Page 136 of When You Blush

I’m pretty sure the Earth just shifted on its axis.

“What?”

“I’m sorry.” I pull my hand out of hers and cross my arms over my chest, and the immediate hurt in her eyes makes my gut clench. “I swear to God, Blake, I planned to tell you on Wednesday when we had the day off together so we could talk and not be interrupted or rushed. But that’s not going to happen now, and that pisses me off. Ijustfound out last night. I have not been hidingthis from you.”

The knot around my chest loosens as tears fill her gorgeous gray eyes.

“I swear, I wasn’t hiding it. You got home late, and then you were gone this morning, and our schedules?—”

I remember when I climbed into bed, and she said we needed to talk.

“Okay.” I can’t stand it. I pull her against me, careful of her right side and press my lips to her hair. “Okay, baby. You weren’t keeping secrets.”

“No.I wouldn’t do that. I think my implant expired. But I saw the baby today because I got an ultrasound to be sure”—she pulls ultrasound images out of her pocket—“and there’s a baby.”

“I need to examine you, and we need to get another ultrasound to make sure that fucker didn’t hurt the baby, then we can talk about the rest, Harper.”

I know I sound detached and hard, but I’m in doctor mode. I need to make sure she’s okay before I can dive into the emotions of what this all means.

My God, she’s pregnant.

“I get it,” she says with a nod, and she lets me tug her scrubs top up over her head so I can see her side.

Bruises bloom in angry purple and black over her ribs and down her hip.

“Christ, baby.”

“I don’t think anything’s broken,” she says. “But fuck if it doesn’t hurt.”

“It looks like agony. Are you dizzy?”

“I was, but that’s better now. He hit me on the head twice. Once on the side, and one punch to the face.”

Rage coils in my belly, and I clench my teeth together.

“I’m going to kill that motherfucker.”

“I’ll press charges. I just needed you first. I really needed you, Blake.”

“I’m right here,” I reply, then poke my head out the door. “I need an ultrasound machine in here now. Let’s get an IV going with warm fluids.”

I glance over and see Harper’s teeth chattering.

“And warm blankets. Move.”

We hustle, and within minutes, my girl is hooked up to an IV, a heart monitor, and a blood pressure cuff, which she glares at.

No one loves the blood pressure cuff.

“Do they have to stay?” she asks when I get ready to do the ultrasound.

“I’m going to go check on room 3,” my nurse says, and takes the tech with her, leaving just Harper and me in the room.

“Thanks,” she says softly, her eyes pinned to the screen as I start the ultrasound.

The heartbeat starts right away, shifting something in my soul, and then it’s on the screen, beating strong.

“Is everything okay?” Harper asks. “Tell me it’s okay, Blake.”