Page 14 of A Baby for the Mountain Man

Even though one small part of that fantasy came true, and I got to have one amazing night with Cliff, it doesn’t change the fact that he made it very clear he isn’t interested in being a father or husband.

Well, like it or not, he’s about to be one of those. That is, if I tell him.

“It’s just…” I flail my hand around, scrambling to find the words. “We used a condom.”

“Condoms can break.”

“I didn’t notice that it had.”

“You don’t always.” Dr. Bennet tilts her head to the side. “Movies and TV shows make it out that everything involved with reproduction is a big, well, production. But sometimes, especially if those little guys are really determined, it doesn’t take much of a hole for them to get through to find the prize.”

“The prize being my egg.”

She nods, still watching me carefully. “I realize this is all a bit of a surprise for you.”

I release breath. “That’s putting it lightly.”

“And you probably need some time to think about this and how it affects your plans.”

“I haven’t even gotten that far in my thinking.”

“But”—Dr. Bennet takes my hand and waits until I meet her gaze—“whatever you decide to do, I’ll be here for you. Just… give yourself a little time to think.”

***

The pounding on my front door stirs me from my stupor.

I’ve been lying on my sofa, curled up like a ball, staring at the wall ever since I got home from my doctor’s appointment.

For hours, I’ve played everything over and over in my mind. Starting with the night we spent together. Did anything seem off about the condom? It’s not like it was expired or anything. It came in the swag back Maria put together for the bachelorette party.

Unless they were novelty condoms and not meant for use in a real situation.

Oh, crap. I should probably send a group text out to everyone who ent to the party to let them know that there might be an issue with the condoms. Of course, then I’ll have to tell everyone how I know. That will open up a host of questions I’m definitely not prepared to answer just yet.

Not even a little.

Replaying Cliff and I’s night together did little more than get my cheeks all flushed again. And aroused.

I may be going through a bit of a personal crisis, but I’d have to be going through a lot more not to think about that night without getting a little squirly.

I think about the ovulation tests.

The charts.

The vitamins.

The medicine.

The months of tracking my period.

All of it for nothing.

Well, not nothing. It’s actually the farthest thing from nothing. I’m pregnant. I’m having a baby. Cliff’s baby.

And that fact makes me want to burst into tears of both complete joy and total misery.

What am I going to do?

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