Page 19 of Dump and Chase

“I don’t know how to tell you this, so I’m just going to spit it out. I’m pregnant.”

I blinked a few times. “Okay. Congrats?”

She frowned and her eyes were giving off a death stare, as if she were about to leap across the table with a machete and hack me to bits.

“Are you serious right now? Congrats?”

“I mean, what am I—” I stopped. Holy shit. I didn’t speak or move for what felt like an eternity.

“I see you’ve figured it out. That took a while. Too many pucks to the head?”

I finally found my voice. “But I used a condom.”

“Both times?”

I thought so. Didn’t I? I tried to remember putting on the second one, but there was no memory of it. I looked at her and she looked back at me, her expression giving nothing away.

“I’m sorry,” was all I could manage.

“Don’t be,” she said simply. “I’ve had a day to deal with it. And you’re the only person I’ve told.”

What was I supposed to do? What was I supposed to say? “Do you want it?” I sounded insincere and I was going to kick myself.

She nodded. “Yes. And I’m not expecting anything from you. If you want to help out, be a dad, I’m all for that. If you don’t, that’s your choice. I can make this work. You’ve made it clear to me in the past that you have no interest in being a dad, but you also had no interest in getting married, so maybe your opinion on kids has changed too.”

I was shaking my head. No way was I going to be a deadbeat. No fucking way. “You have my full support. Anything you need. This is our baby.”

She seemed surprised and that bugged me. Why would she ever think I’d abandon her? We were having a kid! A piece of me and a piece her. Yes, maybe there was a time I didn’t want kids, but that was years ago. I’d changed.

“You really don’t have to.”

Now I was confused. “But I want to. Tang, we’re having a kid. I’m not an asshole who walks away.”

She bit her bottom lip. “I guess I wasn’t sure how you’d feel. You have a fiancée who is probably not going to be happy about this.”

Shit. Brandi. With this big news, I hadn’t really thought about her and how this would affect her. What was wrong with me? “I’ll deal with that.” How? I had no idea.

“It’s been a bit of an odd day. First I find out I’m pregnant, and then my boss calls me into her office to tell me I’ve been let go. So now I don’t even have a job anymore.”

“Crap. Sorry, Tang.” And then a thought occurred to me, and before I had time to process it in my own head, I was spitting it out. “I know of a job. It’s with the Ravens, our farm team. They just lost their physiotherapist. I think he retired? I have a friend on the coaching staff who said they’re looking for a replacement before the season ramps up. The job may require travel, but I figure not as much as with the Kodiaks. I’ll put in a good word for you if you’re interested.”

She was shaking her head more as a way of slowing me down than an outright no. “I’m not sure moving back to Vancouver is the answer. And it’s still a lot of travel.”

While she was talking, I pulled up the email on my phone and handed it to her. She looked it over, even scrolling through it a second time. She was thinking about it.

“No. I can’t leave.”

“And what are you going to do here?”

“For starters, my parents and my friends are here.”

“You’d have to live with your parents and try to find a job. Or you could come to Vancouver and work your way up to a professional team. The job pays well, and you can stay in my condo there.” Her eyes widened, and I quickly added, “Brandi and I moved into her place and I hadn’t gotten around to selling it yet. And when the baby comes, I’ll be around.”

She grimaced. “You won’t be around, though. And maybe you should talk to your fiancée before you make this offer.”

“She’s not going to change my mind. I’m going to want to be around my kid. And this gives you a chance to start fresh.”

“Providing I get the job,” she said skeptically.

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