Chapter 26: Connected

Three weeks back in my hometown, and I was already reminded why I’d always yearned for the city.

I cherished my childhood home. It was a place of love, and even with Mom gone, her presence was still palpable. But the silence was just as tangible. It was so quiet it was deafening.

I’d never really belonged here. I didn’t have a large circle of friends, I was a nobody. My father, on the other hand, had a crew; he was content and flourishing, even amidst his sorrow. I was just lonely and stuck.

Every day was a carbon copy of the last. Dad would head out for fishing, golfing, or lunch with his pals, and I’d wave him off from the doorstep.

I’d tried to find work, but there wasn’t much that matched my skills, so I kept living off my savings.

Brennan hadn’t texted or called since the day I’d hung up on him. I found myself thinking about him more than I’d ever confess, even though I’d hoped those feelings would have faded by now.

I groaned, rolling over in bed. My stomach churned, and a wave of nausea washed over me. I glanced at the clock. Five a.m.

I sat up, trying to put my head between my knees to ease the nausea, but it only intensified, forcing me to rush to the bathroom to vomit.

My bare knees hit the cold linoleum. I clung to the toilet bowl as my empty stomach convulsed so violently I saw stars before collapsing against the wall.

“Grace?!” Dad’s voice echoed down the hallway as he rushed to the bathroom. He pushed the door open and knelt beside me. “Is everything okay?”

I nodded, just as another wave of nausea hit me, and I was hunched over the bowl again. My stomach was now empty, and nothing came out.

“I’m taking you to the hospital,” Dad declared, dashing out of the room. I tried to protest, but my voice was too weak. A few minutes later, Dad returned with a coat and some shoes.

“Come on, I’ll help you up,” he said, slipping his arm under mine.

“I’m fine. It’s probably just a bug.”

“Gracie, you don’t go out anywhere. Where would you have caught it?” His voice was laced with worry, even fear.

Then I remembered Mom. How sudden her death had been, how one minute she’d been fine and then she wasn’t.

“Okay, Dad. Let’s go.”

Dad helped me to the car, and we drove through the still-dark streets toward the hospital.

Once we arrived, Dad pulled up to the emergency entrance. He jumped out and ran inside, returning with a wheelchair.

My heart dropped, knowing that he’d had to do this with Mom. His eyes were focused, and his mouth was set in a grim line. He opened my car door and helped me out.

Once inside, a nurse checked my vitals. Everything seemed fine, but Dad wasn’t convinced, and as the sun began to rise, we sat in the waiting area for a doctor.

“Grace Reynolds?” A doctor finally called my name, and Dad was on his feet before she’d even finished saying it. He hurried behind the wheelchair and pushed me toward her.

I hadn’t been in a hospital since I’d had my tonsils removed as a child.

It hadn’t changed much, although it was starting to show its age. The walls, once pure white, were now a faded cream.

The doctor led my father and me into a cubicle before looking down at the tablet in her hands.

“Grace, I’m Doctor Stone. I’ve reviewed your chart, and your labs are fine. Your blood pressure is a bit low, but still within normal range. We’re going to run some blood tests as I suspect you’re a bit dehydrated.”

I nodded. “Okay.”

“Of course she’s dehydrated,” Dad retorted. “She was heaving into the damn toilet bowl.”

“I’ll have the nurse come in to draw some blood and set up a fluid drip. We’ll keep you here for a few hours to make sure you’re feeling better.”

I nodded and looked at Dad. “I’m fine, Dad.”

He shrugged and looked down at the ground, scuffing his feet against the white tiles. “All right, well, let’s get this done.”

The doctor swiped on her tablet before looking up at me.

“I do have some questions, standard ones. If you don’t mind.”

I shook my head. “Of course, go ahead.”

“When did you last eat or drink?”

“I had lunch yesterday, a yogurt and a piece of toast. I drank water right before I went to bed, around ten p.m.”

I’d been feeling a bit off for a few days. Food hadn’t been high on my list of priorities. Doctor Stone nodded before typing on the tablet.

“Any pain when passing urine?”

I shook my head.

“All right, one more for now. Grace, is there any chance you could be pregnant?”

I stared at Dr. Stone, taken aback.

Pregnant? I’d been sexually active, I’d been with Brennan… The possibility was there, but I was on the contraceptive shot. I’d last had it in… ~Shit. ~I couldn’t remember.

It had been before Mom passed; time had been a blur around then. I wasn’t sure how long before I’d gone to get it done.

I pulled out my phone and opened my calendar. I scrolled up, looking for the appointment. There it was, clear as day. April 10th.

I counted forward. I’d been due for my next shot on July 10th. The weekend of the wedding was the twelfth. I swallowed hard; my throat felt like it was on fire.

I couldn’t be pregnant. I couldn’t have messed up this badly; I was usually so careful and organized. I placed my phone down on the bed and nodded; my entire body felt numb.

“Yes,” I whispered.

The doctor gave a nod, then returned to her typing. “We’ll know for sure once we get the blood test results. I’ll be back in a bit.”

She exited the room, leaving me alone on the bed, my gaze fixed on the ceiling. A few times, I heard Dad draw in a breath, as if he was about to speak, but he never did.

Not long after, a nurse came in to set up an IV and draw blood. Once she left, Dad reached over and gave my hand a comforting squeeze.

“You holding up okay?” he asked, his voice gentle.

“Yeah,” I whispered back, feeling anything but okay. “Dad, I’ve been thinking about going back to the city.”

“I know,” he said quietly. “I’ve seen that far-off look in your eyes. The same one you had growing up. I promise, I’m okay, Gracie.”

I managed a smile and met his gaze. “I know you are, Dad. I’ll call Belle when we get home. See if she’s okay with me staying until I find an apartment.”

Dad shook his head, crossing his arms over his chest. “What about that boy?”

I let out a scoff, licking my lips. “That boy? Dad, he’s a playboy. Always has been. A few weeks of playing house doesn’t change that.”

I’d repeated that lie to myself so many times, I was starting to believe it.

“When the doctor asked if you might be pregnant…is he the reason you said yes?” Dad asked, not beating around the bush.

I could feel my cheeks heating up. I wasn’t about to discuss my sex life with my dad.

“That doesn’t mean it’s love!” I blurted out, maybe a bit too defensively. “Just because you sleep with someone doesn’t mean you love them.”

“I know,” he said, a hint of laughter in his voice. “But love can make you do foolish things. Like forgetting an appointment, or pretending to be engaged, or running away when feelings get too intense.

“And sometimes, it helps you become the person you were always meant to be.”

I let out a sigh, closing my eyes. I brought my hands up to my face, muffling a sob. He was right, as always—not that I was ready to admit it.

“I think I messed everything up,” I whispered. “I hurt him. I ran away and cut him off, and he hasn’t tried to reach out since the day after I arrived. He’s probably moved on.”

“Moved on from you?” Dad responded. “I find that hard to believe.”

Before I could respond, the doctor returned, a smile on her face and a piece of paper in her hand. She walked over to the bed and took a seat at the end.

“Grace, we’ve got your blood results. Everything looks normal. You were a bit dehydrated, as I suspected, but the IV fluids should help with that.

“However, we did find that your HCG levels are elevated. Given that you admitted there was a possibility, I believe you’re pregnant. We’ll do an ultrasound next, then you can head home.”

~Pregnant.~ With Brennan Wolf’s baby.

Tears welled up in my eyes and I wanted to scream, but I managed to pull myself together enough to sit up and nod.

I didn’t say a word when the sonographer wheeled in her machine, or when she lifted my shirt and applied the cold gel to my skin.

I barely breathed as she pressed the transducer against my stomach—I was too stunned to react.

Then I heard it. A rapid, rhythmic thud, a heartbeat much faster than my own… It sounded like a galloping horse. I turned to look at the screen.

I wasn’t listening to the sonographer. I was focused on the heartbeat as she pointed to a small black sac and a tiny white speck. I could see it flickering.

This was really happening.

“Holy shit, Grace,” I heard my dad gasp. His hand enveloped mine and he brought it to his lips, pressing a kiss to my knuckles. “I wish your mom was here.”

Tears welled up again, but this time they were happy tears. “So do I.”

And I wished Brennan was here too.

~Shit.~