Chapter l413

Chapter 0413

Gently, I knocked on Susie’s door. It was already partially opened. When I knocked, the door pushed farther inward. Susie was resting in bed. Nicholas was standing beside the bed, speaking with her. I had just watched the doctor leave before I knocked.

Susie saw me and waved me closer. As I followed her direction, I noticed she was visibly upset. Her face was red and splotchy. There were tear stains down her cheeks. She was still crying.

“I’ll speak again with the doctor,” Nicholas said, and after a quick concerned glance at me rushed to chase after the doctor. At that pace, he’d catch her in the hallway.

With him gone, I took his place at Susie’s side. With her crying like she was, it still felt too far, so I stepped closer until I was leaning on the bed.

“I’ll speak with Bridget again,” I said. “I’ll absolutely insist that she change our parts. Susie, I’m so sorry that I didn’t fight harder. I never should have made you go up there.”

Susie shook her head.

When she didn’t speak, I continued, “I promise that we’ll find a way to protect you from your stage fright. I’ll beg Bridget if I have to. Surely she’ll be able to see

reason now.

“Piper…”

“I’m serious, Susie. I’ll do whatever it takes -”

“I’m not upset about the play anymore,” Susie said.

I cut off my words. I closed my open mouth. Gave it some thought. Then opened it again. “Are you okay?”

Oh G od, she wasn’t sick or something, was she? She was my oldest friend here, and one of the dearest. If something happened to her, I didn’t know what I would do. But, surely, she would be okay. The best doctors in the kingdom were here attending to the royal family.

If Susie needed medical care, she was in the right place.

“Piper,” Susie said. Fresh tears spilled down her cheeks. “I’m pregnant.”

I stared at her.

+15 BONES

My thoughts fizzled into static white noise.

I had known that Susie and Mark had been intimate, but… pregnant? They weren’t married. They weren’t even officially a couple. Susie was here, supposedly, to be trying to win the heart of one of the princes. I wasn’t even sure she’d ever been alone with Joyce!

Now she was pregnant!

“What did Mark say?” I asked.

More tears spilled down her cheeks, this time with a so b.

Oh, no. That ba st ard. Mark had always seemed like an upstanding guy, but if he had dared to hurt Susie, I would never forgive him.

“He didn’t…” I started, unsure how to ask what I wanted to. What could have Mark said that would make Susie this upset? Had he broken things off? Had he wanted to terminate the baby?

“He doesn’t know,” Susie said through her cries.

Oh. Oh, thank Go d. I placed my hand to my chest to steady my out of control, furious heartbeat. I’d been half-ready to chase Mark down and punch him myself. I have a wolf now. He would have felt it.

Discovering that he didn’t know yet was an absolute relief. I had so few friends, I couldn’t really afford to lose any.

Before I could finish processing any of this, Nicholas returned through the door. He crossed the room in a few large strides and joined us by standing again at Susie’s side.

“Okay, the doctor will keep this quiet for now, but soon you will have to make a decision about what to do, Susie,” Nicholas said.

A decision? What an understatement. She’d have to make several life-altering decisions in very quick succession.

Questions like: Are you keeping the baby? How will you tell Mark? Will you and Mark make your relationship public? Will you voluntarily drop from the competition or will you wait until you have to leave? How will you tell your parents?

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