Page 100 of Star-Crossed
Lyra lifted her face.
And Cy’s knees threatened to give out on him.
The way her eyes crinkled. The way the corners of her lips turned up ever so slightly.
Lyra wasn’t crying at all.
She was laughing. Laughing so hard that tears streamed down both her cheeks.
Strange how similar hilarity and grief could look.
“Which do you…do you…think”—she fought her clenching throat for every word—“is less likely? Getting pregnant…whileon an IUD, or—”
She lost it again for several breaths.
“Or…being involved in two separate…cow-related car accidents?”
And then, just like that, Cy was laughing too. He laughed until his abs ached and tears ran down his cheeks, and the sound filled up the entire room.
Laughed until the doctor cleared his throat, reminding them both that he’d witnessed this entire spectacle.
“Well,” he said, straightening. “The rest of the tests looked completely normal. I’m going to send you home with some anti-nausea medication, but I’d recommend that you follow up with your regular OB/GYN to discuss your options.”
“Thank you, doctor,” Lyra said in a raspy voice that threatened to set Cy off again.
When the doctor had bustled out of the room, Cy pulled a tissue from the cardboard box next to the bed and handed it to Lyra. A bright yellow plastic band with the words FALL RISK slid down her slim, pale forearm as she mopped the corners of her eyes.
The sight of the bold block letters juxtaposed against her elegant wrist ambushed Cy with a deluge of wild tenderness.
Wasn’t that the fucking truth?
Because really, how could anyonenotlove this woman? How could anyone look at her, listen to her, speak to her, and not fall completely and irrevocably under her spell?
Whether she ever decided to believe it or not, Lyra McKendrickwasmagic. The mysterious, supernatural spark between mundane and miraculous.
“I meant what I said,” he heard himself saying.
Balling the tissue in her fist, Lyra smirked at him. “Which part?”
“No matter what you decide—”
“I’ve already decided.”
Though he knew it had to be his imagination, the lights in the room seemed to dim, and his lungs refused to inflate.
“I’m going to have the baby, Cy.” Her eyes shone with determination as she looked into his.
He blinked, momentarily stunned into silence.
“You’re sure?” he asked, hardly daring to believe it.
“I’m sure,” she said.
“Really?”
“Really.”
“Because I really will help,” he said, his heart swelling with a joy that seemed to infiltrate his every pore. “Whatever you need. Whatever this looks like. I’m here.”
