Chapter 13
Jinx
I wake at dawn to Nora’s side of the bed empty.
For a second, my mind goes right back to the morning following our one-night stand.
I’m alone in bed, wondering where she is, only to discover she ran from me.
I press my hand into the dent in the pillow where her head used to be, just like I did back then.
Only, this time, I snap out of it. Nora wouldn’t leave me. She actually loves me.
I’m about to climb out of bed to look for her, when I hear a phone jingle with a message.
I grab my pants and fish my phone out, only to realize it’s hers. I grab her pants and pull out her phone to find another message from her family.
It’s from her old man this time. He sent a picture of her friend, the one called Lena.
The poor girl looks terrified, probably because an older man that looks a lot like the man Nora described as Stripe, has his arm around her.
I can’t tell exactly where the picture was taken but it turns my stomach.
I hit the image and swipe, in case he sent more than one image.
Instead, what I get is a picture of a positive pregnancy test strip.
At first, I think they’re saying that Stripe got her friend pregnant.
Then I realize the hand holding the test strip is Nora’s. I recognize the ring.
I sit there, staring at the image as all the pieces of the puzzle click into place.
The nausea, the not drinking alcohol, the weirdness about me touching her stomach.
It all makes sense now. Nora is pregnant with my child.
It’s got to be mine. She was a virgin when she came to my bed and even though she ran, she’s never slept with another man, certainly not Stripe.
I swipe back to the image of Stripe with his arm around Nora’s pretty young friend.
I crawl out of bed buck naked and go look in the only place she can be. The bathroom door is open, and I see her sitting on the toilet with her head in her hand and every other thought ceases to fuckin’ exist. I kneel down on the rug and take her hands in mine. They’re icy cold.
“Nora,” I choke out. “What’s wrong? Are you feeling alright?”
When she looks up, I can tell she’s been crying. I grab a towel, wrap her up and carry her back to bed.
“No, wait,” she protests. “I’m…”
“You’re freezing. That’s what you are. And you’re going right back to bed until I’m fuckin’ convinced you’re not turning into a damn popsicle.”
I’ll admit that I’m trying to make her laugh.
It doesn’t work though. She just lays her cheek against my bare chest and relaxes against me.
Once I have her tucked into bed beside me, with an extra blanket thrown over us for good measure, I tell her, “No matter what you’ve been crying about tonight, we can work it out. ”
“Alright, remember you said that,” she warns me. “I have to tell you something. And I want you to let me get all the way through it before you say anything. Can you do that for me?”
“Yeah, but I already know what you’re gonna say.”
“No, you don’t. Not this time.”
She looks down at her hands. “I’m pregnant,” she tells me quietly.
“And how do you feel about that? Is that why you’re crying?”
“What? No. That’s not it at all,” she insists.
“Then what is it?” I ask, with worry clawing at what should be the most joyful news of my damn life.
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner. That’s partly why I ran from my father.
When I found out I was pregnant, I knew there was no way I could marry Stripe—not that I wanted to anyway—I knew as soon as he found out he’d either kill me or try and get me to get rid of the baby, but I’m not terminating this pregnancy or giving up my baby. ”
The tightness in my chest loosens and I can breathe again. “Well, I’m not either. So, it looks like we’re doin’ this together.”
When she looks into my eyes, I can see a multitude of emotions reflected back at me. She starts tearing up again. “I didn’t like lying to you.”
“Then why did you?” I shoot back. Because, yeah, I am feeling some kind of way about her leaving me out of the loop. “Was it just because you weren’t sure if I would be happy?”
“It was that and a bunch of other stuff. In my dad’s club not many of the brothers have old ladies. If the club girls end up pregnant, the brothers take them to the women’s clinic. Usually, the woman agrees but sometimes they guilt her into it.”
I open my mouth to object to her comparing me to those assholes, but she speaks first, continuing her explanation.
“I also worried that now wasn’t a good time to bring it up.
I didn’t want to distract you when I knew the Hyenas were lurking in the shadows, waiting for you to lower your guard for a minute. ”
I’m feeling less angsty by the minute because she’s not wrong about that. “I would have still wanted to know,” I say grudgingly.
“I wanted to wait until we were safe and find a sweet way to tell you.”
Now, I’m just smiling like an idiot because I’m a pushover for every damn thing related to my old lady and unborn child. “What made you jump the gun and tell me tonight?”
Both her hands drop down to cover her stomach. “I… I woke up before dawn to find that I was spotting. I had a cramp too. It was different from anything I’ve felt before. It might be nothing. But I haven’t been to the doctor. I don’t have anyone I can talk to. I’m stuck here and scared.”
Yeah, she’s saying a lot of things I didn’t know all at once.
I jerk up from my reclining position against the headboard to a sitting position.
“Yeah, you’re locked in a fortress with old ladies that know everything about pregnancy and child rearing.
We also have a medic and a physician. So, things aren’t quite as bad as you seem to think. ”
She looks back at me, her eyes filled with fear.
Reaching out, I cup her face in my hand.
“Sweetness, I love you like I’ve never loved another person in my entire life.
I’m fuckin’ thrilled you’re pregnant with my child.
I’m in this one hundred percent. We’re gonna get Queenie and Tessa for you to talk to about bein’ pregnant, so you don’t feel like you’ve got no support from other women.
And I’m gonna get our club doctor to have a look at you.
If she feels you need to go to the hospital that’s what we’re gonna do.
My club brothers will ride along and make damn sure we don’t get stopped by the Hyenas. How does that plan sound?”
Her expression changes to an assessing one. “You can really do all that?”
I can’t help but laugh. “Yeah, darlin’. I ain’t gonna put you or our child at risk. We’ll call in our club doctor first and see what she says. Gotta make sure our little guy or girl is safe, right?”
“Babe, we’re on lockdown. Nobody’s allowed in or out, by Jasper’s order.”
“Jasper’s order has a back door, and her name is Dr. Marsh.
” I squeeze her hands. “She’s a family practitioner and damn good at her job.
She’s sewn up bullet holes, treated sickness, and delivered babies.
The club keeps her like other clubs keep lawyers.
She’ll come, treat what ails you and she doesn’t keep written records. She is just our kind of doc.”
Nora stares at me. “You’re not panicking. Why aren’t you panicking? Kids are a lifelong commitment.”
“I can’t think of anything that I’d value more than a lifelong commitment to you and our child.”
Nora’s hands fly to her mouth, and she lets out a little surprised sound. It’s pretty clear that she wasn’t expecting me to say all that.
I pull her into a tight hug. “Don’t worry, you’re not flying blind all on your own anymore. Now, you’re mine and I come with a whole fuckin’ host of backup.”
“Thank you, babe. I love you too.” Her voice comes out strained and emotional.
We stay like that for a few minutes, but I know we need to get a move on. My old lady needs medical attention and I’m not taking any chances with her or our baby.
“I need to tell Jasper about this, so he can call in Dr. Marsh. Movin’ a doctor through that gate during lockdown is a security operation and he has to sign off on it. Can you live with him knowing?”
“Yes, of course. Tell Jasper and anyone else you want. Scream it from the walls. I’m done with secrets, babe.” Before I can answer, she adds, “I think Queenie already knows though. She guessed earlier today when I got tired, and a little nauseous.”
“You were nauseous?”
“Yeah, I think I was just full of nervous energy and did too much.”
“Well, that can’t happen again,” I tell her.
“I know,” she says, patting my shoulder. “I plan to prioritize making a healthy baby for us above everything else.”
I nod, allowing my momentary panic to subside.
While Nora gets dressed, I call Jasper.
“You’re up early, Jinx. What’s up? Did Nora think of something else that might have a bearing on our situation with the Hyenas?”
“No. She’s pregnant. She told me and I saw the positive pregnancy test strip.”
Jasper’s voice turns warm and pleased. “Congratulations, Jinx. You’ve got a fine old lady and now a baby on the way.”
“Thanks, Prez. But we’ve got a problem that needs immediate attention.”
“Okay, whatever you need we’ll make it happen.”
“She bled a bit this morning. It’s stopped now, but she needs to get checked out.”
“Do you want an escort taking her to the emergency room?”
“I think we should get the doc to take a look at her. If she thinks Nora needs to go to the ER, that’s what we’ll do. I don’t particularly want to risk taking her outside the compound if I don’t have to. Especially if the Hyenas are waiting for any chance to take her.”
“Okay, you go take care of your woman and I’ll call in the doc.”
I chuckle and get off the phone to check on Nora.
She’s moving slowly but no longer looks like the world is crashing down around her.
I get dressed and text one of the prospects to bring us up some breakfast. Making sure there’s ginger ale and some dry toast and crackers in case she isn’t feeling hungry.