Page 84 of Ruining Vanessa

“Denial isn’t just a river in Egypt,” I sing-song, but I’m unrelenting. “Pee on the stick, Vanessa.”

With trembling hands, she takes the pregnancy test from me. She stares at the box, not seeming to really absorb anything she’s reading. “Let me brush my teeth first,” she says quickly, grabbing onto the sink to help pull herself up. “My mouth tastes horrible. Fish does not taste good coming up.”

“It really doesn’t,” I agree. I get up too, leaning against the wall to watch her. It’s strange how even something as simple as brushing her teeth looks sexy when she does it.

Well, it helps that she’s still naked. I grin, giving in to temptation and wrapping my arms around her from behind. Vanessa flinches, but she doesn’t stop brushing her teeth.

“I know what you’re hoping for,” I murmur against her ear. “But imagine just how happy we’d all be if it goes my way. A tiny life inside you. Showing off your fertility for Damien. Showing us just how perfect you are.” I rub her belly gently.

Damien’s pregnancy kink really is rubbing off on me.

She gargles with the mouthwash, and I wait as patiently as I can. This is a big moment for her, after all, and I’m willing to give her a few minutes—especially since I can drive Damien absolutely nuts in the meantime while he waits for me to text back.

Finally, she can’t stop stalling anymore. She spits out the mouthwash, and I grin at her. “Ready, Mama?”

From the look in her eyes, she’s not ready at all, but she nods. She opens the cardboard packaging, pulling out the plastic-wrapped test with shaking hands, and sits down on the toilet. “Can you… not watch?” she asks, her voice as tremulous as her hands.

I raise an eyebrow at her. “And risk you peeing to the side? Nah. Also, you are very, very cute when you’re all red with humiliation.”

“Giulio…” she says with a bit of a whine in her voice. It’s cute, how she thinks she’s going to sway me, and I grin at her. Her shoulders slump in resignation, and she unwraps the test and stares at it. She swallows hard then slowly positions it between her legs.

Nothing happens.

“I can’t pee with you watching me,” she says after a pause, even though this wouldn’t be the first time. “I have a shy bladder.”

“Want me to go over there and push down on it? Force everything out the door?” I suggest, waggling my eyebrows. “Damien’s got me on board with the pregnancy thing, and I really will get into watersports if that’s actually your thing.”

“It’s not!” she says quickly, her cheeks going red. “Just… give me a minute.” She closes her eyes, like she’s trying to pretend I’m not there. But from the way she just keeps blushing harder and harder, she’s well aware of my presence.

Finally, after what seems like an eternity, she starts to pee. I make sure she doesn’t angle the stick away, and I’m more eager than expected to see what the result is going to be. I don’t want to get my hopes up, but…

She finishes, and she sets the test on the sink.

“Now we wait,” I say cheerfully. “Wanna ride me while it does its thing?”

Vanessa glares at me, tears sparkling again in the corners of her eyes. “You know I don’t,” she snaps.

“You sure?” I grab her wrist and pull her into an embrace, settling my arms around her waist. Since we’re the same height, I can easily bring our lips together.

My phone buzzes in my back pocket, again.

“That’s Damien,” I tell her, nibbling at her lip. “He’s been pestering me ever since I asked him when your last period was. Think he suspects?”

“Probably,” she mutters. To my surprise, she doesn’t pull away from me, even though she’s tense in my arms. “If you don’t answer him, he’ll probably just show up. He’s insane about this stuff.”

“He just really wants a baby.” I squeeze her ass gently. “Did he tell you, he used to have a huge family? I met his sister once. She’s a fucking bitch.”

Vanessa shakes her head, looking a little queasy. “I don’t want a huge family,” she says quickly, but she pauses, then asks, “What happened? He used to?”

Yeah, Vanessa pretends she hates us, but she always wants to know more about us too. I can always see how eager she is for the scraps of information we drop.

“I don’t know all the details. But Damien’s mom was raising four kids on her own. Damien’s the oldest. And I guess they needed money, so Damien found a great way to make some money.” I kiss her again, running my tongue along the seam of her lip.

She stubbornly keeps her mouth shut.

“How does a sixteen-year-old make enough money to help support five people, Vanessa?” I prod.

She hesitates. “Probably… not things that are too great, morally,” she says reluctantly after a pause. Her eyes flick toward the pregnancy test, and she shifts restlessly in my arms before looking back at me. “But wouldn’t they be grateful?”

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