Page 56 of Unsure in Love

If I wasn’t freaking out, I would have been amused that he got so easily distracted by a pair of boobs.

Damian blinked. “Oh, yeah. I was saying—”

I lunged at him, almost sending us both to the ground. Luckily, he was strong enough to catch me and steady himself with little effort, but his phone dropped. Damian gazed at me as if I’d gone mad—maybe I had. I felt so stupid after practically attacking him.

He looked down at his phone, which was thankfully still intact.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered. “You can’t tell Nic I’m here.”

His eyebrows puckered, and he bent to pick up his phone. “Nic, let me call you back in a minute.” He paused to listen. “Relax, I swear I’ll call back. I just…” He glanced at me with bemusement, then said, “Need a moment.”

He hung up the phone and turned to me. “Cass, are you crazy? I’m pretty sure pregnant women aren’t supposed to launch themselves at people.” He scowled. “You could have gotten hurt.”

Hot-faced, I threw my arms up, uncaring that I was in the nude. “I know. It’s just, you were about to tell Nic I’m at your place and he can’t know I’m here.”

Damian blew out a breath. “Why the hell not?”

“Because he doesn’t know about… us. He doesn’t know I’m pregnant and neither do my sisters.”

22

DAMIAN

I assumed Cass’ pregnancy was public knowledge to her family. Well, except Nic. I gathered she hadn’t told him yet because he didn’t call me to threaten to kick my ass.

Of course, I knew he and I would have to have a conversation about my relationship with Cass soon. Nic wouldn’t like it, but he’d just have to deal with it.

Scrubbing a hand over my face, I mused aloud, “I thought your sisters knew.”

They all seemed close from what I’d seen the few days I spent in Oakland.

Patches of pink highlighted her cheeks. I watched with disappointment as she covered up the vital bits with her skimpy bikini. There went our hot lovemaking in the pool. The mood was completely dead. Thinking about calling her brother-in-law, my friend, back in a minute to lie to him made things worse.

“I didn’t know I was pregnant until three months in, so it isn’t like I’ve been keeping it a secret all that long.”

“So you kept it from me for an entire month?”

She blew out a long breath. “Yes, but we didn’t exchange phone numbers.”

“That’s a poor excuse. You could have found a way to get in touch.” I couldn’t help the surge of irritation as I thought about being in the dark about my own child.

“You mean ask Nic for your phone number and reveal that you and I…” Her face flushed.

“You and I, what? Slept together? Conceived a child? So what? We’re adults,” I snapped.

The red in her cheeks intensified. “I know. I just mean… It would have been weird going through him to contact you.”

My jaw tightened, and I huffed my annoyance.

“Look, the awkwardness that comes from asking Nic for your number wasn’t the only issue.” She studied the floor. “I didn’t know if you’d welcome the news about the baby, okay? My pride got in the way so stop sounding like you’re accusing me of something. I’ve been under a lot of pressure lately, and I didn’t want to add you rejecting our child to the list.” She pulled her lower lip between her teeth, but I saw the telltale quiver before she hid it. Her eyes glistened with unshed tears when she looked back at me and I was immediately disarmed.

“I get it. I’m sorry.” I hated that she even thought I’d do something that appalling. But she barely knew me, so her fear was understandable. Taking her hand, I led her to a chair and urged her to sit. Taking my seat close to her, I said, “Tell me everything so I’ll know what to tell Nic.” I held up my phone. “I told him I’d call him back.”

Hands clasped in her lap, she explained. “I haven’t said a word to my sisters because I was ashamed at first. I got knocked up during a one-night stand by my brother-in-law’s friend after his wedding. That’s not cool.”

I lifted an eyebrow. Honestly, I didn’t see the big deal. It didn’t matter to me how it happened. I was all in with her and the baby and that was all that mattered. But I guess Cass and I had different mindsets.

“After that, Lucy broke the news of her pregnancy, and I didn’t want to overshadow her happy moment. You should have seen her face when she told us. She practically glowed.” Cass stared ahead and smiled as if reliving the moment. “I was so thrilled for her that I didn’t want to be selfish and say a word about my situation.”

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