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Olivia. Just take it easy. Breathe deeply.”

I nodded and burrowed into him as much as I could, desperately trying not to panic. It had only

been two months, but I’d already fallen in love with my baby. I wanted to meet him or her, and then

watch as Hunter held our child for the first time.

“Here we go.” Hunter helped me stand.

“Hello, Livy. Mr. Carlisle.” A short woman with crow’s-feet at the corners of her eyes and deeply

etched laugh lines around her mouth walked up with hurried, purposeful strides. Her gaze fell on me

and a supportive smile took over her face. “Please, come with me.” She turned and gestured us on, no doubt thinking we’d both walk beside her. She didn’t balk, however, when Hunter swooped me up

again and easily kept pace.

“Why don’t you tell me what’s wrong?” Dr. Cheung said as she directed us to the elevator.

“I had some cramping and now I’m bleeding a little.” With her prompting, I told her how bad the

cramps were and the color of the blood.

“Uh huh.” She took us through a few halls and into a room with a bed covered in white paper.

“Just sit her on the bed. And you are the father, Mr. Carlisle, correct?”

Hunter hesitated. His glance came to me for a brief second. “Yes…”

I wished I hadn’t heard the question in his voice. This was a terrible time for his past to get in the way.

“Yes,” I said firmly. Despite my fear and panic, I leveled him with a glare. He reached forward

and took my hand. It was a wise move. I didn’t want to have to break his kneecap for emotionally

abandoning me at a time like this.

“And did you want him in the room for the examination?” she asked me in a slightly softer voice.

I knew what she was asking. Would I mind if he saw me spread my legs and show the world my

hoo-ha. And frankly, as terrified as I was, I did a little. It had taken me years to feel comfortable presenting myself for an examination for a
doctor.
The man who used that area as a playground was another situation entirely.

“He’s okay to stay if he wants to,” I said in a little voice. If I was expecting him to man up, I had to do likewise.

“I’ll stay,” Hunter said, this time without hesitation.

“Okay.” The doctor put her hand on the dreaded stirrups. “Why don’t you go ahead and use the

restroom. I’ll need a urine sample.” She handed me a small cup. “When you get back, I’ll need you to undress. Just the lower half. Here’s a drape.” She put the drape on the edge of the bed.

I ducked out of the room, shadowed by Hunter. He didn’t seem to want to let me out of his sight.

That was okay by me. Except for the bathroom. I shut the door right in his face.

After I was done, which turned out to be a meager amount since I’d gone earlier, I handed over the

cup and then took off my skirt and undies. Hunter helped me tuck the drape around my hips before I

settled back on the bed. I didn’t bother telling him I’d have to pull it out from under my butt in a moment. This was awkward enough.

After I was settled, the doctor wheeled a metal tray full of instruments toward me. “And how

severe was the cramping?”

“At first it was like a bad pinch, and then like period cramps.”

“Uh huh. And the bleeding sounds like it was fairly light. Okay.” She motioned me forward.

With a sideways glance at Hunter, I scootched up into the incredibly awkward position where she

would examine me.

“Knees, please.” She touched my knee, indicating I was supposed to relax and let them fall to the

side naturally.

There was nothing natural about this position in front of my boyfriend.

Dr. Cheung felt my abdomen and then examined me. After a moment she said, “Your cervix is fine.

I don’t see any cause for alarm at first glance, but it is somewhat fragile. Yes, there—just a touch, and there’s a little blood. You’ll have a little more bleeding from this examination, but don’t let it cause you any alarm. Okay.”

She pulled back her instruments and gave my knee a quick pat before turning away. I took my legs

down, adjusted the cover, and scooted back. She opened a folder and started jotting things down. “It’s pretty normal for women to have some spotting in the first twelve weeks of pregnancy. This is often

caused from extra blood flow to the cervix, in which any contact with the cervix can cause some of

this bleeding, like you saw. This can also be caused from stress, lifting heavy things, or fatigue. It’s best to avoid those, and whenever possible, lie down and relax if you feel your body reacting.

“The cramping is probably also a sign that you’ve been too active, or putting your body through

too much. If you ever feel a tightening, definitely slow down. Sit or lie, drink some cool water… It’s good to keep an eye on it, so to speak. Give me or one of the nurses a call if you’re concerned. As it’s subsided now, I’m not too worried. I would caution you, though, to take it a little easier.”

I got the stern look doctors were known for, and a matching “I told you so” look from Hunter.

“I want to have an ultrasound, just in case,” the doctor went on, tidying everything. “If everything looks good, I think you’ll be fine until your next checkup as long as nothing else happens.”

I took a big breath and let it out. Relief washed through my body. “Okay.”

“All right. Go ahead and get dressed and meet me out at the nurses’ station when you’re ready. I’ll

walk you down.” She smiled at me, then nodded at Hunter.

When she’d gone, I moved to get off the bed. Hunter pulled me up and hugged me close to him.

“Everything is fine.”

That was Hunter-speak for “what a huge relief!”

I hugged him tightly before I disengaged so I could get dressed. “I panicked a little.”

“That’s okay. It’s scary. It’s a little life we’re trying to protect.”

I pulled on my skirt and let him help put me to rights. This was his version of taking an active

role. I loved it. It was the Hunter I always craved. The one he still hid from strangers behind his

distanced, unfeeling business mask. The guy he no longer hid from me.

“One last test.” I smiled when I felt his hand on the small of my back, directing me through the

door and to the doctor.

“All set?” The doctor smiled at me again and led the way. She didn’t comment on the fact that

Hunter let me walk this time. The fear had mostly passed.

The next room was larger, with a big machine, screens, and room for a few people. There was

only one woman in there, though, tapping something into a computer resting on the machine. She

glanced up when we walked in.

“This is Dr. Lund,” Dr. Cheung said as she stopped near the door. “She’ll be performing the

ultrasound. I’ll leave you in her very capable hands. Just call me, anytime, if you’re worried about anything else. Okay?”

“Hello, Mr. Carlisle,” said Dr. Lund, a woman with frizzy blond hair. “Mrs. Carlisle, go ahead

and put this on for me. Just disrobe from the bottom down.”

“Oh, I’m not—”

“Here, Livy,” Hunter said, his eyes soft. He handed me the sheet.

I stared at him for a second as a thrill of warm tingles seeped through my body. He’d stopped me

from correcting her!

Oh my God, did he want to marry me? Obviously he’d tied himself to me forever with the baby

situation, but…
did he want to marry me?

My thrill was short-lived. The stirrups came out a moment later. Apparently this test would be a

bit more invasive than on the TV.

Glancing at Hunter, I went through the same rigmarole before settling onto the bed and waiting for

the instruction to scoot my butt to the end and throw my knees in the air. It came as expected, leaving me in another precarious position.

“All right.” Dr. Lund wheeled her chair closer to my knees while still on the side of the bed. She

didn’t plan to take up the normal gynecologist position, it seemed. She held up a thick plastic thing that looked like a wand. I knew exactly where that sucker was going.

I glanced at Hunter again. Now that the danger was largely gone, this was damned uncomfortable.

“There is some small risk in performing an ultrasound this way,” Dr. Lund explained, lubing up

the end of the wand. “However, Dr. Cheung has given the go-ahead. It looks like your cervix is fine to handle it, and you’re young.”

“Dr. Cheung expressed some concern about her cervix being fragile,” Hunter said, stepping

closer. He put his hand on my shin protectively.

I was clearly the only one thinking this situation was awkward.

“The exterior of the cervix, yes. The wall. That doesn’t mean she has a
weak
cervix, however.

Meaning it doesn’t have any bearing on her ability to hold a baby in the uterus. Since the fetus isn’t large enough for us to get a reading with the fetal Doppler, we’ll need to get a reading this way. The assurance greatly outweighs the risk.”

Hunter nodded and stepped away a little. That explanation passed muster.

I was glad he was pulling police duty. All I could focus on was that large probe and my spread

legs. I was not having fun…

“Okay…” Dr. Lund let the word trail away as she directed the probe into a personal place. She

put a hand on my knee as she looked at the scene, jockeying the wand into position. It jabbed me in a way that made me wince.

Hunter stepped forward again, eyes on me.

The doctor noticed. “It might be a little uncomfortable for a moment—I just need to find a good

spot to hopefully…” I winced again before she paused. “There.”

Before I could look over at the screen, I saw a look of pure wonder pass over Hunter’s face. A

smile lit up his features, turning him from merely handsome into the most gorgeous man I’d ever seen.

“That’s our baby, Livy,” he said, putting a hand on my knee.

I followed his gaze. On the black-and-white screen was a tiny little blip clinging desperately to a

wall in a cavernous location. The doctor hit a few keys on the keyboard and moved the wand around.

I winced, uncomfortable. This time Hunter didn’t notice. His hand was shaking on my leg as he

watched the screen.

“Can you tell if it’s a girl or boy?” he asked softly.

“Not yet. We won’t be able to determine that until between sixteen and twenty weeks.” Dr. Lund

tapped another few buttons before moving the wand around again.

Hunter’s gaze, dripping with both love and wonder, fell on me. He stroked my knee.

“It’s yours,” I said softly, wanting him to thoroughly connect with this moment. Not wanting his

past to get in the way, as it so often did when he tried to open up. “That’s your little baby in there.”

He rubbed my knee a little harder before looking back at the screen. “Is the baby healthy? Can you

tell?” he asked.

“It looks good so far.” Dr. Lund hit another couple of keys before pulling the wand free. “These

are just the early stages, but the heartbeat looks fine. From what I can tell, the fetus is firmly attached to the uterus wall. I don’t see any warning signs right now.”

She tapped my knee before wheeling closer to her keyboard and started to type.

I wasted no time putting down my legs and securing the drape more firmly around my hips. “Can I

get dressed?”

“Yes, go ahead. I’ll send these results to Dr. Cheung. Is she your OB-GYN?”

“Yes,” Hunter answered. He looked at me. “She’s the best OB-GYN in the city.”

“Yes, she’s very good,” Dr. Lund said, working at the machine.

That was fine by me. I’d had to pick a new doctor when signing up for insurance. I wasn’t

attached to the lady I had randomly picked out of a book, nor her nurse who had seen me a month ago

to confirm I was pregnant and then ushered me quickly from the shabby room.

“Okay.” Dr. Lund gave us a tight smile. “You’ll probably need that pad. You’ll have some light

spotting from this, I’d imagine. It’s nothing to worry about. Congratulations.” She nodded at Hunter and left the room.

“Not great with the bedside manner,” I mumbled as I practically dove into my clothes.

“This isn’t something a doctor generally does, I don’t think. This is more a nurse’s duty. I

requested a doctor to see you, though.” Hunter rubbed my back. “Thanks. For that moment.”

I knew he was talking about calling out that he was the dad. “We all have our issues.”

“I don’t have issues, Olivia. I have past…”

“Issues. That’s what we, politely, call baggage. Or do you prefer I just call a spade a spade and

say baggage?”

“Transgressions.”

I laughed. I sighed hugely, letting the relief mask the niggling fear that something like this could happen again. I thought back to that little blip.
Our
little blip.

“We’re having a baby,” I said with a smile. “And it’s tiny.”

Hunter threaded his fingers into mine. “Yes. We are.”

We walked out to the street where Bert was waiting with stress lining his face. “Are you okay?”

I leaned into Hunter. “I’m good. Everything is fine. I just have to take it easy.”

Relief washed over his face. “Well that’s a relief. Are you—” His gaze flicked to Hunter. He then

snapped his mouth shut and turned toward the parking garage across the street. “I’ll just run and get the car.”

“I think the secret is out,” I said as we waited.

“He doesn’t know anything for sure. You can still keep it secret if you want.”

“I kind of want to tell everyone, but will just stop with him for now.”

When Bert pulled up, Hunter escorted me into the car.

“Where to, sir?” Bert asked.

“My house,” Hunter said. “We need to drop Olivia off.”

“I have a ton of work still to do, Hunter,” I said. I felt the stress creeping back into me. I leaned back against the seat and let my head fall to the side, watching the buildings pass. “You’re probably right. But I do still have lots to do.”