Page 38 of Twin Babies For The Grump

I smile politely at him and decide to just not mention it. If I keep it quiet, then maybe he won’t think about the fact that I’m not drinking it.

But that doesn’t work either. We chat a bit more about the upcoming Grapefest, but he eventually realizes that I haven’t had anything to drink.

Owen nods at me. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong,” I tell him. “I just don’t want to drink anything tonight. Is it really that big of a deal?”

“Yes,” says Owen. “You haven’t even had a sip. Shit, I wasn’t thinking. If you aren’t feeling good, I should have just driven you home.” He gets up and snatches the keys from the hook nearby. “Come on, I can do that now.”

“I feel fine,” I insist, not getting up. “Sit back down, Owen.”

“You clearly don’t feel fine,” he insists. “Or you wouldn’t hesitate with that. It’s your favorite blend, right down to the year.”

“Did you start keeping this on hand just for me? God, for a hard ass, you can be a real sweetheart, you know that?” I say, unable to stop the smile from blooming across my face.

Owen says, “I can’t be that sweet, or—”

“Don’t say that you would have thought to drive me home,” I tell him, a note of exasperation creeping into my voice. “I didn’t want to be driven home, and I don’t need to have tomorrow off, either.”

Owen frowns at me. “Tess.”

“No, don’t say my name like that, all disappointed and … and stern.” I stand up, bracing myself. It’s pretty clear that there isn’t going to be any way to keep the night going smoothly without telling him what’s really going on.

The only upside is that I’m sure he’ll agree with me about keeping it on the downlow until after the camera crews are gone.

“It isn’t what you’re thinking.”

Owen crosses his arms over his chest. “Then what is it? What’s going on with you tonight?”

“I told you, I went to the doctor’s earlier,” I tell him. “And he said that I wasn’t sick. I got a clean bill of health. But… he did say that—” I pause, suddenly nervous. It hits me out of nowhere.

I had been worried about how this would affect the professional view of the winery, how it might affect our rankings in Grapefest, but now, it’s suddenly crossing my mind that I’ve got no clue what Owen thinks about starting a family.

He mentioned fate bringing us together but that doesn’t necessarily mean he wants something serious, especially when it comes to having children.

“Do you like kids?” I blurt out the question, cheeks going bright red.

Owen frowns, his brows pinching down with confusion. “What?”

“Kids,” I repeat. “Do you like kids?”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Owen demands, and alright, fine, that’s a reasonable response to what must seem like a totally out there, wild, and confusing question. Nonsensical, even.

I can’t blame him for not answering.

With shaking hands, I tuck a few strands of hair behind my ears. My teeth catch on my lower lip, tugging at it.

And then I just spit it out, “I’m not sick, Owen. I’m pregnant.”

The silence that follows that admission is truly, truly crushing.

Chapter Seventeen

Owen

Pregnant.

The word echoes through the kitchen, a constant sort of ringing. For a long, long moment, we just stare at each other. In fact, I don’t realize how much time has passed until Tess curls her hands into fists at her side and demands, “Say something!”

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