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“You left early, but he stayed. We were flirting, as usual, and I dared him to kiss me. I never thought he’d actually do it. But once we started, we couldn’t stop. We didn’t want to stop.” Tears burned her eyes and spilled over again. “It was the best night of my life,” she whimpered. “I really thought this was it, that we were finally gonna make a go of it after all our flirting, but then he left for Denver.”
“And what happened?” Shannon asked.
“He didn’t call me. I thought he would. He said he would. He left before I even woke up, and the first time I saw him since was two days ago when he dropped you off at the church.”
“I can’t believe him!” Shannon looked appalled. “I’m so angry right now. I want to give him a piece of my mind and let his new fiancée know exactly what kind of guy he is.”
“You don’t mean that. He’s your brother, and you love him. Even if he did something like this.”
Shannon grew quiet, probably mulling over what Jamie had said.
“It’s not like I haven’t had guys use me before.” Jamie lowered her head and more tears fell and plopped onto her lap. “I just never thought Duncan would be one of them.”
Shannon reached over and laid her hand on Jamie’s.
“And I would normally be able to shake it off and move on if it wasn’t for …” Jamie’s shoulders shook with more sobs, and she buried her face in the pillow. How could she tell Shannon this?
As she tried to gather the strength to break the news, she felt Shannon scoot closer and rub a comforting hand over her back. She turned her head and rested it on the pillow, looking up at her best friend.
“I’m pregnant.”
“You’re pregnant?” Shannon’s throat moved as she swallowed hard.
Jamie answered with a slow, sad nod. “I thought I was late from the stress of the wedding season or something, but then I remembered throwing up after the rehearsal dinner, so I took a test last night.”
“And it was positive?”
“Yeah, I kind of freaked out and smashed some things.” Jamie pointed to the trash bag. “And then I thought, it’s Duncan. We could do this. We could raise a baby together. So, I planned to tell him after lunch today.” The emotions hit her hard again, and her chin quivered as she fought them. “I don’t know what to do now. I don’t know if I should keep it.”
Jamie felt Shannon sit up a little straighter. “It’s not the baby’s fault you and Duncan got carried away. That’s my brother’s baby, Jamie. Please, don’t do anything without telling him.”
“But he’s getting married now. If I tell him, I’ll mess up his whole life, and he’ll resent me for it. And even if he were to leave her for me, it would be because of the baby, and I don’t want him that way. I want him because he wants to be with me, and he obviously didn’t or he would’ve called after that night.”
“You’ll never know unless you talk to him.”
Jamie didn’t know if she should. “It would be easier for everyone if I made it go away.”
Shannon looked suddenly peaked. Jamie was about to ask if she was all right when she spoke again.
“Of course, it would be easier on Duncan if you terminated the pregnancy and never told him. But what about you? Could you go back to your life and pretend it never happened?”
That thought broke Jamie’s heart. “I don’t know. This isn’t how I thought things would go down with me and Duncan. And honestly, if he and I were a couple, I’d want this baby. But I don’t want to be a single mom. I know that.”
Tears filled Shannon’s eyes and slipped down her cheeks, and Jamie sat up to look at her. “Are you mad at me?”
Shannon wiped at her wet cheeks. “In our family, we believe every life counts, that God has a purpose for each person, including the babies not yet born, no matter how they came to be conceived. This baby is innocent, and it’s our blood. A part of our family.”
The McGregor family. She loved them all so much, and the thought that the baby would connect her to them warmed her heart. “You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to be part of your family.”
“You have to tell him, Jame. You don’t know what might happen when you do. Because no matter who this girl is he brought home, he cares about you. I know it. You should’ve seen his face when you left. He was so worried about you. He made me promise to check on you and make sure you were okay.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
Hope bloomed but was quickly pushed aside. She’d seen Duncan and Dréa together. The perfect couple. He would never leave Dréa for her. Jamie shook her head. “No, I can’t hold onto false hope. How would I do this on my own? I don’t have any family here. I can’t afford a nanny or daycare. Not to mention the cost of actually having the baby. Doctor appointments. Food. Diapers.”
“Our family would help. You know we would.”