“What do you mean you can’t get pregnant?” I’d turned my head to look at her. “How do you know?”

“I had endometriosis as a teenager, and I have low progesterone. The doctor told me my chances were slim. Like—super slim.”

“But not impossible?”

“I guess not impossible, but according to my research…”

Tess wasn’t pregnant.

I would know.

She would tell me.

CHAPTER37

DREW

ACTUALLY. IT WASN’T A ONE-NIGHT STAND CONSIDERING WE DID IT AGAIN IN THE MORNING.

I'm sprawledacross my bed, engrossed in a novel, when the door to my bedroom bursts open. I startle, nearly dropping my book as my brother Drake barges in with his usual flair for dramatic entrances. He's wearing his signature smirk, the one that usually means he's about to rope me into some harebrained scheme or mock my life choices.

"Drew, my man!" he exclaims, plopping down on the edge of my bed and grabbing the remote from my nightstand. "You won't believe what's on TV right now!"

I raise an eyebrow, a wary feeling settling in the pit of my stomach. "What did you do?"

He grins like the Cheshire cat, waving the remote triumphantly. "Oh, nothing much. Just thought you might want to catch up on the latest news. Trust me, it's a story you won't want to miss."

Before I can protest, he presses a button, and the TV springs to life, blaring the all-too-familiar tune of the sports channel. My eyes widen as I watch the screen, my heart pounding in my chest.

"Breaking news: Drew Colter, star quarterback of the college football team, has found himself in the midst of an unexpected scandal," the news anchor announces dramatically, a photo of me plastered on the screen next to a headline that reads, "Drew's Unplanned Touchdown: Girl from Hometown Claims Pregnancy."

My jaw practically hits the floor.

I sit back down on the bed.

Stand.

Sit.

"What the hell?"

Drake chuckles, clearly enjoying my stunned reaction. "Dude. I’m sorry, man, but this has been all over social media. Duke is the one who saw it first and texted me."

I grab the remote from his hand and mute the TV, staring at the screen in disbelief. "How is this even possible? I haven't heard anything from Tess about being pregnant."

“Because it’s not real, bro. You know how the media circus is.”

That familiar pit settles back into my stomach, and my eyes scan my bedroom for the closest garbage can on the off chance that I need to vomit.

I scramble to grab my phone from the nightstand, fingers fumbling as I dial Tess's number. The phone rings, and I feel a mix of anxiety and confusion swirling inside me.

Voicemail.

Why would she go to the press before even talking to me?

"Are you seeing this, Drake?" I point at the television, my hand shaking. “For real, what the fuck!”

"Oh, I'm definitely seeing it, little bro, by two minutes. And let me tell you, the world is getting yet another eyeful of the Colter family drama."