Page 55 of Her Silver Fox Mountain Men

I give her a confused look. “I thought you were going shopping.”

“I was, but then I came back to ask if you needed anything from the hardware store,” she says then sighs deeply. “I spotted you coming in here, and next thing I know, you’re on the floor, passed out and scaring the crap out of everybody.”

I look around again, realizing that there’s a whole bunch of people staring at me with understandable concern. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to give anybody a fright this close to Halloween.” I try to laugh it off, but as soon as I attempt to stand up, the queasiness returns with a vengeance.

“Careful,” Janice warns.

“I might just sit here for a few minutes,” I mutter.

“Actually, I think we’re going to take you to the clinic and get you checked out.”

I give Janice a troubled look. “I’m fine.”

“You can’t stand up,” Ainsley graciously points out the obvious. “We should call Daddy.”

“No!” I blurt out. “No need, I’m good. I promise.”

Janice gives me a hard look. “You’re not good, Elise. You’re pale as a sheet of paper, you’re dizzy, and you literally fainted just now.”

“Should I call an ambulance?” the salesgirl asks.

Janice and I give her a resounding no. “I’ll drive her straight to the clinic,” Janice adds.

I know there’s no fighting her on this. No arguing either. The girls are scared enough already. I don’t need to let this scene evolve into something even more difficult to control.

I allow myself a subtle sign of relief as I glance over Janice’s shoulder. Kara and her men seem to be gone.

“Fine, I’ll go to the clinic,” I say. “But you’ll have to stay with the girls while I get my checkup.”

“Of course,” she replies.

“Do you think the doctor will give us a lollipop?” Ainsley asks, always harboring a sweet tooth. Tricia shakes her head.

“No, you need to be sick for that.”

“I’m sure we can work something out,” I say, smiling as Janice and the salesgirl help me stand up. I’m still dizzy, but I can definitely sense some improvement.

Half an hour later, I’m staring at a black-and-white ultrasound photo in Dr. Simon’s office at the Rustic Clinic’s Emergency Department. I break into a cold sweat as the good doctor lays out the hard truth, handing me a printout of my test results.

“You’re about six to seven weeks along,” he says.

“With twins,” I mumble.

“Yes, there are definitely two heartbeats in there.”

Why the hell am I surprised?

We weren’t careful. At all. While I was with Igor, I took every discreet precaution that I could think of so as not to get pregnant. Deep down, I knew I didn’t want to have children with him. I didn’t want to raise a family with him, so I did my best to put it off for as long as I could without arousing his suspicion.

This time, however, it’s different.

“It certainly explains how I’ve been feeling lately. My period’s been a bit all over the place since I moved to Rustic, mostly due to stress, so I shouldn’t be too shocked that I didn’t catch this earlier. Right?”

“Stress can affect the pregnancy as well,” he warns. “Whatever it is you’re dealing with, you’ll need to figure out a way to better manage your stress levels. Otherwise, you’ll struggle through the whole process rather than enjoy it.”

I nod slowly. Part of me is terrified. I’m nowhere near ready nor adequately prepared for a child. I don’t even have my own place right now! But the other part of me is elated. This child was created out of something profound, something I’ve never felt before. It feels real, perhaps too real.

“It can be scary, I know,” the doctor continues, picking up on my emotional state. “Know that you have options.”

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