Page 66 of Mountain Grump

Me too. I glance her over. I can’t visibly see that she’s pregnant, but I can’t imagine why else she’d be up here tonight. “This is about work?” I guess. She’ll probably need more time off and, of course, maternity leave.

“Umm, not really,” Cali says. She emits a heavy sigh and gently pats the sofa beside her. She wants me to come and sit.

“I already know you’re pregnant,” I say. “How long did you wait before sleeping with someone else after me? Was I just an empty fuck? A placeholder until you met the next guy who you wanted to screw over?” I shouldn’t be so callous, but the words spill out faster than I intend.

Her brow pinches, and her lips part. Those perfect ruby lips, that I envisioned sucking my cock, will never come anywhere near it if it were up to her. I’ve destroyed any chance at the two of us being anything beyond friends.

It wasn’t as though I intended to hurt her, but with the bickering we’ve been doing, and the pain that I can’t seem to erase, this is what we’ve become.

Cali emits a heavy sigh. “Julianna told you she saw me at the store today.”

“Yes.” There’s no sense in lying to her. “I take it the test came back positive.”

She laughs darkly under her breath. “Oh, I’m pregnant, and in case you haven’t figured it out yet, the kid is yours.” She pins me with her stare.

I swear the air is sucked right out of my lungs. I shake my head, denial the only feeling that seems to be real. The room spins, and I sink into the sofa, leaving an extra couch cushion between us.

“Mine?” My voice squeaks, and I grimace at the sound of my uncertainty. “Are you sure?”

“One hundred percent. But when I make a doctor’s appointment to verify the pregnancy, we can discuss verifying the paternity as well if you don’t believe me.”

I’m not sure what to believe. The room is spinning, and I take several long and deep breaths to focus.

“I’m the father?” It’s the only thought I can make sense of in the chaos she’s thrown at me. “Are you sure there’s no one else? We slept together months ago.”

“Two months,” Cali says. “And between the stress of getting fired and moving, I didn’t even think about the fact that I missed my period until earlier today. And no, for the record, unless my vibrator can suddenly get a girl pregnant. You’re the only guy I’ve been with in quite a while.”

“You didn’t sleep with Wyatt?” Not that I really thought she fucked my brother, but that night at the bar, when she was having drinks with him, I still feel the burn of jealousy.

“I don’t screw every man who buys me a drink. Give me some credit.”

I should apologize, but I don’t. We’re too far past that point to fix things between us.

“What do you plan on doing?” I ask.

“Am I going to keep it?” Cali stares at me, her fingers graze over the fabric of her pants. She’s nervous and for good reason. This isn’t easy on either of us. “Yes, and I’d like to stay in Breckenridge, assuming I still have a job.”

Her remark cuts me deep. “Do you think I’d fire you after knocking you up?”

“Well, when you put it like that,” Cali says, and brings her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around them. She rests her chin on her legs. “I honestly had no idea how you’d react.”

She looks so young, vulnerable, and conflicted.

And I’m the one to blame. No one else hurt her. I did that, all on my own. Not that she’s innocent, but if what she’s been spieling is the truth, maybe I’ve been a bit more of an ass toward her than I need to be.

“Your job isn’t going anywhere. When you have to take maternity leave, we’ll deal with it. We have a while until that happens,” I say, assuring her that her job isn’t a problem.

“Good,” she says, and her shoulders slouch. She looks so small and fragile.

I pull her into my lap, and she inhales sharply, her body frozen and rigid.

“Relax,” I growl into her ear. “I’m not going to bite.”

After a few seconds, she seems to relax, at least a little.

“We need to get you set up with an OBGYN. I’m guessing that you don’t have a doctor already in town.”

Cali quietly shakes her head.

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