“Shit, Heather. I never knew my equipment could perform so much. I’m really happy about it and all, but baby, this’ll be the fourth time. I don’t want you to be sore.”

I pushed him onto his back and crawled on top of him. I rubbed against him until I felt him growing hard. I bent over and kissed one nipple and then the other before I jumped off of him.

“Okay. Well, you know where I’ll be if you change your mind,” I said over my shoulder as I winked at him and made my way into the shower.

After we made love in the shower, we got dressed, and then I finally gave Josh a tour of the house. I made us breakfast, and we ate it on the back deck. We talked about Josh wanting a dog, and I answered a million questions he had about us.

It was a perfect morning. It almost felt like things were back to normal. Josh went back upstairs to get ready to leave since he was heading to his apartment today to grab a few things and finish packing to move in with me.

I smiled, thinking about when he’d asked if he could still move in. I really need to tell him about the baby. I’m so scared he’s going to think I’m trying to trap him.

“Hey, you look like you’re a million miles away.”

I stood up and walked over to him. I just need to tell him. “Um…Josh, I kind of want to talk to you about something.”

“Sure, princess. Anything you want to talk about, I’m all ears,” he said with a smile.

Just as I was about to start, my cell phone rang. I glanced down and saw it was Amanda. Shit! She was on her way to see Brad, and I was sure she was upset.

I looked back up at Josh and frowned. “Amanda is going to see Brad today, so I better get it.” I let out a sigh.

Josh grabbed his truck keys and then gave me a quick kiss on the lips.

“Hey, Amanda. Hold on real quick,” I answered. I looked Josh in the eyes. “I love you. Please be careful driving.” I kissed him again.

“I’ll be back soon. I don’t think it will take me long. Are you staying here?”

“I have to run a few errands, but I won’t be gone long. I’ll be waiting for you,” I said with a wink.

The smile that spread across his face caused my knees to go weak.

He slowly backed away and turned to leave. “Be naked!” He walked down the steps and out to his truck.

I giggled as I watched him walk away. Damn, that boy has a nice ass.

“Hey, Amanda. I’m so sorry. Josh was just leaving to head back into Austin.” I sat down.

“Did you tell him about the baby?”

“Uh…no, not yet.”

“Oh Jesus, Heather. You can’t keep putting it off. Look at the situation I’m in now because I didn’t tell Brad the moment I found out I was pregnant.”

My heart broke for Amanda. “What time are you going to see him?”

“I don’t think I can do it. I’ve pretty much gone through half this pregnancy without him here. What if he can’t give up the drugs? And, of course, there’s also the fact that he made out with that bitch.”

“Oh, Amanda, please go. I know you’re angry, but you’ll always second-guess yourself if you don’t go. I know he hurt you, but I also know he is hurting so, so much. Ellie said Brad cries every time he talks to Gunner, and Brad always says how much he hates himself for what he has done to you.”

Amanda was silent for a good two minutes. I heard her softly crying.

“I just love him so much…and I hate him so much, too, Heather. I gave up all my dreams for him. I went to work for his fucking mother even though I hate her, and I did it for him. I’ve changed myself, so I could fit into their stupid high-society life…all because I loved him so much. In return, he just pushed me away when he should have been pulling me in closer, so I could help him. How do I move past this?”

I took a deep breath in and let it out. Everything she’d said was so true. She’d had dreams of moving and living near the ocean, so she could work as a marine biologist. She’d talked about it since we were freshmen in high school. She’d given it all up to work as the office manager for Brad’s mom.

“I don’t know, sweets. All I know is…if you love him and he loves you, then you’ll find a way to make it through this. I think Brad was just as unhappy as you were, but he was too afraid to stand up to his parents. That was where the drug use came into play. I think he just wanted to find an easy way out…a way to forget.”

“Yeah…well, I wish I had a way to forget the last six months of my life,” she said.

“I know, sweets. I know you do.”

“Heather?”

“Yeah?”

“You need to tell Josh about the baby. I know you’re hoping he’ll get his memory back, but if you keep waiting…you’re going to be four months pregnant like I was. Then, you’ll have to figure out a way to tell him and also explain why you waited so long to tell him.”

“I know. I almost told him right before you called.”

Amanda took a deep breath in and let it out. “I just pulled up to the rehab center. I wish y’all were here. Oh god! What if his parents are here?”

I let out a laugh. “Amanda, you said you were just meeting with the counselor and Brad. Baby, take a deep breath and decide right now. Are you going to forgive him and stand by his side to help him through this drug problem? Or are you going to hold on to your anger, raise your child as a single mother, and walk away from the love of your life?”

“Okay…well, right now, I’m going with option two—anger and single mother. That pretty much sums up how I’m feeling toward him. When I see him, I might change my mind, but I seriously think I’m just gonna want to junk punch him.”

“Good luck, sweets. I love you,” I said.

“Thank you, babe. I’ll call you after I leave. Plus, I want to know what last night was like.”

I laughed. “Bye, sweets. Talk to you later.” I set my phone down on the table, and then I closed my eyes as I thought about the last few days.

The image of our baby on the monitor as the nurse had congratulated me popped into my head.

My eyes flew open. “Oh god. Why didn’t I just tell him the moment I found out?” I said out loud.

I picked up my phone and looked at the time. I jumped up and ran into the house, heading upstairs to change out of my pajamas. I wasn’t going to waste another moment. I would just go to Josh’s apartment and tell him.

I grabbed his T-shirt off the floor and slipped it over my head before I pulled on a pair of jean shorts. I smiled as I thought about telling him. The way he’d put his hand on my stomach last night as he mentioned kids warmed my heart.

Oh shit. He said “someday,” meaning…not right now. What if he freaks out about it? He was just getting used to the idea of us, and now, I’m going to throw a baby into it.

I shook my head and cleared my thoughts. Amanda’s right. I need to do this.

I ran downstairs and skidded to a stop. Fuck! My car is at Josh’s parents’ house.

Neither of us had given a second thought about leaving my car behind when we headed to the dance hall yesterday. I glanced over and saw my dad’s car keys hanging up next to the back door. Although I had kept my dad’s Lexus, I would only drive it every now and then. Smiling, I walked up and grabbed the keys.

“Okay, Daddy, let’s go tell Josh he’s gonna be a father.”

I sat there, bouncing my knee up and down, as I ran my hands along the thighs of my jeans.

“Brad, just take a deep breath. She’s going to come,” Bryan said as he smiled.

“My parents are not going to be here, right? My fucking mother is the cause of all this.”

Bryan let out a laugh. “Brad, you’re a grown man. You made the choice to take drugs.”

I looked down at the ground. I knew he was right, but at this moment, I hated my mother. She had constantly pushed Amanda and me, and she was the reason Amanda and I had fought in the first place.