The Billion Dollar Pact. Sheri WhiteFeather

back to that. But first, he retrieved the basket and brought it over to the sofa.

      He looked through the squares. There were a variety of fabrics, most of them containing the beach themes he’d suggested, with depictions of mermaids, sandcastles and islands on them. She’d even tossed in some printed with blue crabs. There was also a multicolored print that had the same jewel tones as the bracelet he’d given her. She’d included a shiny starfish pattern for the earrings, too. He noticed a geometric Native American print as well, that he assumed was meant to represent him and his heritage. He kept looking and uncovered a stack of squares with grasshoppers on them.

      “For Eskeilay,” she said. Then softly added, “The mother of the earth-womb.”

      “You did a beautiful job with what you chose.” He wished that he could touch her, hold her, make her feel better, but he figured the last thing she wanted was for him to take her in his arms.

      “I plan to include something for Uncta, too. A fire print of some sort, something with a golden hue. That’s one of the fabrics I still have to order.”

      “I appreciate your attention to detail.” To the memories they’d created, even if neither of them had spoken of that weekend since.

      “I don’t know when I’ll finish it.”

      To him, it sounded as if she had mixed feelings about whether to complete it at all. She’d probably only brought it up as a diversion to keep him from bugging her about going to the doctor.

      Jake put the basket aside, refusing to let her off the hook. He asked, “Are you ill because of me?”

      She had a worried expression. “What?”

      He clarified his question. “Is being around me too stressful?”

      She twisted her hands on her lap. “Sort of, I guess. Not wanting to face you is part of the reason I’ve been calling in sick.”

      “You’re facing me now. You agreed to let me come over.”

      “I knew I couldn’t avoid you forever. And it is a little easier seeing you here than at the office. But I still don’t want to talk about it. Not until I see a doctor, and I already told you, I’m not ready to do that.”

      He pushed the issue, determined to get answers. “Please, Carol, just tell me what’s going on.”

      “It’s too soon to tell you.”

      “Too soon for what?” He noticed that she was still wringing her hands. “I’m not leaving here until you level with me.”

      Her breath rushed out. “Okay, but it’s going to freak you out.” She looked directly at him, her voice quavering. “I’m scared, Jake. Scared to death that I might be pregnant.”

       Nine

      Carol waited for Jake to respond. But he just sat there staring at her. Was he struggling to grasp what she’d just told him? Or was he simply too stunned to move? To blink? To talk?

      After what seemed like forever, he said, “That’s impossible.”

      “In what way?” she asked, prodding him to explain what he was thinking and feeling.

      “We used protection.” He spoke robotically, like a computer stating a fact. Or someone who refused to believe what he was hearing.

      “Condoms sometimes fail.” She’d checked the failure rates and the numbers were staggering. “Mostly from them breaking or slipping off.”

      “But that didn’t happen to us.”

      “No, but I might have damaged the first one. With as much as I fumbled with it, I could have poked a tiny hole in it. Or the failure could have come from the last one we used. Remember how the edges of the packet were bent from the way it had been stuck in your suitcase? The condom itself could have been compromised without us even knowing it.”

      Jake stood and stepped away from the sofa, pressing his back against the fireplace mantel. He was beginning to look like a caged animal. Carol knew exactly how he felt.

      “Then I guess it is possible,” he said.

      “Yes, it is.” Her voice vibrated with every breath she took. She’d never expected to be in this position, possibly impregnated by a man who didn’t want children. “Last week, I thought I had my period, but it was weird. First of all, it was early and that’s never happened to me before.” Normally her cycles were like clockwork. “And it only lasted a few hours, which was even weirder.” She hated to share all of the clinical details, but considering how crucial this was, it seemed necessary. “It was more like spotting than a full period.”

      “I’m confused.” His voice was shaky, too. He even cleared his throat, as if it might help. “That isn’t an early sign of pregnancy, is it?”

      “Actually, it is. But I wasn’t aware of it until I looked up my symptoms online. At first I thought I was getting a virus based on how run-down I was feeling. Then when my period seemed irregular, I got a little worried and researched what could’ve caused that. And that’s when I came across something called implantation bleeding. It’s just like what I had. It’s a result of the fertilized egg attaching itself to the wall of the uterus. It typically happens two to seven days before the beginning of what would be your regular menstrual cycle. In my case, it’s been about six days. My period is due tomorrow.”

      He looked relieved—not completely, but at least his body language wasn’t quite as tense. “Then maybe it’ll start and everything will be okay. Maybe you’ll begin to feel better, too.”

      “That’s what I’m hoping. That’s why I didn’t want to take a pregnancy test or go to a doctor yet, either.”

      He wrinkled his forehead. “Can a test even be taken this early?”

      Carol nodded. “Yes, but I wanted to wait, just to see if my period comes first. Besides, early tests aren’t always accurate.” She reached for her soup, needing fuel, so she cut into the matzo ball and ate a portion of that. “I haven’t been queasy, so that’s a good sign. Mostly my symptoms are lack of energy and light-headedness. It might just be stress. Sometimes women’s menstrual cycles can get disrupted by that.”

      He relaxed a bit more, moving away from the mantel. “Then that’s probably what it is. It seems the most likely culprit. Even I figured that’s what was wrong with you and why you’re not feeling well. That’s why I came over here to question you about it.”

      “I appreciate your concern.” She hadn’t wanted to see him until after she knew for sure, but she was glad that she’d gotten it over with. “If my cycle starts tomorrow, we’re in the clear. But if it doesn’t...”

      He tugged at his hair, hard enough to create a grimace. “Pregnancy never even occurred to me.”

      “Me, neither, until all of this blew up in my face.” She wanted to pull her hair out, too.

      “If you don’t start your period, how long are you going to wait before you take a test?”

      “I don’t know. A few days, maybe. I don’t want to sit around on pins and needles, but I don’t want to get a false reading, either.” She was just hoping and praying that her cycle showed up. “I could go to the doctor to get a blood test. Those give you an earlier reading. But it takes longer to get the results than a urine test, so I’d have to wait, either way. I doubt my doctor would rush the results of a blood test for me.”

      “Will you call me tomorrow and let me know how you’re doing and if anything happens?”

      “Of course I will.” Now that he was part of the equation, she would keep him well informed. “But if you hadn’t come over today, I wouldn’t have told you any of this, not until enough time passed for me to be sure.” She blinked, fighting back tears.