Baiting Him (How to Catch an Alpha #2)(61)

Suggestion 18

SPREAD THE NEWS

CHRISSIE

I hold my hand to my stomach, praying that the nausea goes away, because it would really suck if I had to run for the restroom to avoid puking on Leah’s kitchen table.

“I have news,” Leah says, coming toward me with a glass of wine in one hand and a bottle of water in the other. The thought of wine makes my stomach roll, but I swallow the feeling and accept the glass, knowing I won’t drink it. I still haven’t told Leah I’m pregnant . . . actually, I haven’t told anyone that Gaston and I are expecting. Part of me is still trying to come to terms with us becoming parents after only just accepting that I found the man of my dreams when I wasn’t even looking.

“What news?” I ask.

“What is that?” she practically shouts, grabbing my wrist, and I barely have time to release the wineglass before she yanks my hand toward her. “Were you trying to keep this a secret?” At her question, my eyes fly to my finger as she flicks the beautiful ring sitting there from side to side.

“Of course not.” I turn my hand over to grasp hers. “I just . . .” Do I say I forgot that I’m now engaged because I’m also pregnant and kinda focused on that because I’m seriously freaked out? “I’m trying to come to terms with things.” I feel guilty for not sharing my engagement or my pregnancy . . . not that she and Tyler have been trying long.

She grins. “I understand coming to terms with things.”

“You do?” I ask, and she laughs.

“Oh yeah.” She wipes the hilarity from under her eye with the fingers from her free hand. “It wasn’t exactly long ago that Tyler asked me to marry him.” Her eyes take on a faraway look, and her voice is soft when she starts to speak again. “I remember being overwhelmed with fear and happiness at the same time.” Her gaze, full of tenderness, locks with mine. “It all worked out, and now I cannot imagine things between us happening any differently. You’ll feel the same; just give it some time.”

“You’re right. It’s just . . .” I start to tell her I’m pregnant, but before I can get the words out, she steals them right from me.

“I’m pregnant.”

I start to shake my head in disbelief. “You’re . . . you and Tyler are pregnant?”

“Yes . . . and, well . . .” She grins. “We were wondering if you’d like to be godmother to him or her?”

“Oh my goodness.”

“Is that a yes?”

“I . . .” I place my hand over my stomach and shake my head, whispering, “Oh my God.”

I see the happy light in her eyes slide out as her features fill with confusion, and I know I need to pull myself together. “Do you . . . do you think you’d be up to returning that favor, along with taking on the job of my maid of honor?”

“What?” She looks confused.

“I somehow got myself knocked up, and I’m not only going to be a wife—I’m going to have a baby.”

“Holy smokes,” she whispers, and when she does my throat gets tight with tears. I try to hold them back, but I can’t. I drop my gaze to my lap, and she lets my hand go before her chair slides back. When her arms wrap around me, I lift my arms and hold on to her tightly. “I’m guessing Gaston knows you’re pregnant.” I nod, unable to speak. “Is he happy?” I nod again, and her hand slides down my hair. “And . . .” I listen to her pull in a breath. “Are you happy?”

“I . . . I think so,” I choke out, and she lets out the breath she’s holding.

“You’re scared.”

“Yeah.”

“A baby and an engagement is a lot to accept.” She could say that again. “It’s going to be okay. You’re going to be okay.”

“It’s just . . . it’s just that everything has happened so quickly.”

Her arms tighten around me. “Everything has happened exactly how it’s supposed to—it might not be normal or whatever, but you were supposed to meet Gaston, fall in love, and get pregnant. What you’ve found is rare and beautiful,” she says, making me feel less freaked out about how everyone else might react when we tell them the news.

“You’re right.”

“You know I’m always here for you, right? You can talk to me about anything.”

“I know.” I give her waist a squeeze, then look up at her. “It’s just I know you and Tyler have been trying, and this just kind of happened. I didn’t want you to be upset, and I’ve been stressing out about how my mom is going to feel. She loves Gaston, but she might think it’s too soon for us to have a baby.”

She cuts me off with a shake of her head. “You’re just like your dad.”

“What?”

“He kept everything from you and your entire family, thinking he was doing the right thing.” Oh God, he did do that, and I’ve done that more than once. “Like you told him, you have to let the people you love decide how they are going to react. You have to trust us to have your back, even if they might not like what is happening.”

“It’s seriously annoying that you’re using my own words against me.”

She smiles. “I love you. And I know why you didn’t want to tell me you’re pregnant, but you have to know, even if it never happened for me, I’d love you enough to still be happy for you.”