Page 29 of Stolen Love

My tongue seems to thicken in my mouth. That was not the phone call we were expecting and not knowing is its own special brand of purgatory. Part of me desperately hopes I’m going to be a dad. Part of me is terrified that if it’s positive I’ll end up being like my own father. Absent from my child’s life. The idea that I won’t be able to protect Ivy and our baby is a weight on my chest.

“Are you okay?” Ivy asks.

“I am if you are.” I massage the back of her neck. “I’ll get my assistant to run over a test.”

“Isn’t she on vacation?” Ivy reminds me. “After the screening, she said she wanted time off. You told her to take six months on you.”

“Well, I’m a generous boss.” It seemed pertinent to give her time off with everything going on in my personal life. But six months?

“You were distracted.” Ivy giggles.

“I’ll just DoorDash it then.” I pull out my phone to order a test along with several boxes of Pop-Tarts and a few brands of prenatal vitamins, before I decide that’s a terrible fucking idea. The last thing we need is some random delivery person cluing in on Ivy’s state.

“You were serious when you said you’d take me to see my dad’s grave?” Ivy asks.

“Yes, but…” I’m about to say getting a test is more important, but we could kill two birds with one stone. “I’ll get Jackson to swing by the pharmacy while we’re out.”

She brushes past me. “Let me grab my purse.”

I stand there awkwardly, my gaze glued to her as she flits about the bedroom like she isn’t on tenterhooks like I am, and I can’t work out whether she hopes she is or isn’t pregnant. A funny little vision pops into my head…

Ivy holding our baby. A girl. Or a boy, even though another Maddox boy is just asking for trouble. With her chestnut hair and my blue eyes. Surrounded by the love of her uncles and aunt and drag aunty.

“Rogue?”

Considering how out of reach that future has felt recently, I want to grab onto the idea with both hands. “Huh?”

She has a hand on her hip. “Are you coming?”

“Yeah.” I shove my doubts and hopes to the back of my mind as I follow her into the foyer.

“I’ll message Adira on the way,” she tells me as I help her into her coat, tugging the sleeve up over her cast.

“Okay.”

“It’s drizzling out,” Jackson tells us.

“Fitting,” Ivy murmurs.

I collect a couple of umbrellas before we leave the apartment. The ride down to the garage is done in silence. Ivy seems lost in thought.

When we climb into the back of the Range Rover she slides all the way across the seat, instead of staying close like she normally would. Perhaps it’s fear that has her putting off the test. Or she doesn’t want to see two blue lines. I tried to reassure her, but what if I haven’t?

“Baby, what’s going on in that pretty head of yours?”

Her eyes sparkle and she turns to the window before swinging quickly back when she realizes we’re about to exit the garage. “Sorry. Visiting my dad is making me emotional.”

“You’re sure you’re not upset about the possibility of having a baby?” I lean forward between the seats and tap Jackson on the shoulder. “I’m going to need you to stop and grab a pregnancy test.”

Jackson stiffens in the front seat. “Yes, Mr. Maddox.”

“And Jackson, this doesn’t go any further than the three of us.”

Chapter Thirteen

Ivy

The drizzle has steadily gotten heavier since we left the apartment. Umbrella over my head, I stand at the foot of my dad’s grave. Alone.

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