Total pages in book: 25
Estimated words: 23400 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 117(@200wpm)___ 94(@250wpm)___ 78(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 23400 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 117(@200wpm)___ 94(@250wpm)___ 78(@300wpm)
I nod with a wry smile.
“Yeah. I took two of them just to be sure, and I’m definitely pregnant.”
Alex smiles joyously.
“Oh my god, I’m going to be an aunt! Aunt Alex! This is amazing! But wait, this is what you want, right? You’re ready to be a mommy, aren’t you Cat? I swear, I can remember you saying how much you were looking forward to having a baby.”
I smile again.
“Yeah, I’ve always seen myself as a mom with a brood of kids. This pregnancy is unexpected, but I can deal. No, my problem is more than that.”
“Oh my god, the child has Down’s syndrome, or Fragile X. Or autism? Is that it?” my buddy says in a hushed voice.
I shake my head and roll my eyes.
“Alex, I just took the tests fifteen minutes ago, and you know that home pregnancy tests can’t track that kind of stuff. You have to go to the doctor in order to find out those details.”
Alex takes my hand.
“You’re having triplets,” she says somberly.
I smile again, shaking my head.
“Nope. Home pregnancy tests can’t tell you that either. My problem is … a little more unusual, shall we say?”
Alex shoots me a puzzled look.
“But what would be so unusual about your pregnancy Cat? You’re happy, healthy and relatively young for a mom at age twenty-five. Why would yours be any different from any other pregnant woman? I mean, not to say that you’re not a special snowflake. You are,” my friend says hurriedly. “I just want to make sure everything’s okay.”
I sigh and smile at her again.
“No, my problem is that I don’t know who the father is.”
Alex shoots me another puzzled look.
“But it has to be Reed, right? I mean, you’re not stepping out on him or anything.”
I sigh again.
“Of course not. It’s just that … well, I basically started dating Reed right after I broke up with Rev. I mean, I literally broke up with Rev on Valentine’s Day, and then hooked up with Reed right after. Within hours. Possibly within the hour, if you get what I mean.”
Alex stares at me with huge eyes and her mouth opens with shock.
“Seriously? Wow, you’re such a bad girl, Cat. I had no idea. But it’s not like you broke any rules. You ended the relationship with Rev, and then took up with Reed. There was no overlap.”
“There was no overlap,” I confirm. “But still, that doesn’t solve the problem because I think I’m a few months along already, Alex. And because I didn’t have a break between Reed and Rev, either of them could be the father.”
My friend stares at me again, her face going white.
“Oh my god, you’re pregnant and you don’t know which twin is the baby daddy.”
I nod while wincing.
“Yeah, pretty much. It’s an awful situation, and it only just came crashing down on me. I have no idea what to do.”
My friend sits up straight.
“Okay, but if the baby is only one month along, then it means it’s definitely Rev’s. Or Reed’s. Sorry, I get their names mixed up,” she apologizes.
I sigh.
“No worries, I totally understand the mix-up. But I don’t think I’m only a month along. I think I’m a few months along because I haven’t gotten my period for a long time now. I just didn’t notice because of all the drama in my life. I also didn’t realize that I might be pregnant because I’m a curvy girl, and a little pooch to my tummy is normal. Hell, pooches usually mean food baby for me, and it’s not like I’ve put on significant weight.”
Alex nods slowly.
“So how do we figure out who the dad is, and what are you going to do? Oh my god, this is straight out of a soap opera.”
I sigh.
“I know, right? This isn’t what I want at all, but it’s the situation I find myself in.”
My friend shakes her head at me, clucking.
“Well, you have to tell the potential dads at least. Maybe Reed and Rev have some ideas on what to do? I’m not sure.”
I sigh again, my shoulders slumping.
“I know I have to tell them, but can I just say that I’m not looking forward to it? I mean, imagine the conversation: I’m pregnant, but the baby might not be yours. It might be your twin brother’s. And besides, I don’t want to have Rev’s baby! He’s such a mess these days, Alex. I heard he’s left his company and is just sitting at home playing video games while getting drunk. It’s really sad for a thirty-five year old man to be in such a state.”
Alex clucks sympathetically again.
“Would you get rid of it if the baby was Rev’s?”
At that, I jolt forwards.
“No of course not. A baby is a blessing, and I want to keep him or her no matter who the father is. I just don’t know how to have this conversation, and to be honest, Alexandra, I’m petrified. What if Reed says he doesn’t want me anymore? What if he says I’m a major slut to be even be in this situation? What if he breaks up with me?”