Page 105 of Fall to Me
His head swivels, checking out the room, then a smirk lifts the corner of his mouth as his focus homes in on the metal tray down by my feet. “The man does whatever he wants and gives zero fucks,” he adds.
Standing to his feet, he walks over to the tray, and picks up the speculum.
“Wanna play doctor?” He squeezes the handle, the device giving a few clicks. “Open wide. Wait. What does this thing do?”
Just as he asks the question, there’s a knock, and the door opens.
“Will you put that down?” I hiss, embarrassment flaming my cheeks. I rub my hands over my face.
The doctor gives a chuckle as he strolls in, sliding his finger down the screen of his tablet. “Hi, I’m Doctor Jones.”
Carter drops the tool back onto the metal tray, where it falls with a clink. “Sorry. I was curious. Carter Graham, sir, nice to meet you.”
“Pleasure.” He shakes Carter’s hand, then points toward the tool. “That’s a speculum. It’s inserted into the vagina and propped open for the exam.”
Carter’s eyes blow wide as he holds a fist to his mouth.
The doctor continues, “We won’t be using that today. Mrs. Graham, did the nurse go over anything with you when she drew your labs?”
“No, she just told me you would be in to talk with me. I think I want to go with the implant.”
“She must have failed to mention why we drew your blood. Mrs. Graham, your pregnancy test came back positive.”
Carter releases an audible gasp as tingles rush to my head, and the room spins.
“That can’t be possible,” I argue. “I took a plan b pill. And last week, when I took a home pregnancy test, it was negative. There’s gotta be a mistake.”
“No mistake here. Emergency contraceptives only work if they’re taken before ovulation and within the first seventy-two hours after intercourse. As far as the home tests go, they’re hit and miss on accuracy.”
Dr. Jones pulls the stool over to sit and continues to go through the tablet. “I’m looking at the hCG levels from your lab work, and they look a little high compared to your last cycle. This puts your conception sometime in October.”
“It had to be in November.”
Setting the tablet down on the counter, he then turns to us with a smile. “Let’s go ahead and do an ultrasound. We’ll take some measurements and see how far along you are. I’ll give you two a few minutes while I fetch the machine.”
As the door closes, Carter moves a chair from under the window and sets it next to me. He takes a seat and laces our fingers together, trailing light kisses across my hand. We sit in silence, my mind reeling. So many thoughts. Carter wants a baby. I don’t know what got into him, but he’s been on this baby kick for about a week now. I’ve always wanted to be a mother. Sure, this isn’t when we had planned, but wewereplanning. I was just asking for time.
Turning my head, I find tears in Carter’s eyes.
“This makes you happy,” I say, a smile spreading to my lips.
His eyes lock on mine, concern in his expression. “It does. How are you feeling? I know this isn’t what you wanted right now.”
Adjusting the paper over my lap, I shrug. “I thought we would settle into our marriage before bringing a baby into the mix, and if I’m being honest, I’m actually in shock. I feel stupid because I thought that pill protected us.”
Carter stands and comes around to the edge of the table where I’m seated, placing himself between my legs. His eyes map my face, and his fingers trail down my cheek. “Are you okay?”
I nod my head, and as soon as he leans down to claim my mouth, the door opens, and Carter steps back.
“Sorry to interrupt.” Dr. Jones laughs under his breath, wheeling in an ultrasound machine.
Carter moves back to the chair and watches with wide eyes as Dr. Jones brings out a wand, rolls a condom over it, then squirts gel along the length.
“Wait. Where are you putting that?” he asks in horror.
“This wand will be inserted into the vagina. From there we’ll be able to see everything. Okay, Mrs. Graham, let’s put your feet up, and I’ll need you to scoot all the way down to the edge of the table.”
I do as he says while Carter rubs the back of his neck with a pained expression. I reach out my hand, and he takes it into his.
