She grinned that award-winning grin and said to Chris, “That is so sweet of you to come with her.” I saw her glance down at his hand, and I imagined she was looking for a wedding ring. I knew Alice was single. I wanted to warn her against him. He’s a lying lousy excuse for a man, I wanted to say, but I didn’t. I said nothing and silently fumed.
“She needed my help, so I wanted to be there for her,” Chris said, smiling that sexy, heart-stopping smile. I was sure I heard a bit of flirting in his tone.
Bad enough that you lied to me, now you’re going to flirt with her after you’ve had sex with me? And when I’m not feeling well?
“What seems to be the problem?” Alice asked me.
I told her how I’d been feeling over the past few weeks while she did a full check-up.
“I want you to pop over to the lab across the hall and get your blood drawn and pee in a cup for me, okay? I want to make sure we cover every possibility,” Alice said, still smiling.
Chris took me across the hall, and luckily there was only one person ahead of me, which was odd because it was usually packed with people. I was a real sissy when it came to getting my blood taken, and I closed my eyes and grabbed Chris’s hand, and squeezed as hard as I could. I might have added a bit of my anger into the pressure out of spite.
“Wow, you’ve certainly got a death grip,” Chris said, grimacing in discomfort.
We went back to the doctor’s office and waited for the results.
“When was the last time you were here?” Chris wanted to know.
“I don’t know, I come every year, I guess. I’m usually never sick, so other than that, not very often,” I told him.
“How old is your doctor?” he asked.
I whirled my head around and glared at him.
“What?”
“Really, Chris?” I spat.
“What?”
“Get out,” I told him. “I’d like to be alone.”
He left without a word.
Alice came back and said, “Where did your co-worker go?”
“He had to leave to take care of something,” I told her.
“That’s too bad. I have such great news for you, Marilyn. You’re going to be a mom!” Her voice went up a couple of octaves, and she grinned excitedly.
I was stunned.What? That’s impossible! I always make sure the man uses a condom.
I felt all the color drain out of my face, and suddenly I felt sicker than I had for the past month. We’d been drunk, and I had no idea if we even used a condom. How could I have been so stupid? Fear took hold of me as I realized I was carrying Chris’s baby. It had to be his because I hadn’t been with anyone else in at least a few months.
“How far along is it?” I asked, hoping it was Chris’s and not the creep I’d slept with before him. My periods were very irregular, so I couldn’t count on that to tell me when I missed a cycle.
“Approximately six weeks,” she told me. I closed my eyes. It was Chris’s. There was no doubt.
“Marilyn? Does that make you happy, or is this unexpected?” Alice asked gently.
“Definitely not planned,” I squeaked out, a tear falling from the corner of my left eye.
“Oh, dear. I’m sorry. Did you want children someday?” she asked.
“No. I’m not mommy material. I’m too selfish and a neat freak, and I don’t like other people’s children, and I value my sleep, and I haven’t even held a baby. I wouldn’t know the first thing to do,” I told her hysterically.
Alice put her arm around me and rubbed my back. “Oh, honey. I know how you feel. Relax. I never wanted children either.”