The Best of Us (Sullivan's Crossing #4)(60)

He backed up and sank slowly to the sofa, elbows on knees, his head in his hands. Then he lifted his head. “Aunt Helen?”

“Not back from dinner yet,” she said.

“When did you find out?”

“Two hours ago. A series of medical events at the clinic made me ask myself, when did I get that implant? And is it time for a new one? In checking, to my absolute shock, I’m overdue. Really, I hardly ever thought about it, and when I did, I remembered it as being about three years. It was actually over five. It’s effective for up to four years. I’ve had so much going on, and until you came along there was no sexual activity, so...”

“Holy God,” he said.

“Listen, I know what you must be thinking,” she said. “That I’m an idiot. I am. But I’m not devious. This was a complete accident. I was not planning a family. I’ve been very happy with things just as they are.”

“Do you have a plan?” he asked weakly.

She cleared her throat. “Yes, in about two months, I’m moving to another state and no one need ever know.”

“What? Stop that!” he said.

“I wasn’t prepared for that particular question. I just found out, Rob. Just. I haven’t decided on anything yet. I thought the first order of business was to inform you.”

“And no one else knows? Even Helen?”

“I’m not in the habit of keeping important things from Helen. But no, I haven’t told her yet.”

“What about the doctor?”

“I haven’t seen the doctor,” she said. “I’m a doctor. The symptoms I was ignoring are real and the pregnancy test confirmed—”

“Goddammit, we should have been using condoms! I’ve never taken a chance like that before, but you were using birth control and the blood test showed no STIs and... And... You know what I mean...”

“I’m not sure I do,” she said. “Can you be more specific?”

“It was just us,” he said. “It was so good.”

“Indeed,” she agreed. Au naturel was always good. “Who knew it was risky? I know this is a complication you don’t need in your life and I’m sorry. I made a mistake.”

“You don’t have to say that,” he said. “I was a very willing participant. And took no more precautions than you.” He shook his head. “I was a runaway train.”

“Every. Time. And so was I.”

“Leigh, is it even possible for you to keep this from Helen for a while? I know you’re close. But at least until you see a doctor and we have a chance to think? To talk. To work through all the possibilities...”

“Yes,” she said. “Yes, I think so. I’ll be honest, when I realized the truth, no immediate plan popped into my mind. I sure didn’t grin and think, Oh, goodie, a baby. And I’m absolutely crazy about you, but we don’t know enough about each other to do something as insane as get married. Marriage is serious business.”

“Yeah, well, so is having a family,” he said. “That’s why I think we need time to think and talk. How pregnant are you?”

She sighed. “I have no idea. I’m guessing just a few weeks. I’m going to call the doctor and set up an appointment. I’m going to call in a favor. I’ll have an ultrasound right away. We’ll figure out how far along I am.”

“Where is this doctor you’re going to call?”

“Aurora,” she said.

“I better go with you,” he said.

“Don’t worry, I’ve got this,” she said. “I can handle—”

“Leigh, we have a little something in common here and we should both have the facts as they surface, all right? It’s not just your baby. We’re going to resolve this together. Let me put that another way, we have to resolve it together.”

“Are you angry?” she asked.

“Oh, yeah, but I’m not angry with you. I’m angry with myself, with luck, with timing, with the sad selection of options. Not with you.” He smiled and reached for her hand. “How are you feeling? Are you doing all right?”

“I’m fine,” she said. “I had wondered why I was tired and why my feelings would get hurt so easily—that’s not like me. But otherwise, I feel fine. Emotionally rocky, but that’s to be expected.”

“What can I do for you right now?” he asked. “Tell me what would make you feel better?”

She was surprised and touched. She had fully expected him to fight the urge to throttle her, not offer to comfort her. “I think you’ve done it,” she said. “You took it very well, thank you. I expected fury.”

He shook his head. “I’m flawed in many ways but I don’t have much of a temper. The boys have triggered it a time or two, but it’s not a habit of mine. I wish I knew how to fix this, how to make you feel safe and protected.”

“It’s very early,” she said. “There’s always a chance I won’t even carry it.”

He pulled her into his arms and just held her for a long moment. “Somehow, I think even though we haven’t figured things out yet, that would be very sad. I don’t wish that on you.”

“That,” she whispered. “That makes me feel good.”