All things considered, that could have gone so much worse than it did.
“Are you coming to the bar with us?” Mom asked, standing up. “You don’t have to work, but your shift is soon, and you’re dressed for work.”
“I figured this would take longer to get Grams to disappear than it did, so I came prepared.” I grabbed my purse. “Is Hugo in the kitchen yet? I’m hungry.”
“He’s there,” Dad said. “What do you want? I’ll call him and see if he can start something for you.”
“Ooh. Um…” It was hard to choose when I didn’t know what would make me feel sick at the drop of a hat. “Maybe just a burger and fries.”
“All right.” He pulled me into his side and kissed the top of my head when I stood up. “Go wait in the car. We’ll drive you. You can eat, then take a nap in my office before your shift.”
I smiled weakly. “Thanks, Dad.”
“You’re welcome, sweetie. I remember how much your mother slept when she was pregnant with you. And my God, she snored like a freight train falling off a cliff.”
“I heard that!” Mom called, appearing in the doorway while she fixed her earring. “If you aren’t careful, Simon, I’ll put you on a freight train like that.”
“No, you won’t.” He winked at her. “You wouldn’t find anyone else who’d put up with your bedroom kinks.”
I shoved my fingers in my ears. “La la la la la!”
My dirty parents both laughed, and Mom said, “You’ll get it in fifteen years. Go wait in the car.”
I didn’t need to be told again. I took the car keys from her and darted outside before they went any deeper into their bedroom activities and slid into the backseat of Dad’s Audi.
After a deep breath, I pulled my phone out of my purse and moved into damage control mode.
ME: Tori, if anyone asks, me and Kai are engaged and you’re the only person who knew okay thanks LOVE YOU BYE
I flipped to my conversation with Kai.
ME: Heads up, my family thinks we’re engaged and my grandmother is demanding we get married by the time the baby comes
Unsurprisingly, Tori was the first to respond.
TORI: Gotcha. Let me know when you figure how he proposed. I guess Holley doesn’t know.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is what best friends were for.
Faking engagements and hiding bodies.
I confirmed that my sister—younger by only ten months—did not know about the baby, and Kai’s response followed only moments later.
KAI: I should have known you weren’t joking last night when you said we might have to pretend to be married
ME: Well, I wish I had been. You haven’t dated anyone in, oh, the last six months have you?
KAI: No. I was too busy avoiding Amanda and trying to get you into bed.
ME: So romantic.
ME: So you proposed three weeks ago so it doesn’t look like a knee-jerk reaction to the pregnancy, okay
KAI: How far are we taking this? Like if your grandmother wants us to get married, are we eloping? Staging a fake wedding?
ME: I don’t know, I panicked, I couldn’t think straight. She was calling me a whore.
KAI: Who? Your grandmother?
ME: Yes. She only stopped when I pointed out Jesus wasn’t Joseph’s son. She almost beat me.
KAI: I cannot wait for this wedding.
ME: THERE WON’T BE A WEDDING.
KAI: Ok, I can’t wait for our fun wedding party to celebrate our totally fake marriage. It’s gonna be a hoot.
KAI: By the way, I told my parents.
ME: You’ve been at work all day.
KAI: I know. Text messaging is great.
Oh, my God.
He did not text his parents to tell them he was having a baby, and I replied as such.
KAI: I did. Now they want to see you, so we better figure this fake marriage out fast.
ME: I agree, because my parents want to talk to you tonight.
KAI: Really?
ME: Gotta go bye
CHAPTER FIVE – IVY
The bar was packed with people. Everywhere I looked, someone needed a beer or a cocktail or a glass of wine. It was hot and sticky and overwhelming on the best day, let alone right now when I had to avoid the coffee machine like the plague.
Unfortunately, because of that, we’d had to tell all tonight’s staff that I was pregnant and couldn’t serve coffee unless any of the patrons wanted their cappuccino with a side of vomit.
It was unanimously agreed that nobody would, in fact, like a side of vomit with their coffee.
Thank God.
“Rach, I need some air. Can you cover me for a few minutes?” I asked one of the servers who also tended the bar.
“Sure, Ivy. Take as long as you need—my big tables just left.” She smiled, tucked some blonde hair behind her ear, and stepped behind the bar to immediately serve some customers.
I slipped out the back, leaning against the wall. The cool evening air was a welcome distraction from the heat of inside, and I closed my eyes to revel in it for a long moment.
Realizing I could no longer put it off, I pushed off the wall and headed back inside just in time to see Kai and his sister, Anna, take their seats at an empty table. They’d seated themselves in an empty table in Rachel’s section, so I motioned to her that I had it and I’d be back in a moment.
“Hey,” I said, stepping up to their table with two menus in hand.
Kai’s eyes sparked when they met mine. “Hey. How are you doing?”
“I’m doing,” I replied, looking at Anna. “Hi. Sorry we couldn’t talk much last night.”
She waved her hand dismissively. “You were shattered. I’m surprised you’re working right now. Are you not dying?”
“I’m used to it.” I adjusted my apron. “Everyone is really understanding, and I have yet to have anyone served a side of vomit with their coffee, so it’s going well.”
She snorted. “That’s definitely a plus.”
Kai rolled his eyes at her. “Are you sure you’re fine?”
“I’m fine,” I insisted. “Honestly. Can I get you anything to drink?”
I took their orders and with a promise that I’d be right back, I headed for the bar to grab Kai’s beer and Anna’s wine. Rachel intercepted me and took the order before she said, “It’s Kai’s, isn’t it?”
My cheers flared, answering for me. “Can I have their drinks?”
She let out a low whistle as she set the glass of wine next to two small square paper towels. “Girrrrrl. That’s gonna be the hottest baby in Montana, never mind White Peak.”
I pursed my lips. “Rach, I really don’t want to have this conversation right now.”
“Right, right, sure.” She put Kai’s beer next to the wine and slid the tray across the bar to me. “I’m damn sad that one’s off the market.”