Page 17 of Zone Protection

“Do you want to sit down?”

Nodding, she sits when I pull the chair out for her. “Archie …” She looks up at me.

“Yes, darlin’?” I want her to relax a little. And honestly, I’m just happy she’s here.

“So, I’m pregnant.” She looks up and meets my eyes.

I’m not completely sure if this is a prank or if she said what I think she just said.

“Come again? Did you say you’re pregnant?” I tilt my head and watch her face for any sign that this could be a joke.

“Yes, I did. And, Archie, just so you know, I obviously didn’t intend for this to happen. I’m completely freaking out right now, but I’m trying to stay calm so I can get through telling you all of this. But I had to tell you. I have no idea how I’m going to do this, but I wanted to give you the choice to be a part of the baby’s life. If you want to, that is. I’m sorry I’m rambling. This didn’t fit into my plan, so I have no clue what I’m doing or how this will all work.” She moves her hands from under mine and covers her face.

On instinct, I move toward her.

“Hey, hey. Okay, so you’re pregnant. And I’m sorry to ask, but you’re sure it’s mine?” I reach for her hands and pull them away from her face. I need to see her when she tells me her answer.

Tears are running down her face, and I release one of her hands and wipe one off.

“Talk to me.”

She inhales deeply. “I totally understand why you’re asking,but I want you to know I don’t sleep around. Regular hookups aren’t really my thing, like they are yours.”

“Ouch. Okay, good to know.” I nod a few times. “But just so you know, I haven’t been with anyone since you. I haven’t wanted to. I haven’t been able to look at any other girl without seeing your face in my mind.”

“Really?” she whispers.

“Really.” I try to keep my tone earnest. The gorgeous girl who I had the best sex of my life with has turned up on my doorstep to say she’s having my kid. I’ve gone from elated, to confused, to—I’ll admit—shitting a brick, to wanting to make this girl feel safe, to full-on excited in a matter of moments.

She’s staring at me as if trying to decipher if I’m full of shit.

I lower my gaze to hers and try to get her attention to me and away from whatever thoughts that are going on in her head.

“So, tell me how you know you’re pregnant. Did you see a doctor yet? How does that all work? I’m gonna be with you through all of this, by the way. You will never have to worry about that. I could probably get you in to see one of the team doctors or something. A guy I played with a few years ago had a baby, and I’m pretty sure they used the university doctors during her pregnancy, but I can find out for sure.”

She starts shaking her head while I’m talking. “No, we can’t do that. I’m also an athlete.”

“Wait, what? What sport?” I’m going through every athlete event we’ve been required to attend over the last few years, and there’s no way I wouldn’t remember her face.

“I’m a golfer. I’ve been playing for Walker since my freshman year. So, yeah, I can’t use the university doctors until I figure out what to do. I can’t lose my scholarship. If the pregnancy is confirmed, I’m going to have to try to play out the rest of the fall season at the very least. The other issue is that I’m premed. And I’ve heard you have your own plans, so honestly, Archie, I’m completely overwhelmed, trying to think about how this will allwork. And I wasn’t really sure what you were going to say. It would almost be easier if you didn’t want to be invol?—”

“I’m gonna stop you right there, Emma. Don’t think for a second that I’m going to let you do this alone. And if you’re pregnant, that is my baby you’re carrying. I will never abandon my child or you. We’ll figure it out, but let’s take this one step at a time. What do you want to do about a doctor then? Since you’re premed, can you get some referrals or something?” I release her hand and scoot my chair closer to her.

She looks down at the table. “I could probably find someone, but worst case, we go to an OB-GYN in town through the hospital here just to get it confirmed, then decide what works from there. What do you think?” Her gaze meets mine again. She looks scared, uncertain.

I’m going to do everything I can to make sure she doesn’t feel alone in this. And okay, fine, there’s a little bit of caveman trying to break through. I can’t believe I’m gonna be a dad. My little swimmers are pretty fucking strong to break through latex.

“Whatever you want to do, I’ll do. You need me to look for doctors, I can. I want to be at every appointment I can be. The timing is not particularly great, but we’ll figure it out together. Come here.” I lean forward and wrap my arms around her.

“What are you doing?” she mumbles into my shoulder.

I lean back and tilt her face to look at me. “Emma, everything will be okay.”

My ringtone goes off and startles us both.

“Holy shit, Archie. What is that?”

I laugh, letting go of her, and reach for my phone in my back pocket. “It’s my ringtone for my phone. It’s the Walker fight song.”

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