Temptation Trails (The Haven Brothers #3)

“It’s okay. You’re both married and ready for this. And I’m really, really not.” I sighed. “I never sleep with a guy right away. It’s not my thing. But there he was and he just… And I couldn’t help but… It was like…”

“Trying to fight gravity?” Marigold asked.

“Yeah, exactly. Is that a Haven thing?”

“Yes,” they said in unison.

I sank onto the stool next to the island and picked up one of the pregnancy test boxes. “This is so surreal.”

Marigold put a gentle hand on my arm. “Either way, you’re going to be fine. Garrett is a good man. If you are, I know you two will figure this out. And if you’re not, this will be a really funny story to tell him someday.”

“Emphasis on someday.” I set the box down. “I’m not about to run down to the sheriff’s office to tell him I had a pregnancy scare. He’d probably never see me again.”

“Of course he would,” Marigold said.

I raised my eyebrows in disbelief. “That would totally scare him off.”

“I don’t think so. He likes you too much.”

A little flutter of hope mixed with all the nervousness. “How do you know?”

“For one, he doesn’t sleep with someone right away either. Not even when he was young. I’ve known Garrett for most of my life, and I’ve never seen him like this. He keeps his cards close, but this isn’t just sexual attraction. Not for him.”

“It isn’t for me, either. That’s part of why I’m so scared. What if we were meant to be and this screws everything up?”

“It won’t,” Marigold reassured me.

“I agree,” Audrey said. “It might seem like the end of the world, but it won’t be.”

“You guys don’t understand. I have really bad luck. That’s probably what this is. My bad luck curse coming in full force to take me down.”

When the timer on Marigold’s phone chimed, the knot in my stomach twisted and my heart jumped.

“We’ll go in together.” Marigold reached for my hand.

I clasped Marigold’s hand on one side, Audrey’s on the other, and we wedged ourselves into the bathroom. It wasn’t large, but it was big enough for us to stand in front of the sink. I kept my eyes mostly closed so I couldn’t see the test clearly. Not yet.

I took a deep breath, and looked.

“Mine’s negative,” Marigold said.

Audrey let out a sigh. “Mine too.”

“Oh, Harper,” Marigold whispered.

Sitting there on the counter, right where I’d left it, was the pregnancy test I’d taken.

It had two lines.

Theirs each had one.

I was pregnant.

My hand trembled as I reached out to pick it up. I lifted it closer, as if looking from six inches away was going to change the result. Marigold rubbed my back, but didn’t say anything. Neither did Audrey.

In shared silence, we walked out of the bathroom. I still had the test in my hand, but I wasn’t really looking at it. I stared straight ahead, not quite seeing anything, while my mind reeled. Pregnant. I was pregnant with Garrett Haven’s baby.

“Sugar cookies,” I breathed.