by Leslie North
“No, no. This stuff is good. I’m claiming it for my own.”
She snickered, watching as he downed her glass and set it on the tray of a passing server. He offered his arm and she gratefully took it, allowing him to lead the way through the bright and happy crowd. While they took in the sights and noises of the ball around them, Mila’s mind moved back to the earthquake that Dr. Templeton had left on her voicemail.
Pregnant.
That would explain the nausea. The mood swings. The tender breasts. Damn near every symptom she’d been experiencing over the past few weeks while waiting in vain for her period to arrive. She was often irregular, so the late appearance hadn’t worried her. Furthermore, because she’d been so careful. Two methods of protection. No chance in hell.
So maybe this was a fluke?
The thought settled strangely inside her. Deep down in her bones, she knew the truth without even questioning it. Every cell in her body knew: this wasn’t a fluke.
She was carrying Grayson’s baby.
8
The next day, Mila made an emergency morning trip to the pharmacy on her way to the boutique. She bought a three pack of pregnancy tests—because who could trust doctor’s offices these days? Before she opened up for the day, she called Dr. Templeton’s office to talk to a nurse, who re-confirmed the mystifying news.
And three pregnancy tests later from inside the comfort of the boutique’s bathroom, she was beginning to believe the unthinkable.
I’m pregnant.
She went through the morning in a daze, barely registering the fact that she waited on a handful of customers who spent a significant amount of money. She was too distracted by the pregnancy news to really notice the increased traffic. Or much of anything else, for that matter.
Because she couldn’t get past one tiny detail: How the fuck did this happen?
Before she could even begin wrapping her head around the unlikelihood of it, her mother called.
“Mila, my God.”
When those were the first words out of her mother’s mouth, Mila knew she was in for a treat.
“Hi, Mom,” she said, trying to sound chipper. Most of the phone calls she got from her mom were to gossip about other family members, or to make sure that Mila was absolutely serious about a recent life choice. Mila suspected this was somehow the latter, even though there was no way in hell her mother could know about the pregnancy. “What’s up?”
“Why didn’t you tell me you were in cahoots with this crazy billionaire tech guy?”
“I’m not in cahoots, Mother,” Mila said with a sigh. She eased onto the stool behind her cash register, smiling at a new customer who wandered in the front door.
“A viral social media challenge sure sounds like cahoots to me,” her mom replied.
“It’s a promotional opportunity. What can I say? It was too good to pass up.” Actually, there was a lot more she could say. But none of it was designed for her mother’s ears.
“Promotional opportunity. Does this mean you need extra promoting? Is it because of your business? How is the boutique?”
“Mom, all businesses need promoting. The fact that I signed up for some free publicity does not mean that my business is failing.”
“So how is it going?”
Mila clamped her mouth shut as she mulled over a response. Today’s foot traffic was infinitely better than most days…and she suspected she could attribute that to the overnight sensation of the clothing challenge. But that didn’t mean she’d let her mom in on the fact that other days were anything less than stellar.
“I actually can’t talk right now,” Mila said, standing. In a lower voice she added, “I have a long line of customers waiting for me and I need to focus on helping them.”
It wasn’t entirely a lie. There were three people in the store…who could form a line, if arranged as such. But really, she couldn’t focus on handling her mother’s persistent questions while also grappling with the most life-changing news of her entire life.
This was the sort of news she knew she’d have to share with her mother at some point. But not now. Not when everything was still so wild and fresh. She needed time to process. And then process more. And then a little more.
And besides, she needed to tell Grayson first.
Mila squeezed out a goodbye and hung up the phone before busying herself with tending to the guests in her shop. It was fascinating to see what a multi-million-dollar advertising budget could accomplish. Literally over the course of mere days, #FashionChallenge was trending in the social media spheres. The fact that her own mother had caught wind of it spoke to the effectiveness of Grayson’s campaign.
This really might be the thing to turn around her flagging business.
She just couldn’t believe there was now a baby thrown into the mix.
In between customers, Mila tapped out a quick text to Grayson. “Can we meet tonight? I’d like to talk to you about something.”
Grayson’s response was lightning fast. “Was it about how amazing last night was and how you can’t believe my app-selected outfit only scored five fewer votes than yours?”
Mila grinned despite the fact that her news was not nearly as lighthearted as Grayson’s message. “We might cover that, yes. But there’s something else I need to tell you. Can you stop by my apartment later?”
When Grayson agreed, she sent over her address and told him to meet her there at seven thirty. The big news couldn’t wait a moment longer than necessary. As it was, she was bursting at the seams to share this with someone. And it seemed only right that Grayson be the principal sounding board.
Mila worked hard at staying busy all day. Thankfully, there was a steady stream of customers who kept her occupied until she closed up shop at seven. The entire drive home she imagined how she might launch this conversation. Hey, Grayson, there’s something else that’s going to make our professional relationship even weirder—a baby!
Because one thing was for certain. After their romantic and lighthearted evening last night, it was hard to remember that she herself had requested boundaries. She still wasn’t looking for romance—she’d have even less time for it now that there was a baby on the way. But some kind of ongoing relationship between them seemed inevitable. They’d been temporary business partners, but now they were about to be co-parents. What did that mean for them?
Her head spun by the time she reached her apartment. She hurried to pick things up around her living room, eager to make it look as neat and spacious as possible—like Grayson’s penthouse. So that he might feel more comfortable while she detonated this bomb into his perfect bachelor life.
The knock on her door at seven thirty sharp sent her jumping. And whatever nerves she’d had prior immediately multiplied and had babies.
She had no idea how to break the news. What to expect. How to even imagine her life going forward with this unexpected gift.
She pulled open the door to find Grayson’s tall, strong frame filling the doorway, an easy grin on his handsome face.
Here goes nothing.
9
Grayson knew immediately that something was wrong with Mila.
She flitted around the apartment like a bumblebee, unable to stop anywhere for very long. She offered him tea and coffee three separate times, and apologized repeatedly for the size of her apartment.
“Mila,” he finally said, once she’d been rummaging around in the kitchen for over five minutes. “Come sit down.”
“I will. Hang on.” She dried her hands vigorously, staring at something on the wall. He hadn’t known her for long, but it had been long enough to know that she was behaving oddly.
He checked his phone as she wrapped up in the kitchen. When she’d invited him to her house, he didn’t even have to think twice. Part of him liked to think that she wanted to see him after their lovely evening together. That maybe, despite the boundaries she’d put in place, she’d realized that she wanted just a little bit more, as he did.
They’d ended the night without a hint of intimacy, but the entire evening had been bursting with tension and flirtation. Practically every time he locked eyes with her, something inside him tightened with need. And maybe now she was feeling the same, and realizing it too.
When Mila finally breezed out into the living room, he patted the empty space beside him on the couch. She sat in an armchair facing him instead.
“You’re all worked up,” Grayson said. “What’s going on?”
A sigh escaped her and she massaged her temples. “I don’t know. I mean, I do. It’s—”
“Mila. Let’s start simple. What did you want me to come over for?”
“To talk.” She sniffed, playing with her hands in her lap, avoiding eye contact.
“About what? Work?”
Her lips thinned, and she finally dragged her gaze up to find his. Something unknown burned in her expression, and he was tense as he awaited the next words out of her mouth.
“I’m pregnant, Grayson.”
He blinked a few times, searching her face as he struggled to digest the words. “What?”
“You heard me.”
“I did. But I don’t understand.” Because it didn’t make sense. Because it couldn’t be true. They’d been careful. And he’d been extra careful by providing the condom. He and his best friends, Daniel and Blake—the two who had been at his side, practically brothers to him since they’d met in business school—always talked about this as the three of them had made their meteoric ascent into business success. As their reputations grew and word spread about their accomplishments, their peers always warned them about gold diggers. For Grayson, this meant always providing the condom. Making sure that external forces couldn’t tamper with that, at least.
“I guess the condom broke,” Mila said quietly, picking at a cuticle.
“You guess.” He repeated it slowly, not meaning to challenge her, just trying to process this shocking information.
“Well, yeah! I mean, what else could it be? This wasn’t exactly an immaculate act, here.”
“And you’re sure…?”
“What? That I’m pregnant?” She scoffed, crossing her arms. “Yeah. Doctor confirmed and everything. I took three tests this morning too, just to double check. And in case you were about to ask something else, yes, I’m sure it’s yours. I haven’t been with anyone else.”
Grayson sat with her words for a moment, studying the back of his hands as he thought. His gut reaction was to scream trap! After all the stories he’d heard…it was hard for him not to go there in his mind.
“I understand if you don’t want anything to do with this,” Mila went on. “And if you’d rather not be involved, then you don’t have to be. I just want you to know.”
His worries dissolved under the weight of her worry and sincerity. He knew she was telling the truth. This wasn’t a ploy. But that didn’t mean he knew what to do from here.
“You want to keep it?” he asked.
“Yeah. I mean…I’ve considered the alternative. I really have. And I just don’t think that’s the right route. I’ve always wanted kids. If this is the way the first one shows up, then, well…I’ll be ready. Hopefully by the time it’s born,” she said with a laugh.
Her words rocketed through him, coupled with disbelief and a tinge of excitement. Being a father wasn’t exactly high on his list of priorities…but it was on the list. He just had no context for this kind of bombshell. He didn’t know how to be a father. Hell, he didn’t even know how to have a father—his had walked out when Grayson was a baby.
Still, the easiest way to deal with any moments of indecision or shock was to boil it down to business mode. If there was anything he could lock into place at a moment’s notice, it was that.
“Well, I’ll make sure everything is taken care of,” Grayson said. “Financially, I mean. You won’t have to wonder about medical bills or ultrasound payments or…any of that.”
It was the least he could do. The one thing he was absolutely certain he could provide to a new child in the world was the financial security he himself had lacked. He didn’t know what the future held for raising this child as a family unit with Mila, but he’d certainly have a hand in raising this kid in some capacity. Grayson would never be a deadbeat like his own father.
“Thank you,” Mila whispered, looking down at her hands again. Silence settled between them, and it stretched on for a long time, each of them lost in thought. Finally Mila took a deep breath and spoke. “Tell me what you’re thinking.”
“Honestly? I don’t know.” He pasted on a smile, running a hand through his hair. “It’s a lot to think about. But we have plenty of time to figure out the details. In the meantime, though…this challenge…”
“…Right.”
“I think we should continue as we planned. It’s a more immediate concern, so I don’t see why the pregnancy would figure in at all.”
“I won’t be showing for a while,” Mila said. “We won’t need to make any kind of announcements—not yet, anyway.”
“Great. So yeah. Let’s put a pin in the pregnancy and continue ahead as normal.” He forced a smile, and when he saw the uncertain look on her face, he went over to her. Kneeling in front of her, he took her hands in his own and sought out her gaze.
“We’ll figure out something that makes sense,” he said in a low voice, responding to all the uncertainty and doubts he saw swirling in her eyes. He only recognized them because they swirled in him too. “Let’s just give it time.”
Mila nodded, her green gaze bouncing across his face. “Yeah. I agree.”
Grayson squeezed her hands, tenderness washing over him. The future was uncertain and frightening, but something about knowing he was facing it with Mila made his chest hurt—in the good way.
Without even deciding to, Grayson leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her lips.
Even with everything that remained unknown, he knew for a fact that he and Mila would figure it out together.
10
Let’s put a pin in the pregnancy.
Grayson’s words haunted Mila the next day. On one level, she agreed with him—logically, it made sense not to rush into any decisions, to take things one day at a time.
But on the other hand, she wasn’t sure if she could wait a second longer to figure things out. To start figuring out a plan forward—imagining the future, the challenges, the obstacles. She needed clarity, and she needed it yesterday.
In times of need like this, there was no one better to turn to than a best friend. Some women might have run straight to their mothers, but that was basically a non-option for Mila. She had no idea when she’d tell her mother about the pregnancy or even about Grayson—she just knew that it wouldn’t be until all her contingency plans had developed, matured, and had contingency plan babies. And even then, she might wait a little longer. Like until she was showing past the maybe-she’s-just-bloated stage. Mila loved her mother, truly. But it took a lot of emotional preparation to share any kind of major news with her. She needed to fully sort things out for herself before she had to deal with her mother’s sure-to-be-overblown reaction.
Mila texted her bestie Lainey that morning, knowing they’d need a girl date ASAP.
Now that she had extra funds coming in from the compensation for the challenges, Mila had hired and trained extra help for the store. So while her new store clerk handled things that day, she and Lainey made a date to meet at the Japanese Tea Garden in the Golden Gate Park that afternoon.
Thank God Lainey was there for her to talk to, because she felt like she was going to burst with all the things she wanted to say. Honestly, she couldn’t believe that Grayson didn’t feel any urge to talk about any of it right away, like she did. She wasn’t sure how to interpret his response—or what it might mean for their future together as co-parents. She believed that Grayson intended to help out with the baby, at least financially. But she wanted to know more. Talk about ultrasounds. Brainstorm names. Do everything th
at an expectant mother would do with the father of her child.
Even if all those things bordered perilously close to boyfriend territory.
Still, she tried to keep the pin in the pregnancy, at least as far as Grayson was concerned. She’d sprung the news on him with no warning, after all, at a time when she knew he had a lot already on his plate. For that matter, so did she. This pregnancy couldn’t—and wouldn’t—derail her focus from the other priorities in her life: running her boutique, and getting through the remaining challenges.
Mila showed up to the expansive and tranquil Japanese gardens early so she could watch her favorite part, the waterfall surrounded by wisteria, azaleas and dwarf trees. There was no better place to come to get calm, and she needed calm in the worst way.
“Milaaa!”
The familiar, sonorous voice of her best friend broke through her contemplation and Mila turned, finding her favorite tall brunette heading her way. Lainey wrapped her in a hug.
“There you are,” Mila said.
“Hope I didn’t interrupt your solo waterfall session,” Lainey said.
“No. I’m glad you did. We need to talk.”
Lainey’s eyes widened. “Okay. Does this call for tea first?”
“Yes. Absolutely.”
The friends headed for the teahouse, which had everything from green tea to genmaicha, and Mila ordered her first ever decaf hot tea. Once the two of them were sipping their drinks and strolling through the gardens, Lainey lifted a brow.
“You’ve never ordered decaf before.”
“It has something to do with why I needed to talk to you.”
Lainey’s eyes went wide. “So you either have kidney stones or you’re pregnant.”
Mila laughed. “One of those is right. And here’s a hint: it’s not kidney stones.”
Lainey shrieked, grabbing at her friend’s arm. “Are you serious? What? How did this…when…Oh, my God, I need to know everything!”
