14. Mia
Mia
I never do get a break. Hell, I never even got to open that bottle of water Lucie brought. I maybe had three sips of the matcha and then one bite of a granola bar before something else happened.
Our busboy broke a good amount of our champagne flutes trying to impress one of the waitresses. I completely spaced on getting film for the photo booth and had to call half the stores in Boston before I found some. The tablecloths were a bitch to steam, and the wrong cake got delivered.
My employees were complete saints and jumped in where they could, but it felt like such a clusterfuck right up until the last minute. It’s put me in a piss-poor mood, and I’m really trying to come out of it.
I’ve worked on countless major projects and have never gotten this worked up before over things not going according to plan. I guess it’s a bad mixture of not feeling my best and wanting the most for the person I care deeply about.
What I wouldn’t give to have had time to go home and shower, but I’m cutting it close as is. I do a few touchups to my hair and makeup with my emergency bag. Most importantly, I reapply my deodorant and spray some perfume. I’ve sweat more than I’ve drank today at this point.
With the final touches of my lipstick, a knock comes to my office door and Adam steps in. “Hey, there you are.”
“Hey, sorry, I was going to be up front, but—”
“Don’t apologize.” Adam moves to cup my face bringing me in for a small kiss. “You look beautiful.”
“Thanks, I was afraid I looked like I’ve been hit by a train. Sort of feels like I was.”
I shuffle on my aching feet and slowly watch as Adam’s face drops.
“You didn’t take that break, did you?”
“I tried, I swear, but things just kept happening.”
“Mia—”
“Look, nothing to do about it now. I can relax with you and we can enjoy the party together.”
Adam crosses his arms and the serious look he had in the bar for months comes to his face. “There’s not a chance in hell you’re about to relax during the party. It’ll be a miracle if I can get you to sit down.”
I get why this piercing look keeps so many people at bay, but it’s a facade that I now see through. I reach for his hands, taking them in mine. “Well, you know who you’re dating, but at least you’ll be there with me.”
Adam groans, the frown on his face already weakening. “You’re taking tomorrow off.”
I nod, even though I know he wasn’t posing it as a question. “I’m taking tomorrow off. I’ve already talked to the managers on shift tomorrow.”
“Alright.” Adam concedes and pulls me into his warm body.
The movement isn’t hard or even that much distance, but when my chest connects to his, a wave of dizziness hits me hard. What the hell?
I squeeze my eyes shut and try to breathe in my nose and out my mouth as discreetly as possible. This will pass. Everything’s fine.
Adam runs a calming hand over my head. “Callie and Will aren’t here yet, but there are some people I would love for you to meet, if you’re feeling up for it?”
I take one more deep breath before slowly raising my head and praying I don’t get dizzy again.
“Yeah, let’s go.”
I automatically reach for Adam’s hand as we head out to the front. I don’t mind PDA. Frankly, I love being adored publicly and in private, but it seems I’m going to be clinging onto him tonight for stability and pleasure.
People are filtering into Winedown, and much to my surprise, it looks way better than before I went to get ready. It still feels hotter than I’d like, even though I turned the A/C down at least three times today.
“Is it hot in here?”
I’m sure that question comes off as my zero capability to chill, and it’s confirmed when I hear Adam’s soft chuckle.
“It’s fine, honey.”
Then why am I still sweating?
I take a deep breath. Maybe it’s just me obsessing over the details, and I’ll feel better once I can relax with Adam for a bit. Definitely need some food and water soon, but for now, Adam leads us right to a couple near the front.
The closer we get the more excited the woman gets. If it weren’t for her obvious baby bump and the way the man next to her pulls her tight, I’d be a little hesitant.
“Wyla, Jett, this is Mia. Mia, this is my old teammate, Jett, and his wife, Wyla.”
Wait, that name rings a bell. “Jett, as in your arcade game buddy?”
Adam laughs. “Yeah, that’s the one.”
Wyla raises her glass. “Listen, Adam and Callie both have had nothing but good things to say about you, but you having this nonalcoholic champagne has solidified it.”
I send a quick smile up to Adam, then turn back to Wyla. “I’m so glad. I had someone come help me taste them to make sure they were good.”
Adam wraps his arm around my shoulder, tugging me close to place a kiss on my temple.
My eyes shut on instinct as an empty nausea washes over me. Is he sure it’s not hot in here? Would it be weird if I asked Wyla?
“Well, Callie’s going to absolutely love this, and as someone who deeply adores her, I appreciate all the work you put into this.” Wyla looks to Adam. “I like how happy you look, too.”
“That, I am,” Adam says, moving his arm down to the small of my back.
I’ll admit that gave me a bit more air, but I’m still feeling uneven. Maybe we’ll sit down soon.
Jett looks around. “Speaking of Callie and Will, where are they?”
“Doing it in one of the closets at the stadium,” Beck says as he and Jensen pop up beside me.
Adam mumbles a curse. “You could’ve just said they’ll be on their way soon.”
Jett laughs. “Where’s the fun in that?”
“Thank you…” Beck starts, but everything else dies off with this ringing in my ears. Maybe it’s a headache coming on.
I can see Jensen stepping around Beck toward me, but it’s a little blurry. Shit, I do not feel good.
“Hey,” she says softly as her hand touches my arm. “Will you come sit down with me?”
“Yeah, that’d be great,” I mumble. “I could use some water, too.”
“Mia, you okay?” I can hear the concern in Adam’s voice. This is precisely what I didn’t want.
“I’m fine, I’m just going to go sit down for a second.” Not one part of my tone is very convincing, but that’s probably a good thing, because with my first step I see stars and with my second, it’s lights out.
“Adam, I think this is going a bit overboard.” I roll my eyes from the IV in my arm to the burly man sitting in the chair at my side.
I’m already mortified that I passed out, and being the man Adam is, he insisted I come to the emergency room to get checked out, despite how much effort he put into the party. Callie hadn’t even made it there yet, but that overprotective teddy bear side of him would not let it go.
He huffs, leaning back in his seat. “You passed out, Mia.”
I want to cringe at the memory. “Thanks for the reminder. Will you please go back to your sister’s engagement party now?”
“Nope. I’m here as long as you’re here.”
“Adam.”
“Mia.”
“Miss Wright,” a different man’s voice calls before pushing back the curtain. “I’m Doctor Bell. It seems we had a little fainting spell this evening.”
Yeah, and replaying it in my mind is not helping. “Yes, I had a pretty busy day and didn’t eat or drink much.”
Dr. Bell looks over the papers in his hand again. “Yeah, that’ll do it. We’re going to need you to stay on top of that moving forward.” He looks me right in my eyes. “It seems congratulations are in order. You’re expecting.”
I blink as the words process, and Adam stiffens beside me. Laughing is my next logical response, because what the hell. “Expecting? Expecting what?”
I wait for him to tell me anything other than the words I don’t want to hear. “A baby, Miss Wright. You’re pregnant.”
Another laugh. “No, no, no. I’m not pregnant. I’m just dehydrated and didn’t eat enough today. The test is wrong.”
Dr. Bell looks from me to Adam, like he’ll correct me or something. I get that I could have said the last line a little nicer, but panic is starting to creep in.
He lets out an annoyed sigh when it doesn’t seem like either of us is going to accept that news. “I don’t believe that’s the case. However, if you tell me when your last—”
“I start tomorrow. My cycle has been like clockwork for the last decade. I’m sure all of this lightheadedness is simply a mixture of that and not eating.
There’s just no way I’m pregnant.” I say it so strongly and confidently that I actually believe myself…
but the doctor just stares at me like I’m crazy.
Which I’m not. There’s simply no way. I would know if I was pregnant, right? I mean, we’ve used condoms every time.
“Do another test, please,” I say, adding a sweet smile despite the growing annoyance radiating off him.
“Miss—” Dr. Bell starts, but Adam cuts him off.
“She said run another test.”
This sweet bear of a man is as pale as a ghost right now, and if it were actually possible, I swear he got smaller at the word “pregnant.”
The doctor taps the clipboard to his palm two times, then gives a small nod to the nurse. “Alright, we’ll do it again. Cindy here will do a blood test this time, if you’re okay with that?”
“Yep. That’s fine.”
She can take a donation bag if she wants, but I’m going to need her to tell me I’m not having a baby.
The nurse gives me a sympathetic smile as the doctor leaves. “I’ll go grab the stuff, and I’ll be right back.”
My stomach turns in knots as a whole new wave of nausea hits me at that realization. What if I am pregnant? What does that mean for us? For me?
Shit, this can’t be happening. This is not a part of the plan.
That picture in my head of the family I would have with Adam wasn’t meant to start now. There’s no guarantee that Adam would be the man to be my husband and father of my children. Yes, I can see it, but still, it’s just a dream.
How are Adam and I going to survive this? What if this freaks him out and he leaves? How is this going to affect my business?
No, Mia, pull yourself together. The test is wrong. We’ve been safe every time. There’s not even been a missed period yet to raise concern.
I know my body. I’d know if I was growing a human in there.
Delusion may be setting in, or would you call it rationalizing? Manifesting? Maybe I should just not think about it.
“Mia…” Adam starts cautiously, but I hold a hand up.
I can’t bring myself to look at him yet. “It’s a mistake. I—I’m sure of it. We used condoms. Everything will be fine.” I wrap up the sentence quickly. There’re way too many emotions coursing through my body right now, and it’s taking everything for me to hide them all.
So far, I’ve passed out at a work event and been told I’m having a baby with the guy that I’m falling for. I refuse to add “crying from too many emotions” to the list of new experiences I’m having.
Adam opens his mouth then closes it. He doesn’t say another word the entire time we wait.
He reaches for my hand when the nurse comes back to stick a needle in my arm, and he doesn’t let go when she leaves.
It crosses my mind for a second to ask him how he’s taking all of this, but that feels a whole lot like accepting that this is a reality, and I just cannot do that right now.
“Okay, Miss Wright,” Dr. Bell calls again before stepping through the curtain with a nurse in tow. “Test number two confirmed again. You are pregnant.”
Yeah, the delusional bubble was thin, but the pop feels massive.