Free Forever Bonded (BWWM Pregnancy Romance) by Cleo Jones Page B

hadn’t had a goodnight’s
sleep in weeks.

 
    “Oh…well…you
know I don’t follow sports,” Audrey said, taking a seat beside him at the
table. “Anyways, this spread looks amazing. Aniyah, you and Caleb have really
outdone yourselves here.”

 
    “Thanks,
but Zoë’s actually the one you should be giving the accolades to,” Aniyah said,
nodding at her friend. “She got me a discount with this great caterer.”

 
    Audrey
glanced over at Zoë and was quick to change the subject. “I actually tried to
make crepes like these for Nate and I a couple days ago,” she said, beginning
to serve herself. “It didn’t go all that smoothly though. In fact…I almost set
his kitchen on fire. Who knew cooking was so complex?”

 
    Caleb
looked over at Nate and started laughing. “You didn’t tell me that when we were
at the bar the other day,” he said, nudging him in the side.

 
    “That’s
because I was trying to forget,” Nate joked, but Audrey didn’t appear all too amused
by the remark. One snide look from her was all it took to make him fall silent
again. He'd learned how to pick his battles with her a long time ago.

 
    Zoë
rolled her eyes and tried her best to make herself invisible, but every few
seconds she’d look up from her food to find Nate staring at her as though he
was trying to read her mind.

 
    “So how
have you guys been?” Aniyah questioned once the conversation she was having
with a few other guests began to taper off.   “I feel like I haven’t heard from you in ages. Any
ultrasound pictures to share?”

 
    Nate
hesitated. As asinine as it was, he hadn’t thought about that until now. Ever
since Audrey broke the news about her pregnancy to him, he felt as though he’d
been living in a sort of trance. He’d done the honorable thing by allowing her
to move back home and live with him, but there wasn’t a single part of him that
was anticipating parenthood with her. It struck him as the sort of gig you
signed up for with the person you really loved, and Audrey most certainly was
not that person to him.

 
    When
Audrey didn’t say anything, Nate glanced over at her and frowned when he
noticed the anxious expression on her face. She looked as though she’d been
cornered.

 
    “Uh,
not yet,” Audrey spoke up, fidgeting in her chair. “I…I haven’t had a chance to
find a good ob-gyn here yet.”

 
    Zoë
perked up as soon as she heard that. Audrey had been living back in New Orleans
for almost two month’s now. Any woman with even the least bit of concern for
her unborn child would have secured a doctor here within the first few days.

 
    Nate
appeared just as at a loss as Zoë was. “That’s not good for the baby, is it?”
he questioned, nodding at Audrey’s stomach.

 
    Audrey’s
unusually trim figure was one of the first things that had struck Zoë as
suspect when she sauntered through the door, but she wrote it off as her still
being pretty early in her pregnancy. Besides, it didn’t seem all that
far-fetched that she’d be one of those annoying pregnant women who didn’t gain
a pound.

 
    Audrey
waved away Nate’s statement as though it was nothing. It was obvious that she
felt uncomfortable, and it didn’t take very long for that uncomfortableness to
spread to everyone else on that end of the table.

 
    Zoë sat
in silence and stared down at her half eaten salad as she tried to understand
what awful act she’d committed to deserve to be present for this. She was sure
the conversation would only get more awkward, and a few seconds later, it did.

 
    “Well
I’m sure you’re both excited,” Aniyah said with an exaggerated smile. “Having a
kid is a huge deal.”

 
    “Tell
me about it,” Audrey said as she glanced over at Nate and squeezed his hand.
“I’m not sure what I’d do without this guy right here. He’s been so supportive.
I can’t help but pity women who are doomed to go through this alone.”