Page 161 of When She Falls (The Fallen)
I roll off the bed and hurry to check the calendar on the desk. A quick scan tells me I should have gotten my period last week, the day after I returned.
There’s a sinking sensation in my gut. I’m about a week late. I’m never late. I’ve always been as regular as a damn clock.
There’s a knock on the door. “Gem?”
It’s Cleo. “Come in,” I call out, my pulse loud in my ears.
She walks in, her face lined with concern. “Nona said you aren’t feeling well. I wanted to check in on you.”
“Close the door and sit down.”
“Is everything okay?”
“No. I’m nauseous. And I just realized I’m late.”
Her forehead wrinkles with confusion. “Late?” When the realization hits her, her eyes widen. “Your period? Wait,what? Have you—”
“Yes. With Ras.” I can feel a wave of panic creeping up my spine. I climb off the bed, unable to sit still. “Cleo, the night Rafaele killed Ludovico, Ras and I…” I swallow. “We had sex. Unprotected. I took the morning-after pill. It was around the time I was ovulating.”
Cleo’s shaking her head. “If you took the pill, you should be fine, right?”
I should be. I mean, I took it hours after we did it and those things work well, don’t they?
I blink, trying to recall the events of that morning and when I do, my stomach plummets all the way to my feet. “Oh God. Cleo, I threw up.”
Right after Papà hit me. It was less than an hour after I took the pill, and that might not have been enough time for it to fully digest.
“I might be pregnant,” I mutter as panic explodes inside my chest. “I need to take a test.”
Shit, shit, shit.I should stay calm down, at least until I know for sure what’s happening, but that’s easier said than done.
“How do I get one?” I ask Cleo. “I can’t leave the house unescorted, especially not to a pharmacy. Mamma will just say I should tell my driver to get me what I need.” I perch on the edge of the windowsill, my stomach clenching with anxiety. “I have no idea what to do.”
“Okay, take a deep breath,” Cleo says, squeezing my hands. “I’ll get you a test.”
“How?”
“Don’t worry about it.” She presses a kiss to my cheek and gets up. “I’ve got it, okay? I’ll be back in five minutes.”
I’m so agitated, all I can do is nod and watch as she hurries out of my room.
As soon as she’s gone, the weight of my situation presses down on me. I can hardly breathe.
My throat tightens. My hands find the windowsill and curl over its edge. It’s March, but winter’s grip hasn’t let up a single inch. Flakes of snow dance through the air in slow motion before settling on the driveway. If Ras were here, he’d no doubt be complaining about how damn cold it is.
I stare at the snow for a long time. Long enough for Cleo to return. She’s wearing a hoodie over her outfit, and she takes a box out of the center pocket. “I went through the maids’ cubbies. You know Melody’s always having pregnancy scares, so I thought she might have one of these.”
“Thank you,” I say numbly as I open the box and read the instructions.
My hands shake.
It seems simple enough. Just pee on a stick and wait. What they don’t say is that the three-minute wait is excruciating.
I sit on the bed biting my nails while Cleo’s silent beside me. When the timer on Cleo’s phone goes off, we both jump up.
“Do you want me to check it?” she asks when I don’t immediately dash to the bathroom.
I swallow. “No. I’ll do it.”
