A sense of peace washed over me, and I pulled in a gulp of air.
It wasn’t the reaction I was expecting when I saw the two blue lines, but it felt right. Whatever this next chapter held for us, we would wade through it together, Luke and me… and this baby.
A high-pitched squeal sounded in my ear, Maeve’s hands covering her mouth as she tried to rein in her excitement.
“Whew. Okay. How are you feeling?” Claire asked.
I took a deep breath and met her eyes. “Good. I think this might be good.”
“Wow. I was expecting a full freak-out,” Maeve said.
“I don’t know. It just feels right. I don’t know how else to explain it.”
I swore them both to secrecy. I didn’t want word to get out, even to the Wilder brothers, before I had a chance to tell Luke.
“I’m sorry to ask you to keep a secret from your boyfriends. It won’t be forever. I just need to tell Luke first,” I explained to them.
“Don’t even worry about it. This isn’t like I’m keeping something from Reid that affects either him or I. This isn’t my news to tell, so I’m not sharing it until I have permission,” Claire said.
“Same. Wyatt will completely understand. He would be furious if Luke or Reid knew I was pregnant before he did. Your secret is safe with me.”
“Thanks, ladies.”
Maeve looked at me, a hopeful plea sparkling in his eyes. “So… can we scream and celebrate now?”
A laugh pulled from my lungs. “Yes, Maeve. Let’s celebrate!”
A scream pulled from her lungs as she tapped her feet. Claire put some music on, and the three of us danced and laughed and cried… well, maybe I was the only one crying. I had all the faith in the world that Luke would be there with me through everything, but it couldn’t silence my nerves completely. What if he didn’t want this? What if he only stayed out of obligation?
I shook my head of the thoughts. Those two lines had just flipped my world upside down, but I had never been more sure of anything than I was that I wanted this baby—Luke’s baby—with every fiber of my being.
31
Luke
“Where are we going?”
Scarlett’s brow furrowed as I turned onto the highway.
“I told you, it’s a surprise.” I cocked a grin at her. She was absolutely stunning. The weak November sunlight shined through the windshield, highlighting her copper strands. The curls gathered on her head gave her a halo effect.
She had been acting strange the last two days, which she tended to do when she got antsy and restless. I called in to Chief Williams this morning and asked to change my shift on Wednesday so that I could have two days off back-to-back. Scarlett wasn’t due back at Daisy’s until Thursday, so for the next two days, it was just going to be me and her.
I’d planned an impromptu adventure that I figured she would enjoy. The campsites were pretty empty this time of year, but with unseasonably warm temperatures—and making the best use of our body heat—we would be fine to tent it for one night. The camping wasn’t the adventure though.
I drove the couple of hours south into Connecticut. Aboutone hour into the drive, I caved and told Scarlett where we were headed, but not what we were doing.
“I’ve got the tent in the back, multiple sleeping bags and blankets, food for us to cook. The site has a firepit. I made sure of that before I booked it.”
“You’re taking me camping?” Scarlett smiled. “I love it. I haven’t been camping in forever. What made you want to pack it all up for two days?”
“It seemed like you were getting anxious, and I know how you hate to sit still for too long. I thought we could get out into nature and just relax under the stars.”
I squeezed her thigh, sliding my hand further up the inside of her leg. I couldn’t make sense of the look she was giving me. It wasn’t upset, but there was something not right in her sky-blue eyes. “Is that okay? I wanted to surprise you, but…”
“Luke,” she stopped me. “Yes, it is absolutely okay. Thank you.” She threaded her fingers through mine where it rested on her thigh. “This is perfect. Just the two of us, away from everyone and everything happening back at home.”
I had told her about the fallout from Tyler’s arrest, how Daisy had given a statement on Saturday and then come in to retract it on Sunday, telling me it was all a misunderstanding. She was drunk. She didn’t realize he was trying to help her get back to her friends.
