Page 39 of Wild For You
“Oh, that was nice of them.” I waited patiently for her to ask to see the items inside, but it didn’t come. Instead, she ate her applesauce, and color started to return to her skin.Munching away on my sandwich, I watched her eyes glance around the house.
“You didn’t have to clean up everything.”
Shrugging, I told her it was no big deal. “Kept me busy.”
“I can’t believe I slept so long,” Kelsey pointed out as she slid off the barstool and carried her empty container to the trashcan, then deposited her spoon in the sink.
“You needed the rest. I’m glad you’re feeling a bit better. I was… worried.”
Kelsey leaned against the kitchen sink and glanced over at me, her hands holding the edge of the counter. “You know, if you keep letting your nice-guy side show, people aren’t going to believe you’re the grump you want everyone to think you are.”
“People can think what they want. I only care whatyouthink.”
I could tell I’d shocked her with my words, but I was speaking the truth. Owen had helped me see that.
“Me?” she asked, surprise evident in her tone. “Why me?”
I didn’t know why. I just did. Like how peanut butter went with jelly, and how graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate were a superior treat.
“Just because” was the reason I gave her, adding a shrug. There was no explanation.
“Hm… so, what kind of goodies did you get me?”
“I only grabbed the electrolyte drink. Autumn picked out everything else. So, blame her.”
She hummed her approval as she reached for the plastic bag. Even if I didn’t know what was resting right on top, theclattering on the ground of the remaining contents would have given away the first item she spotted.
“What’s this?” she asked, holding the feminine-looking package in her hand.
Holding my palms up in surrender, I reminded her, “Autumn’s selection.”
“I’m not pregnant,” she said confidently, setting the box aside before bending down and picking up the other items off the floor. I watched as she looked over all the different meds.
“I’m feeling better right now. Maybe it was just a stomach bug.”
“Well, why don’t you drink some of the electrolytes, and we can play it by ear? In the meantime, I’m going to take a shower.”
“Do you need any help?”
“I just drove a truck like a boss. Pretty sure I can handle a shower.” I grinned.
She giggled, then drank her special juice.
“Even if you don’t think you are,” I said, glancing over my shoulder as I stood within the frame of the bedroom door, “you should still take the test, just to be sure. That and Autumn is going to ask me about it relentlessly, and she can get really annoying.”
“Must run in the family.” She smirked.
I masked my cynicism with a smirk of my own. Even as half-siblings, I supposed we would share some traits. Just like Autumn speaking aloud the exact same thought I had at the drugstore.
Just as I gripped the doorknob to the bathroom, Kelsey called out, “Hey, Andrew, I’ll think about it.” And somehow, I felt both relieved and even more worried at the same time.
Chapter Ten – Kelsey
My hands shook as I held the test in my hand. I was standing in the middle of the bathroom after contemplating my decision for the last two hours. Andrew had long ago finished his shower and was out in the backyard, tossing a baseball with his young neighbor, Roman.
When I first saw the package in the bag, I thought his sister had been nuts. There was absolutely no way I could’ve been pregnant. But then, the longer I thought about it, I knew the possibilitywasthere.
My period was always irregular. Most of the year, it would skip multiple months. It was “scheduled” to start in a few days, but it was never a given. Then after Andrew walked out of the bathroom shirtless, things clicked in place.
