Page 2 of Shattered Cradle (Makarova Bratva Duet)

“I need to pee.”

“Wait until we get to the safehouse.”

“Tell that to my bladder.”

He gives me a long-suffering sigh. “Wait until I’ve finished pumping at least. I’ll come in with you.”

I wrinkle my nose. “Rob, I think I know how to pee by myself.”

“I’ll just stand outside the door.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. I’ll be in and out in two seconds. Just chill.”

I walk away. Rob calls after me, but I ignore him.

The moment I’m inside, I fly to the back of the store where the medical supplies are. I grab the first pregnancy test I see and head straight to the counter.

“Just the one?” the pot-bellied man behind the counter asks.

“Yes, please.”

He rings it up for me. As soon as he sets it back down, I grab it and shove it out of sight in my pocket. Outside the window, Rob is setting the pump back in place.

“Uh, do you have a bathroom?” I ask.

The cashier gestures to the back of the store. “Back thataway.”

“Thanks. Oh, and—” I point through the window to Rob. “If that man comes in here… please don’t tell him what I bought.”

I don’t give him any other explanation before I rush towards the dingy little bathroom and shut the door.

I try not to think as I go through the motions. I just focus on the action steps. Open the package, sit on the toilet, position it between my legs.

This is perfectly normal, I say again and again.

But as I sit the test down on the rusting sink, goosebumps brush over my skin.

I clean up and wash my hands slowly. I try not to look at the test as I count aloud.

“One. Two. Three…”

It’s the longest three minutes of my life.

But just as I say, “One hundred and eighty,” I look down and see something starting to take shape in the test window.

It’s slow, though. Agonizingly slow. Like the universe is teasing me or punishing me, I’m not sure which.

The instructions on the back of the box tells me how to read the results.

One line—negative.

Two lines—it’s his.

Three loud knocks on the door make me jolt so hard I almost knock the test off the sink.

“Liv! You in there?”

“Jesus!” I gasp, turning towards the door before I’ve got a chance to read my test. “Yes, I’m in here, Rob. Can I have a freaking minute?”

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