Page 60 of The Doctor's Simple Life

He’s probably off in Miami with another girl already. That thought twists my stomach up with a jealousy that he doesn’t deserve. He can do whatever he wants. That’s the worst part.

Because whatever he wants doesn’t include me.

How can I ever forgive that?

CHAPTER 29

SIENNA

“Here you go, honey. I brought you some coffee.”

“I’m pregnant,” I snap. “I can’t have coffee.”

Gramma says nothing, just gives me a look and places the mug down beside me. I shouldn’t be nasty. She’s just trying to be kind.

Pregnant.

I still can’t believe this has happened. I still don’t understand it. I mean, of course, I understand it. I know how it happened.

I just don’t know what I’m going to do next.

If it was just a surprise baby, I would be able to cope with that. I’ve always wanted to be a mother, but this isn’t exactly how I planned for it. It isn’t awful, however.

The awful bit is knowing that no matter how much I want him to be involved, Reece is never going to care to be the father of this child. He’s never even going to know about it if I don’t tell him. And I should. I know that. He has a right to prove me wrong, to be a father if he wants to.

Not that I think he would. But I’ll never know unless I tell him. And I just don’t know how to do that.

I’ve asked Gramma for her advice all week, and it’s been middling to poor. She says I should just give it to him straight, call him out of the blue and dump him on it like I’m forwarding his mail or passing on a note.

“You owe him the truth,” she keeps saying, over and over again, like I’m not listening. “Even if he doesn’t want to know, he deserves to.”

Part of me agrees with her, but most of me doesn’t have the words. How do you tell someone they’re a father? That their small-town fling has had consequences? How do you do that and deal with it if they don’t care at all?

“Honey,” says Gramma, sitting beside me on the couch. “I know they gave you this week off work, but maybe you should think about going back. You always look so sad when you have nothing to do.”

“Wow, thanks,” I say bitterly. “Great to know everyone thinks I’m miserable.”

Gramma fixes me with a stern look. “Now, Sienna, you know I don’t think like that. I think God’s just handed you a challenge this week, and you’re figuring out how to get through it. He’s testing you, but I have faith you’ll come through. You always do in the end.”

I sigh and lean in to rest my head on her shoulder. “Thanks, Gramma,” I say. Her words lift my spirits a little. Not a lot, but the only thing that could really make me feel better right now is if Reece walked through the doors and told me he was so excited to start our life together.

I scoff at myself. How stupid am I to be thinking like this?

“Will you at least speak to your boss today?” Gramma says, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. “Tell her that your Gramma said that you’re fit to work, and she’ll be dragging you to the hospital herself if they keep you away much longer.”

I chuckle and reach out my arms for a hug. Gramma obliges me, squeezing me tightly to her chest. I swear I will never feel safer anywhere but here.

“What would I do without you, Gramma?” I whisper.

“A hell of a lot worse,” she says before detaching my arms. “Now drink your coffee up. And before you say a thing, I drank plenty of coffee when I bore your mama, and she came out just fine. Besides, it’s decaf.”

Gramma leaves the room, and I watch as the steam from the coffee spirals up into the air. She made it just the way I like it, full of cream and with sugar. I swear, the only thing stopping her from getting into coffee art is the lack of equipment.

Okay. Maybe a cup won’t hurt.

I take a few moments to myself, then I pick up the phone and dial Giselle. I’m kind of expecting her not to pick up. After all, it’s a work day. Why should she?

But it only takes a few seconds for her voice to come over the line. “Hey, sweetie,” she says. “How are you doing?”

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