It's a Fugly Life (Fugly #2)(39)

Gah. What a mess. As soon as I hit the sidewalk, several paparazzi greeted me, and I had no choice but to let them have their fill. Nowhere to hide. Bastards.

Callahan appeared, and true to his usual nature, he didn’t show any emotion. “Sorry I’m late—couldn’t find a spot.”

“It’s okay,” I said, ignoring the two men following us for a half a block. I felt so violently ill, I thought I might fall over right there on the sidewalk. “Please tell me you’ve heard from Max.”

“No. But are you all right?” Callahan grabbed my arm to steady me as I began tipping over.

“I think I need to lie down.” I’d call Patricio in a bit and tell him I couldn’t make the brunch on Sunday. He’d have to come up with an excuse, but hopping on a plane to pretend to be his fiancée sounded like the world’s worst idea. I felt sicker than a dog.

“Can we stop by a pharmacy on the way?” Some antacid sounded really wonderful right about now.

“Of course.” We walked around the corner to the black town car parked down an alley. Callahan opened the rear passenger door. “And may I say, Miss Snow, that you have a very impressive right hook.” He flashed a quick grin.

I bobbed my head. “Thanks, Callahan.” She did have it coming.

On the way to Max’s, I called Keri to check in on things. She’d already moved all of the meetings into the middle of next week. Thank God today was Friday. Next on my list was Patricio, but he beat me to the punch and called first. The moment I answered, all I heard were screams on the other end. “You should not be with that man! His family is like poison, Lily! Poison! I am going to kill him!” His accent was out of control and so was he.

“Patricio, just calm down.”

“Calm down-a? Calm down-a? I tell you about calming down-a! I see your video on the Tweeter! I see you being arrested because of that man’s snake of a mother. They are no good for you, Lily!”

Oh boy. I couldn’t do this right now. “Patricio, I can take care of myself. I only called to let you know that I can’t make it Sunday. Please tell your mother I’m sorry, okay?”

He began yelling some more, so I simply had to end the call. What a hothead.

I then texted my brother, telling him I’d been in an altercation and that I needed him to run interference with my parents. If I called them now, I’d have to listen to my mother crying and my father going into a fit.

Me: tell them I’ll call later, but I’m OK

John: they’re already shopping for tickets to Chicago

Me: what?

John: the arrest & pic of you hitting that bitch was all over social media

Oh no…

Me: please call them and talk them out of it

John: What’s in for me?

Me: UR such an *

John: what’s new?

I knew he was joking, sorta, but he had to know I was in a shit heap of trouble.

Me: this isn’t a game, John. I need you to keep them out of my hair. And I need mom at the store

Several long moments passed.

John: okay. I’ll take care of it. Hope you’re alright

“Miss Snow?” Callahan called out from the front seat. “Would you like me to go inside for you?”

I looked up from my phone, seeing that we’d parked in front of a pharmacy. “No, thanks. I’m okay.” I slipped out and went inside, seeking out the digestive-assistance aisle. I planned to get one of everything. As I passed by the feminine products, I didn’t think much about it, but then a bad, bad thought slammed right into my brain.

Wait. I stopped in the middle of the aisle.

I hadn’t purchased anything of a feminine-product nature since my arrival to Chicago. With a shaky hand, I scrounged through my purse and found my packet of birth control pills. I was halfway through the week—that one with the little brown pills meant to keep you on track while you had your period.

No. No…not possible. I felt sick because of stress, right? Same as it had been for almost seven months. I’d also been working harder than ever and that did not help matters. Besides, Max and I were…we were… I wanted to tell myself we’d been careful, like I’d been with Patricio, but no. No condoms. Because Max hadn’t been with anyone, and I’d been very cautious. So Max and I had relied on my pills. Same as before.

I hadn’t forgotten to take any, had I?

I slid the packet of birth control pills from my purse again. Wednesday. I was on Wednesday’s pill. Today was Friday.

Crap. I felt my blood pressure hit the floor. I’d missed two days, and if those two days were when I’d been with Max—

Ugh. Stupid, Lily! Stupid, Lily! In my own defense, I’d been taking the pill for years to help with cramping and the usual sorts of unpleasant stuff, so taking my morning dose was something I did on autopilot. I just did it.

And you forgot.

My heart pounding, I turned slowly. Right in front of my face was the display of little white sticks in fancy boxes. My trembling hand stretched out, and I felt like I was reaching for a nightmare. A big fat nightmare hiding inside an innocuous little box.

I grabbed a three-pack and headed for the register.



The ten-minute drive back to Max’s felt like two seconds. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I’d heard my cell vibrating over and over again. Callahan spoke to me, too, but I couldn’t hear a damned word. The entire world had disappeared around me, leaving only myself and my frantic heart. I sprinted inside Max’s house, through the front door and into the guest bath right off the foyer. I fumbled with the plastic-foil wrapper, tossed the cap on the ground, and did my thing. As I sat there, panting, feeling like I was going to lose my mind, a funny feeling sank in. Why was I panicking? I wasn’t all together ready, but I wasn’t fifteen. And Max would be happy, wouldn’t he? My fear that he’d be a horrible father and mentally wreck our children for not being perfect was idiotic. I saw that now. He wasn’t anything like that woman I’d hit today. He was good. He knew who he was. I had to trust him because if anyone didn’t have their ugly under control it was me, not him.