“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“When was the last time you had your period?”
I can feel the blood drain from my face as what he asks me registers in my brain.
“Oh my god, I didn’t have one this month.”
“Are you still on the pill?”
“Yes, but I forgot to take them for a few days last month when that bitch hit me over the head. I called my doctor to let her know. She said to just pick up where I left off, but to use extra protection until I have my next period. I forgot to tell Jackson when he stayed with me after I got out of the hospital. Having him here taking care of me made me feel so good and we made love every day. I just wasn’t thinking.”
I start crying again and now that I think about it, this would explain why I’ve been crying so much lately.
“I’ll run to the store and get you a few tests. Let’s not jump to any conclusions until we see the results. In the meantime, make some tea and eat some toast.”
I do as he says and surprisingly, I do feel a bit better. My mind is racing, and I feel a little panicked as thoughts of telling Jackson brings on a fit of anxiety. What if the test comes back positive? I have no idea how I’m going to tell him this after what’s happened between us. I’m just feeling so unsure right now and I don’t know how he’ll react to this. I give Jeffrey my key to let himself back in if I have to rush to the bathroom again. That’s exactly where he finds me.
“Here you go sweetie. I’ll be in the kitchen while you take the test.”
“Okay.”
I read the directions and they seem fairly easy. I pee on the stick and lay it flat on the sink. I wash my hands and go to the kitchen to find Jeffrey.
“All done! Now we wait.”
“Are you nervous?”
“Yeah, I’m nervous as hell! I have no clue what I’m going to do if the test is positive. I mean, I didn’t plan on having kids until I was in my early thirties and married. With everything the way it is between me and Jackson, I’m not prepared to deal with this emotionally.” I can’t have a baby right now.”
We head back into the guest bathroom and I see the two distinct blue lines before I reach the sink. I’m pregnant!
Chapter 23
Crystal
Jeffrey catches me as my legs buckle. Pregnant! I’m pregnant! The timing could not be more awful and there’s no way I’m telling Jackson this news. He has enough to deal with and I don’t want to add to it. I burst into tears again. He draws me in for a much-needed hug and rubs soothing circles on my back.
“Oh, sweetie, if you keep crying like this, you’re going to dehydrate yourself. It’s going to be okay. I’m here, the girls are here. Between all of us, you’re going to get through this. How do you think Jackson will take the news?”
“I’m not sure to be honest. I mean, I know he loves me, but our relationship was new. I don’t think he’ll abandon me or anything like that, but we were taking our relationship one day at a time. Just living in the moment and enjoying being with each other. A baby could change all of that.”
“Well, I’ve only met him once. From what I can tell, I’ve never seen you happier than when you’re with him. Your face lights up every time you mention his name. That has to mean something.”
“He is a really great guy. That, I can’t deny, but I honestly have no idea how he would handle this. I’ll wait until after next weekend to tell him. In the meantime, I’ll make an appointment with my doctor to confirm the test and make sure that everything is okay. I hope she can give me something for the nausea. I can’t do this every day.”
“Sounds like a good plan. Let me know if you need me to help you with anything and I’ll make myself available.”
“You’re such a good friend Jeffrey. I’m so glad you’re here.”
I give him a hug and after more tea and toast, I grab my MacBook and we google everything about pregnancy.
We spend the day just hanging out. Tyler comes over and they both spend the day keeping my mind occupied. We watch movies, have popcorn, and Tyler cooks dinner. They really do make a good couple and seeing them together makes my heart smile. I manage to keep my food down and I feel better, so we go for a swim. Having them here has kept me from being an emotional wreck, but I can’t help myself when my mind keeps drifting to thoughts of Jackson and our baby. Images of us together flood my head. I can see a smaller version of Jackson running around, making a mess wherever he goes, and us both tucking him in at night. Is it possible to have this with him? They say that love conquers all. I just hope that rings true for me and Jackson.
April comes home the next day and I tell her the news. She, of course is giddy with happiness and can’t wait to tell Chas. We call her and, always the rational one, Chas scolds me for the birth control mishap and asks several questions. Even after I told her I made him leave, she’s still pretty upset with Jackson. I can understand, especially because I could’ve been seriously hurt that night in the parking garage. In the end though, she was pretty stoked about having a, and I quote, “tiny human” to keep us on our toes.
“Do we need to pick you up from the airport, I ask?” She hesitates.
“Umm, no. Lance is picking me up.”
“As in, Lance Jones?”
“Yes, Lance Jones. Before you ask, yes, we’ve been seeing each other.”
“Wow, I’m so happy for you both! First, April and Javi, now you and Lance. I hope Jackson and I work our shit out because this is just too perfect.
Chapter 24
Jackson
One Week Later
The Chief, Javi, and I are heading to a warehouse that we use for sting operations. The S.W.A.T team, DEA, and FBI agents are already there setting up. We managed to keep this under wraps for over a month. The only thing that has happened that could’ve tipped anyone off, is the arrest of Robert Hughes, a supervisor in the FBI. He was the agent that gave away our position and blew the mission that killed Mike. I wanted to end his life when I saw him being led away in cuffs, but this is too important. We’ve come too far for me to fuck this up now. This has turned out to be a larger operation than we originally thought. We’ve learned that Devon is still very much involved with the drug cartel in Colombia. We’ve known the shipments were coming from them, but Devon is highly connected with one of the most dangerous crime families on the FBI’s most wanted list. In fact, he’s married to Antonella De la Fuente, daughter of Emiliano De la Fuente. The De la Fuentes are the biggest drug cartel in Colombia. They must think a great deal of Devon to not only allow him to marry into their family, but to run one of their most lucrative drug operations here in the US. If all goes well, we’ll have him and Jordan in custody, and we’ll get these drugs off the street. We had a total of twenty adolescent females die from an overdose. When our lab analyzed the drugs found during the tox screens, they discovered a mixture of cocaine and fentanyl. Both are lethal by themselves, but a combination is certain death. The fentanyl was only a trace amount, so we could only assume that they were testing out a new product and using these girls as guinea pigs. To have such little value for human life is sickening and we need to put a stop to this.