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Chapter Thirty Eight

Courtney's POV

My mother continues the conversation as I scoop the remainder of the food on my plate into my mouth.

"Thank you for coming by," she says, turning her head to Duchess Isadora of Alaska, another one of her good friends. "You and your children are welcome here any time."

My eyes drift towards Archer, who has her nine year son, Jonathan, in his lap. The two of them are play fighting with spoons, but Isadora doesn't seem to mind.

"I would take any opportunity to be graced with your presence," Isadora grins, then looks pointedly at me. "Mind taking care of Beatrice? She gets bored easily and needs to be entertained."

I nod quickly, taking the four year old from the duchess's arms and bringing her over to the corner so as not to disrupt the women's conversation.

"Kitty?" Beatrice cooes, and I let out a light giggle.

"No, it's Courtney. You know what? Doesn't matter." I plant a kiss on her temple, burying my face into her cheek. "What do you want to play?"

"Sparkle!" she exclaims, throwing her glittery pink and purple rabbit towards me.

Grinning, I catch it in midair. "Sounds fun." Placing its feet on the floor, I make it seem as though it's walking. I mimic a high pitched voice, "Hi, Beatrice! I'm Sparkle, your best friend!"

Beatrice giggles in amusement, and in the background, I can hear Isadora comment, "They're getting along so well."

"I agree. I wonder what it would be like for Courtney to have a child of her own," my mother replies, and I almost choke on my words. My eyes drift towards my belly, as though I expect to see it swelling. Instead, it's just as flat as it'd been last night.

"Um, I need to use the bathroom," I lie quickly, picking up Beatrice and handing her back to her mother before walking out of the room, face flushed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"We need to tell your parents," Jordan sighs out, placing his hands on my stomach.

Twisting away, I shake my head quickly. "If we do that, you could be fired, maybe even put in jail!"

"Then what am I supposed to do?" he snaps. "It's not like you're going to stay this thin forever. The baby's bound to show in the next three months; no way you can hide it from your parents."

"I can't just say you're the father though!" I retort. "That's what gets you in trouble. But if I say I was attacked by a guard or som-"

"Courtney..."

"It works! You don't have to leave, and I won't be in trouble."

"Courtney," Jordan repeats firmly, placing his hands on my shoulders. "We're not going to pin it on a guard. Especially when it's an extremely dangerous thing to accuse someone of. What's this even about, princess? You usually wouldn't go to such lengths to help someone."

I blink back tears, moving his hands down to hold them in mine. "I can't take care of a child all on my own, Jordan. And I love you too much to let you go. I'm just not ready for this." Closing my eyes, I continue breathlessly, "Why are we so stupid?"

"No, it's all my fault. I should've.. you know..." He looks away, embarrassed. "I deserve to be punished."

My eyes open again. "I'm not afraid to tell them I'm pregnant. I'm just afraid to drag you down with me."

"But I'm okay with it." He rises to his feet, holding out his hand. "Come on, princess."

I hesitate before taking it. "Fine. But you start."