After The One (The One Series Duet) Read Free Page B

taking care of yourself?”
    “Um...well.” I lifted my shoulders as he scowled at me. “You saw the way things were before you left to go on tour. It only got worse once you were gone. You were my reason to get out of the office at least by ten o’clock. Without you here, I worked until three in the morning and then turned around and got started again around seven, seven-thirty. I wasn’t sleeping and was eating weird food at weird hours.”
    “Zoe…” He sighed. “That’s not good. You have to take care of yourself.”
    “I know. My mom already lectured me. She said it’s pretty normal on the first big case, but for me to learn from it and not do it again. It’s hard on the body. And now that the adrenaline of the case is over, I know I’m going to crash from exhaustion soon.”
    “But have you been throwing up like this?”
    I thought about it. “Not really…”
    It’s only happened a few times.
    And then it hit me.
    I gave him a sheepish look. “Don’t judge me… I think maybe after the convenience store dinners.”
    “Well, no more convenience store crap for my woman.”
    I gave him a small smile. “Yes sir.”
    With his hands cupping my face, Julian looked at me long and hard again. “Instead of the baked ziti, let me make you some soup or something light. If your stomach hurts, you shouldn’t eat anything heavy.”
    Taking me by the hand, Julian guided me upstairs to the master bedroom. He stripped me until I was just in my panties and then pulled one of his t-shirts over my body. Once I was safely in bed, he left to put the food away, blow out the candles, and make me soup.
    I felt like if I moved, I would get sick again, so I hardly moved. I thumbed through the journal Julian filled with thoughts, lyrics, and poems while he was on the road. When my stomach felt settled enough, I got up to go brush my teeth. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find the floss anywhere.
    When was the last time I had it? I wondered as I opened drawers I never used. I racked my brain, but I was drawing a blank. I remembered flossing each and every time. I didn’t use it all. Did I?
    “Ah ha!” I said out loud as I found a new container of floss tucked behind a pink box in a bottom drawer.
    Pregnancy test? When did he get this? Why did he get this?
    Something in me stirred and my stomach fluttered. It wasn’t a huge movement, but it was enough for me to look at the box again.
    I grabbed it.
    “Do you want chicken noodle or—” Julian stopped in his tracks. His eyes bounced from me to the box in my hand. “I can explain.”
    “Yes, please do.” I tossed the box to him and started flossing as best I could with him watching me like a hawk.
    “My mom brought it over here as a joke after our Thanksgiving in Maryland last year. Remember when they were all drunk off baby fever and wedding planning? She came by with it as a joke to apologize when we got back in town. I threw it in that drawer and didn’t think about it again.”
    “Ah.” I nodded in understanding. “I get it.”
    I brushed my teeth, but kept glancing at him as he stared at the back of the box.
    I wonder if his mom taped a note to it like she did that book she gave me. She’s so funny. I hope she’s not getting any ideas though. She—
    “Have you been tired a lot?” Julian asked.
    I spit the toothpaste out to answer. “Yes, but I’ve been working my ass off.”
    “Have you been urinating more frequently?”
    The uptick of my heart rate made me nervous. “Yeah, but I’ve been drinking more to stay hydrated.”
    “Have you… When was the last time you were on your period?”
    My hand shook as I put my toothbrush away. Our eyes met before I rinsed my mouth out and turned around to face him.
    Shit, when was my last cycle?
    “I think it…” My voice trailed off as I struggled to remember the last time I’d had my period. “Um, it was a couple of weeks before you left for tour. But I’ve been stressed and working a lot lately and stress