away from her, but at that moment, he wanted nothing more than to hold her.

  “I’m sorry to call you this late, and to have to tell you this on the phone …” She was breathing hard, sniffing every so often, but he could tell she was trying to get control of herself.

  “Baby, you don’t ever be sorry.” The first thing that came to his mind was that someone had died. He didn’t think it was about Brian because that son of a bitch was built like a tank, and no matter how he abused his body with alcohol and wear, he kept on ticking. Maybe it was Lena’s mother or father?

  God, he wanted to be there with her. Sitting back down on the edge of the bed and trying to calm himself as well, he took a deep breath in and focused on the wall across from him.

  “Talk to me, baby,” he said softly this time, giving her time to regroup and relax a little.

  “I called …” She paused a moment. “God, I wish I didn’t have to tell you any of this on the phone.”

  Yeah, he wished that, too, wished like hell he were with her right now. He gave her a moment to regroup, to find her comfort zone in whatever she was struggling with right now and having a hard time telling him. But inside Rory was a wreck. He was a beast wanting out, wanting to make things right for Lena.

  “I called earlier to tell you I was pregnant, Rory,” she said so softly, in a rush, and he almost didn’t hear her, or maybe he was in such shock it felt like he hadn’t heard her correctly.

  “What?” Rory wheezed out. He felt like his chest was on fire, like someone had a vise grip around his heart and lungs, squeezing, intent on sucking the very life from him. “Pregnant?” He wheezed out that lone word, but the silence stretched out between them. “Lena, baby, talk to me.” The shock was limb numbing, mind scattering, but he had to keep a straight head right now, for Lena’s sake. She was dealing with that alone, and he was in another state, not able to help her with this or be there for her.

  “Rory,” she said his name but started crying harder this time. That was when he heard someone else talking, heard her mother’s voice, and also made out what sounded like an overhead message because it sounded like it echoed. Sitting up even straighter, he knitted his brows.

  “Where are you, Lena?”

  Her mom kept saying something softly to Lena, and although he couldn’t make out the words, the tone told him it was comforting.

  “I found out I was pregnant a couple of days ago, but before I called you tonight …” She paused again. “I had to go to the hospital because I was bleeding—”

  Everything around him froze, the sound ceased, the air stilled, and all he could do now was stare at the wall and feel his heart pounding in his chest.

  Thump, thump. Thump, thump. Thump, thump.

  “Are you okay?” he said right away. “Are you okay?” He needed to know that above all else.

  “I’m fine.” Her voice was soft, distant. He felt relief fill him.

  “Good. That’s … good.” And then the second part hit him. The baby. “Lena … the baby?”

  She exhaled and he felt his heart seize again. “The baby is fine. But I was at risk for a miscarriage.”

  He hurt, all over. God, he hurt.

  He hated himself that he didn’t have anything comforting to say at that moment, but he knew one thing: he had to be with her. “But you’re okay? You’ll be okay?” He felt frantic, scared shitless, and didn’t know how in the hell he wasn’t pacing the room and breaking shit, his emotions in turmoil.

  “I’m okay,” Lena spoke softly.

  They were both so silent that it was like the line went dead.

  “Are you okay, Rory?” she asked.

  Damn, here she was going through this alone, and she was worried about him.

  “I’m fine, baby.”

  She cleared her throat, and he heard her mother speaking to her again. “Stunned … scared.”

  He breathed out roughly. “I wish I was there with you. I’d be holding you, Lena.”

  “I know, Rory. I wish you were here, too, but I’m okay. Everything will be okay.” More silence stretched between them, and he heard someone speaking overhead on the other line again. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you right away about the baby, but everything seemed to happen so fast.”

  He closed his eyes and shook his head. “It’s okay, Lena. You don’t apologize to me or about this. I am coming for you, coming to be with you. You don’t need to be alone right now.”

  “No, no,” she said and cleared her throat. “I’m fine. My mom’s here, and you leaving won’t do anything but have you possibly losing everything with your job. I am fine, really.” A moment of silence stretched out between them. “I’m taking the doctor’s advice and staying on bed rest, taking things slow. As long as I follow all that, I know I’m doing everything I can to make things work out to the best of my ability.”

  “I love you,” he croaked, feeling helpless and weak for the first time in his life.

  “I love you, too.” He heard the genuine emotions in those three words as she whispered them.

  He scrubbed his face. “Listen, get some rest. I love you, and we’ll talk tomorrow, okay?”

  Lena whispered she loved him again and got off the phone.

  No fucking way he was going to be able to stay in Colorado, not when his girl needed him. No, Rory would do whatever it took to get back, even if that meant losing his job and any opportunity he had with this company in the future. Lena was everything to him.

  She was his w
orld, and he needed to be with her.

  14

  A few days later

  She sat on her bed, staring out the window, her thoughts confused and heavy. It had been three days since she’d told Rory about the baby, and although she’d spoken to him on the phone since then, all she could keep thinking about was how things would play out.

  Lena didn’t know how long she sat there, but the sound of someone coming up the stairs didn’t even faze her. She was too lost in her own thoughts, in wishing Rory was here, but knowing she didn’t want him to leave his job because he’d been so determined about it, almost excited about the advancements he’d make with the company and being able to provide for her.

  That had her smile. God, he was such a good guy, so thoughtful and compassionate.

  The feeling of someone standing behind her, the feeling of that awareness that she was being watched, had Lena turning around on her bed and staring at Rory. She felt her eyes widen, felt her heart start to pick up its pace. Standing, feeling like she was in this surreal moment, she wanted to move toward him but found herself rooted to the spot.

  “Rory?”

  “Hey, baby,” he said softly and smiled, although it didn’t reach his eyes. He walked into the room, and before she knew what was happening, he had her in his arms and just held her. They stood like that for what seemed like forever, but she was okay with that. She felt the love she had for him consume her, felt his love for her seep into her, and didn’t want this moment to end. Crying was right there at the surface, but it wasn’t just from the sadness. She was also so happy to have him here.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked and leaned back to look up into his face. “What about your job? Did they let you leave, or did you just walk out?” She had a feeling it was the latter.

  “I couldn’t let you go through this alone, Lena.” He cupped the back of her head and leaned down to kiss her. “I tried to do the right thing, the right way with the foreman. I told him it was a family emergency, but he flat out said if I left I couldn’t come back, and I wouldn’t be able to get any work with them down the road.”