Page 304 of How to Kiss a Hawthorne Brother
“Just breathe,” Lila says, her smile wide. “You’re fine. It’s going to be okay.”
“Okay. Time to take the test,” Olivia says. “It’s on the bathroom counter ready for you.”
Bree tugs me to my feet and ushers me toward the bathroom.
I look at my older sister over my shoulder. “Did you seriously fly all the way out here just to make me take a pregnancy test?”
“I flew all the way out here because Olivia said I could meet the Hemsworth brothers.” She nudges me into the bathroom. “But making you take a pregnancy test definitely feels like a fun bonus.”
I pause in the bathroom doorway. “Okay. I’ll be right back, I guess.”
Instead of opening the bathroom door as soon as I’m finished, I opt for solitude while I wait for the test to fully process. Of course, I’ll tell my sisters either way, but having been blindsided and shepherded into this experience with zero warning, I’m feeling a need to wrench back a little control and handle this part alone.
I lean on the counter, my hands braced against the sink as I watch two tiny pink lines appear on the test.
Pregnant.
I’m truly, actually pregnant.
I slowly open the bathroom door, but the room is empty, the bedroom door open into the hall.
For real? They all abandoned me to process this news on my own?
But then footsteps sound down the hall, and Lennox appears. “Hey,” he says, pausing in the bedroom doorway. “Liv said you needed me. You okay?”
I almost start to laugh. They must have been really certain the test would be positive to have already gotten Lennox. Or maybe Bree caught sight of a Hemsworth, and they all bailed for something more entertaining than me. Either way, I’m glad Lennox will be the first person to find out.
I stare at my husband for a long moment.
He’s so achingly perfect. Physically beautiful, yes. But also kind and funny and gentle and brilliant and everything I would ever want the father of my children to be.
“I’m okay,” I say softly, my lips lifting into a smile. “But you might wanna sit down.”
He frowns as he moves into the room and sits down across from me.
“Lennox,” I say, a slight tremor in my voice. “We’re having a baby.”
His face pales. “We?” He clears his throat. “As in you and me?”
I smile and let out a little laugh. “Yeah, baby. You and me.”
I suddenly wish I could read the thoughts flashing through my husband’s brain. He might be panicking, but knowing him, he could also be coming up with recipes for homemade baby food.
“So your birth control didn’t work,” he says like he’s stating a fact instead of asking a question.
“Nope.”
“And now we’re having a baby.”
I bite my lip. “Yep.”
He stands up and takes my face in his hands. “Tatum, are you happy?”
Lennox would ask this question first. He doesn’t know how to think about himself if he hasn’t made sure I’m happy first.
I nod, finally surrendering to the tears that have been threatening since the test first showed up positive. “I’m happy, Len. I mean, I’m terrified, but I’m definitely happy.”
He kisses me soundly, then his face breaks out in the biggest, most beautiful smile. “This is why you’ve been sleeping so much,” he says.
