Page 82 of Give Me a Reason

As I get to the electric tearoom where the shower is taking place, I realize immediately that there’s a gigantic flaw in my plan. Emma’s mom and Camille are already standing at the door, waiting to welcome the guests who should start arriving within the next twenty minutes. My mom is standing next to Camille, obviously excited and laughing with her friend.

Which means both of this baby’s grandmothers are the gatekeepers to the event, and I need to get past them without them noticing anything is going on with me if I have any hope of deciding when to tell Vincent or even if I should tell him before they find out.

Fuck.

My mom is like one of those police dogs. She’s got a nose for trouble, and the only reason I was able to keep my relationship with Vincent from her for so long was that she was so busy on the tour and I hardly ever saw her. Now, however, she’s literally standing in the door I need to get through.

Slowly climbing out of the car, I lift my chin and pull back my shoulders. I can fake it till I make it with the best of them, and that’s what I need to do. It’s the only way. Pasting a smile on my face, I shake out my arms and turn to facethe mothers.

Camille notices me first, and she raises her hand to give me a friendly wave, but almost immediately, her smile fades and her gaze starts searching my face.Okay, so maybe I can’t fake it till I make it at all.

It takes her seconds to realize something’s going on with me, and just as I expected, it takes my mom even less time before she’s frowning too.Nevertheless, the show must go on.

At least Emma’s mom doesn’t seem to suspect anything. When I reach them, she opens her arms for a warm hug and pulls me into them. “Olivia! This place is stunning. You and Isabella did such a great job choosing it and getting everything ready. Emma’s going to love it.”

Smiling, I check my watch when she releases me. “Mia should be bringing her very soon, so I should go make sure we’re good to go. I’m really glad you like it, though. Hope you guys enjoy the games.”

My plan of breezing past my mom and Camille with just a smile and pretending to be in a rush falls flat when my mom pulls me aside before I can even make it through the door. She gives me a worried look, her touch gentle on my arm as her gaze comes to rest on mine. “Are you okay, honey? You look a little pale.”

“I’m fine.” I lie, forcing the damn smile to stay on my face. “Just a little tired.”

She cocks her head, her frown deepening. “Are you still not feeling well?”

Yes! Of course. Everyone knows I’ve been under the weather since Brazil. It’s the perfect excuse. Why didn’t I think of that?

“I’m still not feeling great,” I say, and at least it’s the truth this time. “I just can’t seem to shake this darn bug, and I don’t think the stress of moving helped much.”

Her expression turns tender. “No one would blame you if you ducked out early today. Honestly, everything is perfect inside, and Isabella and Mia can handle the hosting without you. Why don’t you say hi to Emma when she gets here and then go home to take a nap? You can always meet up with us again later if you’re feeling up to it.”

“That’s not a bad plan, but I’m okay for now. I’ll tough it out for a while, and if I really need to, I might just do that. Thanks, Mom.”

“Love you, darling,” she says as she finally lets go of me and motions me inside. “If it’s taking you this long to get over it, you should go to the doctor if you’re not better by Monday. I know you don’t like to be dramatic, but we’ve been home a couple weeks now. There’s no shame in just going to get checked out. They might even be able to prescribe something to make you feel better right away.”

Uh, no… They can’t. It’ll be nine months—give or take—until I can take most medications again. Shit.I don’t say any of that out loud, though. Instead, I just keep smiling and nod. “Yeah, sure. I think that’s a good idea.”

Once again, that part is true. I do need to go to a doctor. It just won’t be the kind she’s thinking of.

All morning, the reality crashes into me like a wave every now and then. It’s always there at the back of my mind, but I’m trying to shove it back so I focus on today and taking things one step at a time. But whenever I manage to shove it far enough back to be able to talk to someone without being weird, something happens that brings it right back to the forefront of my mind.

Would I like some coffee? Uh, yes, but no thank you. A glass of champagne? Well, that would be lovely, but again, no thank you. Have I fitted my bridesmaid’s dress? Why, yes. I have, but it’s a good thing the wedding is close or else I wouldn’t have fit in it anymore.

And on and on it goes.

Eventually, Isabella appears like a ninja out of the blue, grabs my arm, drags me into the bathroom, and locks the door behind us. The look on her face when she turns to me means business, and her hands go to her hips as her eyebrows rise.

“Well,” she says expectantly. “What is it? What did Vincent do now? There’s only one person who would’ve made you look like that today of all days, so spill. What. The. Fuck. Did. He. Do?”

37

VINCENT

“I’m not proud of the way I’ve been dealing with things the last few days. That’s it. What more do you want from me?”

My brother narrows his eyes, and even though he’s the bachelor, he seems to be completely sober. I, on the other hand, am not. Not even close.

“What do I want from you?” He sucks in a deep breath through his nostrils, disapproval radiating from him like the stink of a really dirty diaper.Jesus. Why do all my thoughts turn to babies and parents these days?

He pokes me in the chest. “What I want from you is to stop drinking, go find Olivia, and take a fucking pregnancy test. Do you even know if she’s taken one yet? Have you spoken to her at all this week?”

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