LITMIR.BIZ

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to pick up the test, she knew she wasn’t upset.

      She was terrified, but she’d dealt with scarier things in her life. She was in denial, but then, she’d lived as a shell of herself for the past few years, so the feeling wasn’t too uncommon. She was ashamed, but there was something else pushing her guilt aside and giving her a glimpse at a happiness she hadn’t experienced in a long time.

      “Aw, sweetie,” Kylie said. “I know this is overwhelming, but you’re a strong woman. And you have us to help you.”

      “I know,” she said, tears threatening to spill from her eyes. “I promised myself I would forget about that night in Boise. And it was almost getting easier until I realized my cycle had never been this late. I guess in my determination to forget everything, I didn’t think about the consequences, either.”

      “Do you want to talk about your plans?” Maxine asked.

      “I’m scared. Obviously. I don’t know how I’ll do it.” As soon as she realized she was late, a fear set in. But so did another emotion—excitement. “Like a tiny part of me is kind of looking forward to having this baby. I know this sounds selfish because I hated growing up without a father and I always swore that if I had kids of my own I wouldn’t make the same mistakes that my mom made with me. But I’m actually a little bit excited.” She rubbed her knee, which was getting sorer with each passing day. “That bastard Nick took so much from me—and not just physically. I thought I’d never recover after he attacked me, that my life was ruined. Yet, the thought of having a baby—having someone who is only mine and who needs me—is unreal, but in a positive way. This pregnancy might make me feel like I have a purpose again.”

      Both of her friends looked at each other before turning back toward her. Then Kylie asked, “What about the baby’s father?”

      “What about him? It’s not like I know him or would even know where to find him.”

      Maxine hesitated before saying, “Cooper has some connections with the Boise PD and he can talk to the hotel security, maybe ask some questions on the down low—”

      “No,” Mia interrupted. “What if the guy is married? Or a psychopath? I don’t need him. We don’t need him,” she corrected, as she put her hands protectively over the not yet visible bump of her tummy.

      Her friends looked at each other again and Maxine shrugged. “Nobody has to make any decisions right this second. How about you let everything sink in and then, if you change your mind, we’ll help you find him.”

      Mia nodded, but knew she wouldn’t ever change her mind. She was about to take control of her own life, of her own destiny, and she wasn’t going to invite some strange man into her world to start calling the shots or vetoing her decisions—even if she knew where to find him.

      The women turned their conversation to pregnancy symptoms and childbirth and their doubts about ancient Dr. Suarez, who was the town’s only general practitioner and should have retired twenty years prior.

      “I think I might look for an obstetrician in Boise,” Mia said.

      “Thank goodness I’m covered under Drew’s insurance,” said Kylie. She was married to a lieutenant commander in the navy and twenty weeks pregnant. “I only have to drive as far as Shadowview Hospital when it’s my time to deliver. Don’t you think going all the way to Boise might be a bit far?”

      Mia flexed her knee, trying to stretch out the pain that had only increased over these past weeks. Her friend was right, but going to the town doctor would be tantamount to hanging a huge banner outside her dance studio announcing to the world that she was pregnant and unmarried. Some of her students’ parents might think she wasn’t a fit role model for their precious offspring. She also helped coach the high school cheerleading team and knew the PTA would surely call her morals into question. Sugar Falls was a small town, and her career didn’t need that kind of negative publicity.

      “What about that new medical center out at the old lumber mill?” Maxine asked.

      “Oh, yeah.” Kylie was nodding her head. “My brother, Kane, has been doing the construction on the building and said the first offices are unofficially opening next week.”

      “What kind of doctors will they have?” Mia was skeptical but any physician who was new to town would still be considered an outsider and wouldn’t be so quick to divulge patient information to the rest of his cronies in the Kiwanis Club, as Doc Suarez was known to do.

      “Cooper’s surgeon from the base hospital is opening up an orthopedic clinic there now that he’s out of the military. And I heard there was a new dentist moving in next month. But no OBs, as far as I know.”

      “Actually,” Max added, “it would probably be a good idea to talk to Dr. McCormick about your knee, Mia.”

      “I know. It’s been killing me lately. But now that I’m pregnant, I probably shouldn’t have surgery or anything.” Besides, a retired navy doctor sounded just as old and cantankerous as Dr. Suarez.

      “That’s true.” Kylie patted her own stomach. “But trust me, when you start packing on the pounds, it’s only going to get worse. Maybe he could give you a cortisone shot or something to get you through the next several months.”

      “Yep, the last thing you want is a bum knee when you have a newborn to take care of,” Maxine said. “Trying to run the dance studio on top of everything else is going to be taxing on you.”

      These women knew Mia better than anyone. They were her former teammates on the Boise State cheer team and her lifesavers when she’d later fled Miami to start over in Sugar Falls. And now Mia was turning to them again.

      Maxine was the owner of the Sugar Falls Cookie Company, the star attraction of the downtown Sugar Falls tourist industry and a famous bakery specializing in flavored cookies. She’d opened her shop when her eleven-year-old son had been a toddler and had firsthand experience on raising a child alone while managing a growing business. Kylie was a CPA and had spent last summer raising her husband’s twin nephews while singlehandedly maintaining the financial records for half the town. Mia was glad she had friends who had already gone through something similar and could help her navigate the unfamiliar terrain.

      “Okay,” she said with a sigh. “Give me his number and I’ll make an appointment.”

      Her friends left and, as much as she adored the two women, she was glad to finally be alone to come to terms with her new reality.

      After securing the dead bolt, she grabbed the paper towel off the counter, sat down on her comfy old sofa and stared at the little test stick with the two blue lines. She was going to be a mother. Mia could hardly believe it. Growing up, whenever she’d complain about not wanting to audition for a certain play that had nothing to do with dancing or not wanting to move to an entirely different state because her mother had it in her head that Mia could land a talent agent if she would only take up acting classes, Rhonda Palinski would tell her daughter that she didn’t even know what she wanted.

      And for the past few years, Mia had allowed herself to believe that maybe her mom was right and she didn’t know what she wanted out of life.

      Putting the stick down, she stroked her still-flat belly. She knew with a certainty she hadn’t felt in years that she wanted this child more than she had ever wanted anything. She’d always lived her life for others, having her dreams diminished or jerked out from under her feet. But this baby was hers. And nobody, not even GP What’s-his-name, could take this away from her.

      She reached into her sweater pocket and pulled out the gold and onyx cuff link, looking at the initials.

      GPM.

      The morning following their lovemaking she’d almost made it down to the lobby when she’d spotted a small bit of gold winking at her from the corner of the elevator. When she’d picked it up, she remembered the way he’d had her body pressed up against the mirrored walls, her hands pulling him in closer and slipping under his suit jacket—which had gotten in her way.

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