Page 72 of Thorns of Desire

“Are you feeling dizzy?”

“No.”

“How have you been feeling in general, before the accident?”

Tired as fuck. Writing, breaking into bookstores, being attacked, having sex with an incredibly hot Italian. Although, I didn’t think the good old doctor would appreciate my honesty.

“Tired, but I’ve been super busy,” I ended up answering with a bit of a snort.

He nodded once, then continued using his stethoscope.

“Hmmm,” he hummed. He exchanged a curious look with Manuel, then turned back at me with a speculative look. “Any chance of a pregnancy?”

I stiffened and my stomach dropped while I mentally scrambled to recall the date of my last period. I racked my brain… How long had it been? Was it before I met Manuel?

“I’m on birth control,” I whispered as a terrible realization settled like lead in the pit of my stomach. I reached for my phone, my heart racing in my chest as I looked back through my calendar.

Oh my God.

No, no, no.It was impossible to be pregnant. I’d had my shot… Oh. My. God. I missed my last appointment.Shit, shit, shit.My periods were always irregular; sometimes I went months without getting it.

My stomach dropped. It couldn’t be. The shot had never failed me. Plus I always used a condom.

Except with Manuel.

Shit, shit,shit. With everything going on, I hadn’t even thought about the morning-after pill. Never even crossed my mind to ask Manuel to use a condom.

“It’s impossible.” I shook my head. This couldn’t happen to me. For Christ’s sake, I was always so careful, not wanting to repeat my mother’s mistake.

The doctor shuffled around in a cabinet and brought a new device to my belly.

My brows furrowed. “What are you doing?”

He smiled gently. “Listening.”

My gaze flitted to Manuel who seemed just as speechless, but then the doctor’s next words had the whole world fading away.

“I can’t hear anything, but let’s get you a pregnancy test for peace of mind.”

I opened my mouth, then paused, every limb freezing. Panic started building in my chest, but I forced it down. Things were going to be okay. I wasn’t pregnant.

No vomiting. Check.

No nausea. Check.

No period. Goddammit, I wish it wasn’t a check.

“Miss, have you been feeling nauseous?” the doctor asked softly again, pulling me out of a whirlwind of thoughts.

I swallowed. “No.”

“We can take your urine sample right now and I’ll be able to tell you for certain whether you’re pregnant or not.”

“I don’t want to know,” I breathed, on the verge of hysteria.

Manuel closed the distance, taking my hand in his. “We need to know.”

I closed my eyes, praying I’d wake up from this nightmare. Unfortunately, when I opened my eyes, nothing had changed. This was very much my reality.