Page 113 of Unveil

I hesitate. Ijusttold him I was okay. Will I sound like I’m lying if I say no?

Trust him. Go with the truth.

“I…” God, I hope he believes me. “I can’t take them.”

He eyes me. Concern and ember shadows carve deep lines across his brow before he pleads. “Come on, baby…”

“I’m not on birth control.”

His head jerks. “What does that have to do with anything?”

“What if…” I worry my lip. “What if we’ve made a baby? You never know.”

“I hope we did.” A smile tugs at his mouth, and my stomach flutters with need. Then that smile turns wicked. “You’ll be a lot less of a pain in the ass to catch if you’re waddling away from me down the aisle with a beach ball under your gown.”

I don’t laugh, though, and he sobers fast, clearing his throat before asking the right question. “But what does being pregnant have to do with your medicine…”

Understanding softens his face. He shakes his head. “Baby, it’s so early, that’s not even on my radar. I don’t think we need to worry about that.”

“How could you know?”

“Idon’tknow, but I do know that you’re what matters most to me. Don’t get me wrong, anything we create between us matters to me too. But you’re the most important person in my life. Whatever you need to do for your health, I want—no, Ineedyou to do it. So please. Take the medicine.”

My skin tingles at everything he’s saying, all the right words. It’s not enough, though.

“I’m already coming down. I can feel it. And we’ll make it to Benoit’s car by tomorrow afternoon, right? Where we’ll probably have good cell service again?”

He keeps studying me as he slides my friend’s phone out, then thumbs through the screen. “We should.”

“Then I’ll be fine. You may not be worried, butIneed to know. I can wait another day to call my psych.” His lips thin, and my voice gentles. “Respect this. Please. I already have to fight for that sometimes with this disorder, even against people with the best intentions. I don’t want to have to fight for it with you too.”

His shoulders slump as my plea seems to break through to him.

“Okay, baby. I trust you. But if I feel like it’s something you’re not catching yourself, will you trustme?”

I give him an earnest nod that ends in a laugh. “No problem. I already have that setup with everyone else. I suppose for the man that knows ‘everything’ about me, I should givesomethought to your opinion.”

“Yeah, yeah.” He pockets the pill bottle, rolling his eyes.

I give him a cheeky grin. “What? Don’t blame me.You’rethe creep.”

It’s a joke, but I swear, even in the firelight, Orion’s tan face pales. His eyes drop but not before I catch some awful, horrible emotion crumpling his face.

I freeze. “What is it?”

He refuses to look at me, studying the ground and curling in on himself as he nervously pops each lettered knuckle.

“Orion?”

When he finally looks up, his eyes are glassy with tears, and my heart drops to my stomach.

“Luna, did I…” he clears his throat, but his voice is still ragged. “Did I take advantage of you?”

“What?” I blurt, nearly laughing, but I keep my reaction sort of in check. “Where the hell did you get that idea?”

Okay, not in check at all, butseriously?

He swallows, his eyes dropping again. “Something your mom said.”