Page 12 of Reluctantly Ever After (The Oops Baby Club #2)

Reed's gaze darts between Kasen and me, then down to the tablet.

His eyes widen as his head snaps back up to me and then his friend as he laughs.

"Wait. You're the— Wren, he's the...?" Reed fumbles, a faint flush creeping up his neck before he visibly clamps down, forcing the doctor mask back into place.

He clears his throat, adjusting his perfectly knotted tie. "Right. The father."

"Took you long enough," I say, unable to resist. What can I say? Watching Kasen squirm is fun. "Yep. He's my baby daddy."

Reed blinks, his brain clearly still processing the shock. "Okay. Wow. Okay." He takes a slow, deep breath. "This is... definitely not what I expected walking in here." He shoots Kasen a look that clearly promises an interrogation later. "Does Banks know about this?"

"No," Kasen mutters quickly, suddenly finding the pattern on the linoleum floor intensely interesting. "We haven't told anyone."

"Uh-huh," Reed says again, and I can practically see him writing the mental note to get all the details out of Kasen later. He turns back to me, forcing a professional tone, though he still looks like he’d rather sit down and talk about what’s happening here.

He glances down and taps something on his tablet.

"So, Wren, putting that aside... how have you been feeling since our last appointment? "

"Less like I'm actively trying to redecorate your office with my stomach contents," I tell him. "More like I could pass out cold at any second. And apparently, I now cry at literally everything. This morning, I teared up because I was almost out of shampoo. It's humiliating."

"Exhaustion and emotional lability are normal for ten weeks," Reed assures me, making notes on his tablet. He glances at Kasen, whose bouncing leg is practically vibrating the chair, with a shit-eating grin on his face. "Ready to see the baby, Dad ?"

"Uh, yeah," Kasen says, his voice tight as he glares at his friend, but then he glances over at me, and his expression softens. It’s still weird that he’s not glaring at me, too.

"Ready." Hearing him referred to as dad, accepting it so easily sends a weird burst of…

something through me. Our eyes lock for a second, and I swear I feel that look all the way down to my toes before I force myself to look away.

Reed nods. "Okay, Wren, let's get you situated."

My heart’s going crazy as I lie back. Kasen moves his chair closer, and I'm hyperaware of every inch of him. The clean scent of his cologne that makes him smell good enough to eat, the barely suppressed nervous energy humming off him, and the heat from his skin seeping into mine even though we’re not touching.

Reed lifts my shirt a little, exposing my still-flat stomach. He tucks a papery towel thing into the top of my jeans and then he squirts some gel on my stomach. It’s so cold, it makes me gasp.

"Sorry," Reed murmurs, as he flicks off the lights and then presses the ultrasound wand against my skin. "I should’ve warned you, the warmer’s broken."

The monitor flickers to life—a swirl of grey and black, and for a while all I see is… nothing? Black and gray and white splotches that mean nothing to me. Then I see something. A tiny baby-shaped blob in the center of a big, black nothing. It’s moving and rolling around and I just… have no words.

"There's your baby," Reed says. His voice is soft and almost as awed as I feel. "Right on track for ten weeks. And that flicker..." He zooms in slightly. "That's the heartbeat. It looks great. Nice and strong."

A rhythmic whoosh-whoosh-whoosh sound fills the small room. It’s so fast. “Is that…?”

“The heartbeat, yes.”

My own heart feels like it’s trying to match the rhythm. That’s... ours . Half me, half Kasen. This infuriating, complicated man beside me. The thought is staggering, and my eyes fill with tears faster than I can blink them away.

"Holy shit," Kasen breathes beside me. He sounds utterly stunned. Wrecked, even. "That little thing... that's really it?"

I risk a look at him. Gone is the grumpy guy who I can’t stand. His face is completely open, stripped bare as he stares at the screen. His eyes are wide and… is that a tear? He’s locked on the image of our baby like it's the only thing in the universe. I've never, ever seen him look like this.

My hand moves before I can talk myself out of it, and I grab his. His fingers immediately crush mine, a grip that's both romantic, and like a drowning man grabbing a life preserver. His hand is warm and calloused and somehow helps the overwhelm.

"The baby’s heart rate is excellent," Reed continues, taking what I’m assuming are measurements. "Development looks right on schedule."

Watching Kasen watch the screen, seeing that unexpected softness on his face... the word forms in my mind before I can stop it. Ours . And suddenly, the decision isn't a decision at all. It's just... fact.

"I'm keeping it," I blurt out, and they both turn to look at me.

Kasen's head snaps toward me, his eyes searching mine. The hope blooming on his face is so intense it's almost painful to see. I sort of hate that it was ever a question, and it feels stupid now as my decision settles into my bones. His voice cracks when he asks, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah." I nod, meeting his stunned gaze. The rapid beat from the monitor seems to underscore the certainty settling in my chest. "Yeah, I'm sure."

Reed’s smiling when he puts the wand-thing away. "Okay, I'll print these out for you both. Give me just a minute." He hands me the tissues for the gel and then he slips out, leaving Kasen and I alone.

Kasen still hasn't let go of my hand. "Pink.

.." he starts, then stops, just looking at me. He lifts our joined hands slightly, then seems to think better of whatever he was going to do and lets go, running his hand through his hair instead, knocking his beanie off. His hair’s messy and why is that so cute?

"Don't make this weird, Kasen," I warn, needing to regain control of the situation, tugging my hand back to wipe off the gel and pull my shirt down. "This changes things, obviously, but it doesn't magically erase..." Our rivalry. Our history. The fact we barely know each other.

All the things.

"I know," he says quickly. "We'll figure it out." He sounds like he's reassuring himself as much as me.

Reed returns with the printouts and brochures, launching back into doctor mode. He gives me a prescription for vitamins, then tells me it’s important for me to rest, stay hydrated, and the big one: avoid stress.

Pshh. As if.

Like he can read my mind, he says, "Seriously, Wren," looking pointedly from me to Kasen and back again. "Stress impacts fetal development. The first trimester is crucial. Try to keep things as low stress as you can."

I let out a laugh that sounds slightly hysterical. "Excellent advice, Doc. I'll get right on that as soon as I figure out my hopeless housing situation."

Reed frowns. "You're moving?"

"Being evicted," I say. "My building's turning into luxury condos I can’t afford." I shrug, trying to project nonchalance I don't feel. "Welcome to Portland."

"Okay, that's... that's major stress," Reed says carefully, his professional concern kicking up a notch. "Finding housing quickly in this market is practically a full-time job. You really need to avoid that kind of pressure right now."

Before I can tell him I'll handle it, or bite his head off for stating the obvious, Kasen speaks up. "She can stay with me."

I pivot to face him, feeling all kinds of things. So many things I can’t pin them all down. "Are you high?”

"Don’t be difficult," he says, ignoring my disbelief and the way I bristle at his words. He looks determined now.

Difficult? Oh, he has no idea. But challenge accepted.

"It solves the immediate problem," he presses on, bulldozing past my glare.

"You need a place, now . I have a spare room.

It's close to both our companies." He hesitates for a fraction of a second, then adds, meeting my eye, "And yeah, maybe it gives us a chance to figure out how to coexist before the baby comes.

See if we can actually do this co-parenting thing without killing each other.

" He quickly pivots back to safer ground.

"Plus, Reed just said you need less stress. This is less stress."

"Less stress?" My laugh is short, brittle, disbelief dripping from every syllable.

"We barely tolerate each other on a good day, Kasen! You want me —exhausted, hormonal, probably crying over dirty dishes one minute and irrationally angry the next—invading your space? You want this,” I jab a finger toward my stomach, the emphasis sharp, maybe unfair, but fueled by panic and hormones, “mess in your life twenty-four-seven?

That's not less stress ; that's a freaking sitcom pitch waiting to happen.”

"It's not forever," he counters, shoving his hands in his pockets, his jaw tight.

"Just until you find your own place. Look," he exhales sharply, "I'm not trying to trap you, or pull some shit with Cascade, or.

.. whatever convoluted conspiracy you're cooking up.

" He meets my eyes. "You need to avoid stress, like Reed said.

This helps. Let me help, Wren. For the baby. "

And at those last three words, I go all gooey and melty inside and what the fuck.

Fuck you, hormones.

And why does he have to be so hot? Honestly, how am I supposed to keep looking at him like my nemesis when every part of my body wants to be on every part of his?

Reed clears his throat loudly, and I startle.

Holy shit, I forgot he was here. "I think I'll, ah, leave you two to discuss.

" He hands me the ultrasound pictures, those precious grainy images of the life inside me.

"Call my office for your next appointment.

And Wren? Take it easy." He makes a swift exit, practically fleeing the impending explosion.

The door clicks shut, leaving Kasen and me alone in the suddenly too-small room.

"This is certifiably insane," I state flatly.

"What's insane is you trying to find an apartment in three weeks while dealing with first-trimester bullshit," he shoots back, pulling off his beanie to run a hand through his messy dark hair.

"I know we drive each other crazy. But this isn't about that.

This is about making sure you and..." he gestures vaguely at my stomach, ". ..are okay."

"How can you possibly think this could work?”

He gives me a little smirk. "Because we worked in Vegas.”

I ignore the liquid heat pouring into my veins at the reminder of his body on top of mine, behind me, under…

Nope.

“We were drunk. Blackout drunk. And in case you’ve forgotten, I can’t drink right now.”

“I haven’t forgotten.” His eyes get darker before he blinks, and it’s gone. “Just think about it, Pink. I’ve got the space, you need a place. It’s simple."

"Right," I snap, suddenly feeling all kinds of overwhelmed. "Simple. It’s so easy to uproot my entire life.”

I stand up, gathering my stuff and taking a second to wipe my face because a couple of stray tears managed to escape. I hate change and everything’s changing, and I don’t know how to cope outside of crying. And maybe chocolate.

When I refuse to look at him, he steps closer so I have to tilt my chin up to hold eye contact. “Please.”

The unexpected openness in his eyes when he says that single word throws me off. This isn't the Kasen James who pisses me all the way off.

This is someone else and I don’t know him. Inside my head, my thoughts are at war. His house is convenient. It would solve the immediate crisis. But living with Kasen?

"I need time to think," I say finally, clutching the ultrasound photos like they’ll protect me from whatever feelings are starting to take root inside of me when it comes to him. I reluctantly loosen my grip and hand him one to take.

He nods, accepting it. He tucks the photo into his back pocket with a grin. "Okay. Fair enough."

We walk out to the parking garage, the silence between us heavy and filled with so much. He’s walking close enough that his fingers brush mine while our arms swing next to each other and every time his skin touches mine, I feel it as sparks between my legs.

I’m in so much trouble.

At his truck, Kasen stops.

"Hey," he says quietly, meeting my eyes. "For what it's worth... I’m happy you decided what you did. About keeping it."

I touch the pocket in my purse where all but one of the photos are safely tucked away. "Yeah," I whisper. "Me, too."