chapter 6

~~Claire~~

I picked up the pregnancy test and brought it closer to my face, hoping my eyes were playing tricks on me.

Maybe I was seeing double.

But no matter how many times I blinked, the two lines remained.

There was no mistaking them.

I was pregnant.

“No,” I whispered, shaking my head as my fingers trembled around the little plastic stick. “No, no, no…”

I stared at it until my vision blurred, and before I could stop myself, it slipped from my hand and landed on the bathroom floor.

For a moment, I couldn't move. I just stared at it, my mind refusing to accept what my eyes had already seen, until a strangled sob escaped my throat and my knees gave way beneath me.

I sank to the cold tiles, pulled my legs against my chest, and clapped a hand over my mouth, desperately trying to keep the sound from carrying through the house, but the tears came too fast for me to hold them back.

I pressed my forehead against my knees and cried until my chest ached, my nose ran, and my throat hurt from trying to swallow all the screams threatening to escape me.

Through it all, my eyes kept drifting toward the pregnancy tests scattered across the floor.

There was no turning back now.

I'd told myself I'd deal with whatever came from what we'd done, but sitting there with the proof right in front of me, I wasn't sure I had the courage to face any of it.

My hands slowly moved to my stomach, and my fingers rested there as I thought about the tiny life growing inside me.

Caleb's baby.

My chest tightened.

How was I supposed to tell him something like this without making everything even harder?

Had he even considered that this could happen? Would he even care if I told him about it? Or would he look at me as though I was trying to ruin his perfect life?

The questions kept piling up until I couldn't tell which one scared me the most.

I buried my face in my hands, crying harder because I had no answers, only a thousand different ways this could go wrong.

This was all my fault. I should have insisted on not getting into his car that night.

Maybe by now, I would've been sleeping peacefully instead of sitting here, caught between the devil and the deep blue sea.

My phone suddenly vibrated inside my purse.

The sudden sound startled me, and I wiped my cheeks with the heel of my palm before pushing myself off the floor. My legs felt unsteady as I rummaged through my bag, and when I finally found my phone, I saw Maddie's name on the screen.

She'd sent me a message.

>Hey, girl. How are you? Hope you're getting better. Anyway, we're having a family dinner tomorrow night, and I'd love to see you there. You'll finally get to meet Caleb's new fiancée and…

I didn't even finish reading the message before the words began to blur in front of me.

My fingers loosened, and the phone slipped from my hand, hitting the bathroom floor with a sharp crack.

I stared at it. The screen had shattered, tiny cracks spreading across it, making the remaining words impossible to read.

Normally, I would have panicked over the cost of replacing it. But right then, I couldn't bring myself to care.

All I felt was pain.

I was exhausted, angry at myself, and so hurt that I didn't even know what to do with myself anymore.

It took me several attempts to stand properly. I had to grip the edge of the sink and after what felt like forever, I finally managed to straighten, my legs aching from sitting on the hard floor for so long.

I turned on the tap, splashed cold water over my face, and wiped my cheeks with the back of my hand before lifting my eyes to the mirror.

My eyes were red and swollen, my cheeks blotchy from crying, and my hair looked as though I hadn't combed it in two days.

I looked like I'd been dragged through hell and left there.

But no amount of crying was going to change my situation. Sitting on the bathroom floor, wishing I could wake up from this nightmare, wasn't going to make it disappear either.

I couldn't hide from him forever.

I took one last look at my reflection, wiped away the remaining tears, and drew in a shaky breath.

Before morning came, I would figure out how to face him, even if I had to force myself to do it.

Caleb had a right to know about the child. He was the father, after all.

***

By the time morning came, I was sitting in the back of a taxi heading to Caleb's office, my purse clutched tightly in my lap as the city passed by outside the window.

I didn't sleep much the previous night and when I checked myself in the mirror, my eyes were still swollen.

By the time the taxi pulled up outside his office building, my palms were damp. I paid the driver and stepped onto the pavement, forcing my legs to carry me inside.

When I reached Caleb's floor, his secretary looked up from her desk, offering me a polite smile.

“Hi,” she greeted me. “How may I help you?”

“I'd like to see Caleb Reed,” I said, brushing a loose strand of hair behind my ear.

“I'm sorry,” she replied. “But Mr. Reed isn't seeing anyone right now. Do you have an appointment?”

“No.” I shook my head. “Just tell him Claire is here to see him, please. It's important.

“Miss Claire, I understand, but Mr. Reed specifically instructed me not to let anyone disturb him this morning.”

“Please,” I begged. “I won't take much of his time. I just need five minutes with him, that's all I'm asking for.”

She gave me an apologetic look, but her hands remained on the desk.

“I'm really sorry, but I can't let you in without his permission.”

My fingers tightened around the strap of my purse, and I lowered my gaze, trying to swallow the lump that had formed in my throat.

There was no point standing there arguing with her when she was only doing her job. I couldn't blame her for following Caleb's instructions.

“Okay,” I whispered, forcing myself to nod. “I understand.”

I turned away and headed toward the elevator, taking slow, reluctant steps as my eyes burned and I blinked rapidly to keep the tears from falling again.

Maybe I should have called him first or sent him a message, but my phone was still lying on the bathroom floor.

Besides, I knew I couldn't keep putting this off.

If I went home without telling him, I'd spend the entire day imagining every possible outcome until the fear swallowed me whole.

I stopped walking, staring at the elevator doors for a few seconds as I struggled with the decision.

Then, with a quiet sigh, I turned around.

“I'm sorry,” I murmured as I walked towards Caleb's office door.

She looked up, frowning slightly. “Pardon?”

I didn't give myself time to think about what I was doing because, if I did, I knew I would lose my chance again.

I slipped past her desk and hurried toward the door at the end of the hallway, my flats clicking against the polished floor as I reached for the handle.

“Miss Claire, wait!”

I heard her chair scrape against the floor, followed by the quick sound of her footsteps as she hurried after me, but I was already pushing the door open.

“Caleb, I need to—”

The words died in my throat the moment I saw him.