8. Kate
Damn it.
Why did she have to go and sleep with Elias Beckingsale? Levi’s little brother.
Yes, she’d had a great time out with Alexis and Sarah, and yes, she’d felt like she was part of a group date when the guys had shown up.
And yes, she had fallen for his charms when he’d given her that bracelet and carried her into his bedroom.
Ugh. There were way too many yes’s in this scenario.
But one massive no outweighed all of those.
She was about to be pregnant. Elias did not seem like the type of guy who would be excited to date a pregnant woman. Possibly in ten years if it was with some gorgeous young model, and he had done the impregnating, but not now. And not his older brother’s doctor colleague.
And especially not if the baby wasn’t his.
Speaking of the future baby’s biological father, she needed to make an appointment to catch up with him one last time before insemination. He was a friend she’d met at a spin class years ago, and they’d often grabbed bikes next to each other, chatting in one-word conversations in between snatched breaths. Even when the gym had closed down, they’d maintained their friendship. Hugo was sweet. They had never been romantically involved, and they’d often joked about the strange universal glitch that meant they weren’t attracted to each other despite being great as friends. And Hugo was attractive. He was fit, had cute hair (short but styled well by a barber), and had a great sense of street fashion.
But there was no chemistry. And Hugo was adamant he was never going to get married or have kids, so he’d offered his… swimmers… as long as he didn’t have to take any legal or financial responsibility for the child.
Which suited Kate perfectly.
She checked the time. It was just after 7am, so Hugo would be awake. She sent him a quick text suggesting they meet at a nearby café next week before heading to the shower to wash off the previous night’s debauchery.
As the warm water washed over her body, she couldn’t help but think of the last thing that had touched her skin—Elias.
He’d been the perfect combination of firm and gentle, taking charge, but not overwhelming her.
He was kind of perfect himself.
No! She had to forget about Elias. It was a one-off.
She’d already removed the bracelet he’d given her and buried it in the back of the bottom drawer in her wardrobe. She knew if she continued to wear it, she’d never forget the guy. And she already felt like she wasn’t starting her month of health under the best circumstances. She was hungover, and she had been awake well past midnight.
At least she’d been able to sneak out around 2am when Elias finally fell asleep. If he’d woken up and asked her to stay, she knew she wouldn’t have been able to refuse.
She washed her hair and stepped out of the shower, drying off and changing into some yoga pants and a loose T-shirt.
No matter how rough she felt, this was Day Minus 30. Her schedule involved a session of living room yoga, a smoothie, a salad, and then reading a book on pregnancy.
Tomorrow she’d go to the gym—the first time she’d be stepping back inside one since the place she’d gone with Hugo. He lived on the other side of town now, so it hadn’t made sense for her to join his.
Her phone beeped.
Hugo:
I can meet you at 11 that day. Does that work?
Kate:
Sounds good. See you then!
Hugo:
I look forward to it, Katie!
She shook her head. He knew she hated being called Katie, and he never failed to find an opportunity to tease her by calling her that name.
She was tempted to write back a snarky response, but she didn’t want him to know it still bothered her.
As a soon-to-be pregnant woman, she needed to work on her stress levels.
Deep breathing and some yoga should sort her out.
* * *
A week later,Kate was feeling positively zen-like. She’d overcompensated for the indulgent night with Elias and thrown herself into every type of self-improvement she could find. Which had, admittedly, sent her down a very weird rabbit hole (she wasn’t sure why one particular celebrity influencer’s website on holistic wellness was basically just a shopping portal for sex toys) but she had become completely immersed in clean eating, regular gym and yoga workouts, and meditation. She’d even started listening to a podcast on brain science on her morning walk around the block, and she’d gained some helpful tips on dealing with big life changes. Having a baby was one of the biggest life changes a person could experience.
She was the epitome of health.
And today, she was meeting the guy who was making her pregnancy possible.
Hugo was already waiting for her at the café, and he stood to give her a hug when she arrived. ‘Katie! It’s great to see you! You look amazing.’
She knew he only said she looked good so she couldn’t fight back about the Katie reference.
‘Thanks.’ She sat down and scanned the menu. She’d swapped her three-coffees-a-day habit for Rooibos and herbal tea. It was not an adequate substitute, but she didn’t need the caffeine when she was trying to remain permanently relaxed. ‘What would you like? I’ll go order.’
‘I’ve already ordered a drink because I knew you’d want to pay. But I haven’t ordered yours yet. I can now. Double-shot latte?’
‘No, I’m off the caffeine. I’ll just go ask for a chamomile tea.’
Hugo wrinkled his nose. ‘Ick.’
‘Well, it’s all going toward growing a healthy baby, so it’s worth the sacrifice.’
‘Yeah, but it’s not like you’re actually pregnant yet. One coffee won’t hurt.’
Kate begged to differ. It was that kind of attitude that had almost derailed her plan before she’d even started.
And now she was annoyed that Hugo had indirectly reminded her of Elias. She’d spent the last week employing every single newly-learned technique at her disposal to forget about him and move on.
But clearly, it wasn’t working.
She could still remember every kiss. Every moment they made eye contact. The sound of his deep and comforting voice.
She quickly stood again. ‘Be back in a minute.’
One thing she’d realised was that by trying not to think about something, she automatically thought about it more. The only way to move on was to be distracted. Do something else. Focus on the surroundings. Live in the present.
She placed her tea order and returned to Hugo.
‘So, what’s new with you?’ she asked him.
‘Just the usual.’ He then rattled off a bunch of jargon that she had a hard time following. Hugo was in IT, and judging by how easily complicated processes rolled off his tongue, he was good at what he did. Kate could recite the scientific name for every single component of a human body, but as soon as Hugo started telling her how he understood the concepts of the Malbolge programming language after spending a weekend looking at it for fun, her brain started to melt down.
‘That sounds… fascinating,’ she commented after he’d explained the latest happenings in his industry.
He chuckled. ‘Liar.’
‘Well, if I started outlining the step-by-step process of endotracheal intubation, you’d probably zone out too.’
‘You’re right. I probably would.’ He grinned. ‘Sorry. I know I get a bit carried away at times.’
‘I’m used to it. Kind of.’
She sipped her tea and sat back, finally beginning to relax.
But then someone walked through the front door, and she knew without even seeing his face who it was.
Elias.