Page 82 of Rivals Next Door

“Why are you coming into my apartment like the walking dead?” Elena asked with amusement lacing her voice. She closed her door and watched me shuffle—like a zombie—to her couch to flop down.

“Because I really am a dead woman walking,” I groaned.

She laughed. “You’re not prone to dramatics. What’s up? Did you find more terrible things about your almost-business partner?” She waltzed over to me and perched on the coffee table.

“I haven’t thought about Don Weaver or work all day, Elena. I have more pressing concerns.”

“Oh.” Her eyebrows shot up. “Do tell.”

My gaze shifted to her open laptop beside her. “Did I interrupt your work?”

“Not at all. The deadline is way down the line. And you know I always have time to chat with my girl.” She beamed. “We need to catch up. I miss you. I’ll get some wine…”

“No wine. No alcohol at all for a while.”

She gasped and clutched her chest. “Blasphemy!”

I sniggered. Count on Elena to make me laugh when I was miserable. “I know, but I’m serious. No alcohol at least for another seven months.” I wrinkled my nose. “Wait, I have to take into account breastfeeding too, right? Hell, I don’t know when I’ll be able to enjoy a nice glass of wine.”

“Livy, what on earth…?” Elena frowned and tilted her head. She was sharp, so I knew she’d figure it out fast. Her wide eyes dropped to my stomach. “Get the fuck out!”

“I wish I could get the fuck out of the country,” I muttered. Being far away from my baby daddy would probably be for the best…

“Olivia… when… how?”

“How?” I scoffed. “Really?”

“I mean, how…? You know what I mean,” she hissed.

“I messed up with my birth control, and I've been having a lot of sex with my ex-boyfriend,” I wailed.

“Oh. My. God.” Elena gawked at me while I stewed in misery.

“Elena, stop gawking. You can’t lose your head because I’ve already lost mine and one of us needs to stay sane.”

She blinked and snapped her mouth shut. “Okay. Okay. We’re not panicking.”

I pressed a hand to my chest. “I am. I can’t have a baby by a man who hates me!”

Elena got up and joined me on the sofa. She placed a comforting hand on my knee. “Breathe, Livy. You’re getting the high-pitched, on the verge of a meltdown tone. And you’re frighteningly pale right now.”

I inhaled deeply. I’d never had a panic attack before, but I felt as if I was about to get one. Closing my eyes, I reached deep for my composure. “I’m sorry to stop by and dump this on you.”

“Hey, who else are you going to dump things on if not me?”

I laughed. “Certainly not my baby daddy.”

“Oh. My. God…” she repeated and then she shook her head. “I’m sorry. I’m shocked. Livy, when I said you need to have a little fun and get a love life, I didn’t mean you should go from zero to one thousand in just a few weeks.”

“Not funny,” I huffed.

She held up her hand. “You’re right. You know I can’t help myself. So, Alex is the…?”

“Uh-huh.”

“And have you told him?”

“Nope.” I fiddled with the strap of my handbag that rested on my lap. “I just found out today.”

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