Page 92 of Sloane

I plunked down on the cushions and blurted out, “No, I’m pregnant.”

“Shut the front door!”

She sat down on the coffee table directly in front of me and grabbed my hands.

“Are you sure?”

I nodded. “They had me take a test at the dermatologist’s office. I guess they don’t want you getting laser treatments if you’re pregnant.”

“They made you do a test?”

“Well, I answered yes to the ‘is there a chance you could be pregnant’ question, so I think that’s why they did.”

“What made you answer yes to that? Sloane’s been gone for over two months.” She stopped suddenly and looked at me side-eyed. “Did you go out and have a one-night stand and not tell me?”

“What? No! I’ve been too tired to go out, you know that. I answered yes because the question before that asked when my last menstrual period was, and I realized I hadn’t had one since November.”

“Well, that explains why you’ve been feeling like shit.”

“Yeah…”

I wasn’t sure what else to say. Everything felt surreal.

Tammy softly stroked my hand as she quietly asked, “Do you know what you’re going to do?”

“Um… I don’t know. I’m still trying to figure out how it even happened. I never miss a pill.”

“Never?”

“Well, I mean, hardly ever. But it’s never been a big deal because I wasn’t having sex anyway.”

“Well,” she said with a smirk. “You were most certainly having sex in the middle of November.”

“Yeah,” I said with a humorless laugh. “I was. Joke’s on me, now.”

“It doesn’t have to be. You’ve got some time to make a decision.”

“You know I’m all for a woman’s right to choose. I just never thought I’d be the one in a position to have to make a choice.”

I was grateful that I had options. I knew some women didn’t.

“Well, I’m here for you, no matter what you decide.”

I teared up when I replied, “Thank you, Tam. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

She looked at my watery eyes and burst out laughing. “I don’t know how we didn’t figure this out sooner. Your hormones have been making you a hot mess.”

“I guess I just chalked it up to worrying about Sloane. And now, getting over being dumped.”

“Fuck him,” she grumbled.

“I did,” I said with a genuine laugh. “That’s why I’m in this predicament.”

~~~~

Dan took one look at me at his appointment the following week and said, “Wow, that was quick. I expected you to have a bruised-up face the next time I saw you.”

“Oh, this is still makeup. I just had a consultation. And I wouldn’t get these results with just one treatment. But I’m going to have to wait a bit before I can get started.”

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