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“I love you.” He ran his hands along the smooth skin of her arms, soothing her when she stiffened at his words.
Closing her eyes, she shook her head in—disbelief? Resignation? Allowing her to take a moment, Bryce held her close and waited for her to speak in her own time. He couldn’t believe they were going to be parents. Together. He was torn between wanting to keep it all to himself and wanting to run out to tell Dominic and Rayelle.
“I love you, too,” Samantha said after what felt like an eternity.
“How are we going to do this?”
Samantha sat up and pulled a pillow into her lap, hugging it tightly as she met his gaze. Mirroring her, he sat up and faced her.
“What do you mean?” she asked. “I think we’re already doing it.”
She was joking with him. That had to be a good sign that she was snapping out of whatever it was she’d been feeling. He would take her making light of the situation over her endless doubts.
“I don’t want to live in one place while you and my kid live in another. So, how are we going to do this?” He knew he sounded like a possessive asshole, but he didn’t really care. Having his family in his house wasn’t something he was willing to compromise on.
“Wow,” she breathed. “There’s so much to figure out. I have Rent to figure out. I don’t really wear anything revealing, but I can’t be waddling around or going into labor in the middle of a show.”
Bryce laughed at the image. “There’s plenty of time before you have to worry about that. But you will have to tell them so you can work out a plan. That’s what understudies are for.”
Bryce watched as Samantha began to panic in front of him. He could see the exact moment when reality finally hit her. She finally had her dream right in front of her, and it could disappear before her eyes. That made him feel like shit.
“I’m sorry, Sam. I knew the risk when we decided not to use condoms. I don’t care if you didn’t think it was possible, I still knew what I was doing.”
Tears streamed down her face as reality sunk in. Holding her hands, he tried to think of something to say. Anything. Watching her cry physically hurt him. He would do anything to stop her tears.
“Listen to me, Samantha. Do not let yourself dwell on worst case scenarios. They chose you for the role because they wanted you. If something getting in the way of performances was the end of the world, there wouldn’t be understudies. Talk to them. They’ll work with you. If they don’t, then is that someone you want to work for?” he spoke quickly, in hopes that his words would slow her tears.
“Yeah,” said nodding aggressively. “You’re right.”
He could tell she was trying to convince herself. “I am right. Talk to them and then go from there. For now, I just want us to be happy about this.”
Once again, she closed her eyes, giving her head a small shake before opening them again. “Okay. Do you want to tell Dominic and Rayelle?”
“Rayelle doesn’t know?” Bryce asked in surprise.
“She gave me the test, so she knows it’s a possibility. Honestly, I was in total denial. She insisted I take it, but I thought she was crazy.”
“Were you hoping for it to be negative?”
Standing from the bed, she looked down in silence, chewing on her lip before she answered him. “Honestly, I don’t know. I expected it to be negative and I would be sad like every other time I saw a single line on one of those tests. Then I’d paste a smile on my face and suck it up until Christmas was over. The same way I always did.”
Bryce made his way behind her, pulling her into his arms. “I’m glad you didn’t have to do that. But in the future, just know you never have to do that for me. I always want to know what you’re feeling or what you’re going through. Okay?”
Finally, the smile she gave him reached her eyes. “Okay.”
Chapter 21
With Christmas being over and her time with Bryce coming to an end, Samantha was left to truly face her reality. She was pregnant. So much time and disappointment trying for a baby when it was considered acceptable, and she got pregnant by her brother-in-law by accident. Talk about Murphy’s Law.
Bryce was able to take a couple of days to go back to New York with her so he could make her first doctor’s appointment, but their little bubble was over. The first appointment had to be scheduled during the lunch break of their first rehearsal back because it was the only time she could get in and bring Bryce with her.
They had decided she shouldn’t say anything to the director until she had her first doctor’s appointment and had the pregnancy confirmed. They knew she was pregnant because she’d taken at least four more tests to make sure.
“You heading out?” Brittney asked in surprise as Samantha rushed to grab her coat as soon as they were dismissed for lunch.
“Yeah, I have a doctor’s appointment. I should be back in time. If I’m not, can you let them know I’ll be back?”
Brittney looked confused but nodded in agreement as Samantha raced out the door. Bryce was waiting for her when she reached the sidewalk. Even wearing a heavy Carhart jacket and a hat, he was sexy enough to keep receiving second looks from passersby. The fact that he was the father of her unborn baby made him that much more attractive to her.
