Chapter Five

Lauren had slept late. Again.

The last few weeks had passed by in a blur. A very busy, somewhat chaotic, slightly emotional whirlwind.

As a favor to a friend, Lauren agreed to be a workshop presenter at a virtual social media conference. That meant she’d had to drop everything else and put together a couple workshops, including making slides and promoting the conference to her followers.

She’d been so swamped that she hadn’t been able to give Gabby her full attention. They’d only had time to talk about her finances a little, even though Lauren had outlined a full-fledged financial plan to help her sister get out of debt and start saving money.

Of course, Brooke took every opportunity to chastise her. “I thought you wanted us here to help Gabby, and now you’re doing your own work.”

Lauren was frustrated. Not to mention tired and just…depleted. Maybe she was getting a cold or allergies or something, because her energy had been decimated.

She’d been waking up late, and even once she was awake, she had a hard time getting out of bed. That’s why she’d decided to finally take it easy today.

Way later than she typically woke up, she made her way down to the kitchen for coffee. Still bleary-eyed and tired.

“Look who finally decided to grace us with her presence.” Brooke smirked. She was wearing a tailored pantsuit, her makeup flawless, and tasteful pearl studs at her ears. She had on a headset and was carrying her iPad.

Lauren couldn’t deny that Brooke was the most gorgeous woman on the planet. She had long, thick hair a shade lighter than Lauren’s. She could definitely be in a shampoo commercial. Plus, she had the same blue eyes that Lauren and Gabby had inherited. But where Gabby was adorable, Brooke was…graceful. Sophisticated, classy.

Even from the doorway, she could smell Brooke’s expensive perfume. While Brooke was Chanel, Lauren would choose something new and trendy, and Gabby would make her own organic scent.

Yet, the three of them were sisters.

Lauren yawned. “Sorry. I am so wiped out.”

“You’ve been tired a lot lately.” Gabby was stirring some eggs at the stove. “Want some scrambled eggs?”

“A little late to be making breakfast,” Lauren said, slumping into a chair.

“I’ve already been at work at the café,” Gabby said. “Brooke started early this morning too and forgot to eat,” she said, waving a spatula at her sister.

“I didn’t forget. I rarely eat breakfast,” Brooke said. “Eggs are good, though. High protein. I’m doing a low-carb diet right now. Lucas thinks it’s a good idea.”

Lauren loved scrambled eggs, but for some reason her stomach turned at the idea of eating them. She shook her head. “None for me. Maybe just some toast.”

“You have mono or something?” Grams asked, coming into the kitchen. Her terse question was followed up by the obligatory hand-to-the-forehead move. Grams stared down at her for a long time. “No fever. But you have been sleeping a lot the last couple of days. Your eyes look clear. But there is…something.”

“What?”

Grams shook her head. “I’m not sure,” she said slowly.

Something about the way Grams was eyeing her was unnerving. She rose. “I’m gonna grab some coffee and then a nice, long shower before I hop online for work.”

After her shower, Lauren felt even more tired, as if she’d just run a marathon. She sat down on the edge of the bed and toweled her damp hair. She wasn’t feeling too great all around.

She picked up her coffee but paused with the mug in midair. Suddenly, her taste for it dissipated. She felt kinda queasy.

This better not be a stomach bug. Those were the worst.

Brooke stuck her head in the door. “Hey, do you have any tampons?”

Lauren put the untouched coffee on her dresser and scrounged around in her purse and then in her makeup bag. That’s weird… She must have forgotten to pack them. “No, sorry. Try the linen closet in the bathroom.”

“We’ve been here for over three weeks now. Guess we’ll have to do a big tampon run for both of us. I’ll see if Gabby has any.” Brooke dashed out of the room.

“Right.” Lauren sat back on the bed. Her coffee was growing cold, yet she still didn’t want any. Strange, since she considered herself a coffee addict.

She dressed quickly and ran a comb through her hair, deciding to let it air dry today. As she considered putting on some light makeup, she couldn’t get something out of her mind.

What was it? What was bothering her?

Grabbing her laptop from the desk, she flopped onto her bed and decided to work from there for a couple hours. She set up her pillows and made herself comfortable. But something was still stuck in her brain.

“Hey, Brooke,” she called. Maybe she’d missed something her sister said.

Brooke reappeared in the doorway. “What’s up?”

Brooke was correct. She had been in Maine for over three weeks.

Her sister was waiting in the doorway, holding a tampon. “Gabby had one,” she said.

Lauren rubbed the back of her neck. When was her last period?

Oh my god! Lauren’s hand flew to her mouth, and her eyes widened.

“Lauren?” Brooke asked. “Are you okay? What’s wrong?”

“No, no, no,” she said, shaking her head back and forth.

Gabby came running into the room. “What’s wrong?”

Lauren had thrown her laptop to the side and was kneeling on the bed. Her hand was still over her mouth.

“I don’t know,” Brooke said, rushing forward and taking Lauren’s other hand. “She called me in here and then started freaking out. L, you’re so pale.”

“Are you gonna be sick?” Gabby asked.

“Oh yeah,” Lauren said but made no move toward the bathroom. She couldn’t move as a certain possibility ran through her mind.

She’d been here for three weeks. Her last period had been five weeks ago. At least five weeks. Maybe six. She was crazy tired, and she’d been feeling queasy.

How soon did pregnancy symptoms start?

“Oh my god,” she said again, her eyes welling up.

Brooke and Gabby were on either side of her, their arms coming around her.

“Grams just left to meet her friend Ruth. Do you want me to run after her?” Gabby asked.

“No!” she squealed. “I can’t tell Grams.”

Brooke leaned back and peered at her. “Can’t tell Grams what?” she asked with narrowed eyes.

Damn, Brooke had always been perceptive. Lauren shook her head again and took a few deep breaths. She would not cry. This wasn’t a situation to cry over. Besides, crying didn’t solve anything. Look at her mother, who had spent more time in tears than not and still had a million problems.

“If you’re sick…” Gabby began.

Brooke cut her off. “She’s not sick.”

“Well, something’s obviously wrong.”

Brooke eased Lauren back down to a sitting position. “Yeah, something’s definitely wrong.”

“How do you always figure stuff out so fast?” Lauren asked her sister.

“Context clues.” Brooke twirled the tampon still in her hand.

“Can someone please fill me in on the context clues of this situation?” Gabby complained.

“I think I might be pregnant,” Lauren spit out, then watched as her sister’s face mirrored the shock she felt.

…

At the advice of Brooke, they all piled into Lauren’s car and headed to a pharmacy thirty minutes from Seaside Cove. If anyone saw them buying a pregnancy test in or near town, the gossip train would go into warp speed.

The three of them stood in the family planning aisle, staring at the vast array of options.

“Which one do we pick?” Gabby asked.

Lauren didn’t know how to verbalize her gratitude over the use of the word we. She may disagree with her sisters—or even wonder what planet they were born on, in the case of Brooke—but it meant so much to her that they’d come on this nerve-racking quest with her.

Lauren grabbed one of the store-brand boxes. “How about this one? I think it’s on sale.”

Brooke sighed loudly. “This is not the time to go cheapies. Here.” She took a box done up in pink and white and handed it to Lauren. “Let’s buy two, so you have extras on hand.”

“Why does she need extras?” Gabby asked as they made their way to the front counter.

“In case there are any errors, or she wants to take multiple tests.”

“Have you done this before?” Lauren asked. She’d been joking with the question, but the dark shadow that passed over Brooke’s face was not funny. “B?” she asked.

Brooke shook her head and yanked the two boxes out of Lauren’s hand. “Here, I’m going to buy them. Consider it an early birthday present.”

Lauren was about to object when her phone went off. Ethan’s name came up on the screen. He’d been texting her every so often to see if she wanted to go out somewhere with him—as friends. She’d said no every time, because she really had been too busy since they last saw each other, and thankfully, he didn’t get pushy or clingy. But now…oh god.

She groaned. What in the hell was she going to tell Ethan? He was the only person she’d slept with in the last six months. If she truly was pregnant, Ethan was definitely the father.

Ethan, who was still spontaneous and carefree. Mr. Go With the Flow. He who must not plan. Sure, he owned a business now, but that business was a bar. A bar with odd hours and seedy characters. Seedy characters like…her. Going into The Thirsty Lobster and hooking up with Ethan, which resulted in a trip to a pharmacy for a pregnancy test.

Gabby stepped up next to her and put an arm around her shoulders. “It’s going to be fine, L. We don’t even know if you’re actually pregnant yet.”

“Shh,” she hissed. She glanced around the store. Even though she didn’t recognize any of the shoppers and they were about thirty miles from Seaside Cove, she still felt completely paranoid. She even shoved her cell phone into her back pocket, just in case Ethan could somehow hear them through the messaging app.

Brooke shook a bag in front of them. “I got the goods. Let’s go home and pee on some sticks, shall we?”

The drive home went by way too fast, in Lauren’s opinion. She walked through the foyer and up the stairs in a complete daze. She knew her sisters were following her, yet she still felt completely and utterly alone.

When they reached her bedroom, Brooke removed one of the boxes from the bag. “Do you know how to use this?”

“You pee on it?” Lauren asked.

“Hold it under your urine stream for at least five seconds. Then put the cap on and lay it flat on the counter. It should tell you on the box how long it will take. Some tests are two minutes, some are three.”

Gabby narrowed her eyes. “You get a job in a doctor’s office recently?”

“It’s all in the directions,” Brooke said. She pushed the box at Lauren.

Lauren went into the bathroom and read the instructions. Here goes nothing…only the biggest moment of my life.

When she was done, she brought the test into the bedroom, where Brooke and Gabby waited on her bed. She laid it on the dresser.

“So,” she said.

“So,” Brooke echoed.

“We just have to wait,” Gabby offered.

A long silence filled the room. Lauren had so many emotions rushing through her she didn’t even know which one to focus on.

“Aren’t you on birth control?” Brooke asked, breaking the quiet.

Lauren flinched at the judgment in her sister’s voice. She wanted to believe Brooke wasn’t trying to hurt her feelings, but the question still stung.

“I was taking it. For a long time. Then there was this whole mix-up with my insurance. After that, I decided to take a break, since I’ve been on the pill for years.”

Gabby stepped closer. “Didn’t you use condoms? You’re the one who talked to me about condoms in high school.”

“Of course we did.” Lauren thought back. She remembered Ethan grabbing a condom from his nightstand. She recalled that distinctive crinkle sound of the foil and the heady anticipation within her as he rolled it on.

Well, at least she remembered all of that the first time they’d had sex. She felt her cheeks heating.

“Why are you blushing?” Brooke asked, tilting her head.

“Um, it’s just that Ethan and I sorta had sex a bunch of times that night.”

“Woo-hoo!” Gabby exclaimed.

“Shut up, Gabs,” Brooke reprimanded. She focused on Lauren again. “Did you use a condom each time?”

“I can’t quite remember. I know we did the first time,” she quickly added. “But after that, it was kind of a blur.” She started chewing on a nail.

Gabby put an arm around her shoulders. “It’s going to be okay, L. No matter what that test says, we’re here for you.”

She offered a half smile. “Thanks.”

Brooke rose and walked to the window. She stared out for a moment before turning back to them. “If it’s positive, what do you think you’ll do?”

“I’ll keep it.”

Lauren dropped the finger she was chewing on. She actually blinked at how fast she’d answered her sister’s question. Or maybe it was the fact that she hadn’t even needed to think about it.

She would keep the baby.

Lauren hadn’t really thought too much about having kids. Sure, the idea of being a mother would pop into her head when she was at a baby shower or with one of her friends who had children. But when it wasn’t right in front of her like that? It just didn’t come to mind.

Glancing down at her phone, Lauren realized it was way past time for the test results. She tiptoed to the dresser and looked down at the test.

She froze in place, not even blinking. Her whole body went numb.

“Well?” Gabby pressed.

“It’s…” Her tongue felt all wrong, too thick and dry. She tried again. “It’s…positive.”

Brooke’s eyes widened as they locked onto Lauren’s.

Gabby pumped a fist into the air. “I’m going to be an aunt. All right!” She jumped up and drew Lauren into a long, tight hug.

Lauren patted Gabby’s back, even while she looked at Brooke over Gabby’s shoulder. When Gabby finally released her, she sunk back down on the edge of her bed.

“I know this is totally unexpected,” Gabby began. “But it’s a baby. Babies are amazing. They’re so little and cute.”

“And expensive and life-altering,” Brooke added. Then she faced Lauren and her features softened.

Brooke crouched in front of Lauren and squeezed her hand. The two of them had been sniping at each other their entire lives. Sometimes it just seemed easier to bicker than to even attempt to get along. After all, they were so different.

But there were times—times like this—when they had a moment. It usually didn’t last long. There was a silent understanding between them. Something was changing or scary or anxiety-producing, but they were there for each other. Just like when their mother died. Or when Lauren was about to leave for college.

“Congratulations,” Brooke whispered.

Lauren squeezed her sister’s hand back. Just like that, the moment ended. Brooke stood again and went back to brooding, her hands placed firmly on her hips. Lauren wasn’t surprised or hurt. She’d expected it.

“How do you feel?” Gabby asked.

Lauren pondered that. “Tired. Shocked. Kind of like I’m going to puke.”

“That’s probably normal,” Gabby said. “We need to get some books. And check out some blogs and articles.”

Brooke blew out a breath. “We need to get her to a doctor’s office so they can do a blood test and confirm that there is, in fact, a baby in there.”

Gabby’s eyebrows drew together. “She just took a test.”

“More than likely that test is probably accurate, but the next step is still to confirm the pregnancy with a doctor. Do you know the first day of your last period?”

“Uh…” Lauren had no idea off the top of her head.

“They’ll use that date to figure out your due date.”

Gabby was grinning from ear to ear. “And then we can go shopping for a crib, and a bassinet, and a stroller. Oh, and baby clothes. Little baby shoes are so adorable.”

Brooke nailed Gabby with a no-nonsense stare. “Gabrielle, will you calm yourself? There are more important things to do first.”

“What’s more important than shopping? And setting up a registry.” Gabby’s eyes were sparkling.

If Lauren wasn’t in such a daze, she would totally laugh at her sisters’ different reactions.

“How about going to the doctor’s office, getting Lauren on prenatal vitamins, making sure she rests and eats right, and…” Brooke averted her eyes and spoke slowly. “Telling the father.”

“Oh right,” Gabby added. “What about Ethan?”

“Ethan, yeah.” Right, she wasn’t completely alone in this. There was someone else involved. “I’ll tell him. Of course I’ll tell him,” she said softly, more to herself.

“He might not have a good reaction,” Brooke said slowly. “Are you prepared for that possibility?”

Gabby shoved Brooke’s shoulder. “What the hell, Brooke? Of course she’s not prepared for that. She just found out she was pregnant two seconds ago. How can she be prepared for anything?”

All of this was overwhelming. Lauren was a planner, and an unexpected pregnancy hadn’t exactly been an item on her to-do list this year.

But she was also pragmatic, and it didn’t matter if she’d intended to have a baby or not. A baby was coming in nine months. She would deal with this. She would make a new plan.

Lauren put a hand over her stomach. A baby. Her baby.

Financially, she was in good shape. She could support a child.

“I’m just saying,” Brooke said defensively, still arguing with Gabby. “There’s a lot to consider right now.” She turned to Lauren. “Where are you going to live?”

Lauren opened and then closed her mouth. “What do you mean? I already live in Virginia.”

“By yourself. Maybe you should consider living up here, closer to family.”

“In Maine?” she asked.

“No, in California,” Brooke retorted. “Of course in Maine. Grams is here. And, ya know, the father of the baby is here, too.”

“And Auntie Gabby is here. At least for now. For the foreseeable future. Probably forever.” Gabby frowned.

Brooke tapped a finger against her lips. “You always say you can work from anywhere.”

“True,” Lauren agreed.

“When are you going to tell Grams?”

Lauren felt the color drain from her face. Grams! Her pulse skyrocketed. Grams was going to kill her. And then she would kill Ethan. This was so not good.

“L?” Gabby asked, eyeing her with worry.

She had to tell Grams that she was pregnant. An unplanned pregnancy. Grams was going to try and force them to get married, just like she had with Lauren’s parents.

She couldn’t marry Ethan. They weren’t even dating—and they weren’t even truly friends; they were frenemies. If they had to live together, they would kill each other. She couldn’t subject a helpless infant to that kind of messed-up relationship.

This was a disaster.

“Maybe I don’t have to tell—”

Brooke cut her off with a stern look. “Don’t finish that sentence. Of course you have to tell Grams. And you have to tell her soon,” Brooke added.

Yeah, okay, maybe she did. This wasn’t something she could hide from her. Although she could attempt to if she didn’t ever talk about her child and swore her sisters to secrecy. And she returned to Arlington before her pregnancy started showing and never visited Seaside Cove again. And removed herself from social media. Which might interfere with her job on social media, but—

She had a sinking feeling in her stomach. A sinking feeling that was actually rising up to her throat.

“Lauren?” Gabby said. “Are you okay?”

“I…um…uh…” Then she was up like a shot, running into the bathroom.

I’m having a baby, and I have to tell Grams.

She heaved into the toilet.