“This can’t be happening.” Ronnie Floyd groaned. “Please, please, please. One line. One line only,” she pleaded while sitting on the floor of her bathroom.
She prayed to the good Lord above. Every promise she could think of from going to church more, to donating food to the homeless spilled from her lips. She was willing to do whatever He required of her, if only the pregnancy test sitting on her counter displayed a single line.
She ignored the coolness of the tile beneath her. Ronnie leaned her head back against the wall with her eyes closed.
Everything was going to be okay. No matter what. She was a big girl and would handle whatever the future held for her.
Sitting forward, Ronnie blew out a deep breath. She snagged the test and froze in place.
Two lines.
She grabbed the box and reread the directions for the fourth time. Maybe she had misread it. Or maybe she was tired and her eyes didn’t see the words correctly.
“Two lines is a positive result,” she uttered in disbelief. “Shit.”
She was pregnant.
Ronnie was going to be someone’s mother.
Panic consumed her. She tossed the test in the trash and ran a shaky hand through her dark hair. Her heart raced while her breaths grew shallow and short.
“It’s going to be okay.” Her voice sounded hollow even to herself.
What the hell was she going to do?
Well, she knew one thing she wasn’t going to do was sit on the floor and wallow away in tears.
This was the era of the modern woman. She was strong, had a steady career she loved, and she knew who the father of her child was.
With her eyes closed, she blew out a deep breath and tried to will her racing heart to slow down.
She wouldn’t have to do it completely alone. Her one-night stand a couple of months ago was a trustworthy guy.
He was sexy, intelligent, carried a badge…oh, goodness. Sarena was going to kill her.
Sarena MacArthur was married to the sergeant of the Columbia SWAT officer who had knocked her up. Her friend had warned her about the guys, and that they had some unwritten code about relationships. Even though it would seem some of them were breaking it for love.
Ronnie had slept with Brodie, a member of Mac’s team, and he was her baby daddy.
She giggled at the term. Never in a million years would she have thought she’d be a baby momma.
It had been two years since she had been with a member of the opposite sex, and apparently this was what happened when the dry spell got broken.
That night had been totally worth it.
She couldn’t help it. Brodie was an amazing guy. They had been harmlessly flirting with each other since the day they had met. Sarena and her husband hosted the team over at their house quarterly, and Ronnie was always invited.
She would go and was pretty cool with all the guys, but there was something about Brodie. He was smart as hell, built, and looked good in nothing.
She rubbed her face and tried to think.
Should she tell him?
Slapping her forehead, she shook her head. “What is wrong with me. Of course I have to tell him.”
First, that would be wrong if she didn’t. Second, they saw each other often enough that she wouldn’t have an excuse not to.
How would she explain a growing belly and no partner around?
She stood and reached for the other three pregnancy tests and threw them away. Each of them had the same result—pregnant.
Flipping out the light, she made her way to her living room. She plopped down on the couch with a groan.
Welp, this type of situation would normally call for wine, but she officially couldn’t have any alcohol for a while.
What did people who didn’t drink do in these types of situations?
She was truly stumped and couldn’t think of an answer.
The doorbell ringing startled her.
“Who the hell is that?” she muttered. She glanced at the clock on the wall to find it was a little after ten in the morning. Pushing off the couch, she walked to the front door and peeked through the peephole. She found Sarena on the other side. She unlocked the door and pulled it open. “Hey, girl.”
“Hey, bestie!” Sarena grinned. She practically skipped into the house without waiting for Ronnie to invite her in. Not that she needed an invitation.
Ronnie rolled her eyes and shut the door. “It is too early for all this.”
“What are you talking about? It’s a beautiful day outside,” Sarena exclaimed.