Page 273 of By His Vow

He frowns. I know that Kingston has told Lewis to put my needs above his, and while I appreciate it, I also don’t need him waiting for me. He doesn’t need to witness the fallout of whatever this little trip to the mall is going to result in.

“Ms. Tate,” he warns.

“Lewis,” I sigh, reaching out to squeeze his bicep. I’ve no idea if it’s appropriate or not, but quite frankly, I don’t care right now. “I promise you, I’m fine. I don’t know how long I’m going to be. If I need you, I will call you.”

His eyes bounce between mine. He’s conflicted. I hate putting him in this position, but it is what it is.

“Okay,” he finally concedes. “But call me, please.”

“I will. Have a good afternoon,” I say, forcing a smile that I don’t feel onto my lips.

“You too, Ms. Tate.”

I wait long enough for him to pull the driver’s door open and drop into the seat before taking off.

I should probably wait until I see the car disappear, but I’m too impatient to get my answer.

I’ve never been very good with the unknown, and now is just more proof of that.

My legs move as fast as physically possible in my heels and before I know it, I’m marching through the doors to the pharmacy.

With my heart in my throat and my hands trembling violently, I find the section I need and scan the shelves.

I’ve no idea what I want or which is the best.

I’ve never done this before.

In all my adult years, I haven’t once had a serious enough false alarm to have to resort to this. It was something I was fairly proud of, considering that I haven’t been any kind of angel.

But I guess all good luck comes to an end eventually.

I finally grab a box that promises the most accurate results on the market—probably bullshit from their marketing department, but whatever—and take it to the cashier.

I don’t know what I expected, but the kind, middle-aged woman scans the test through the register without giving me any kind of judgment. I mean, why should she? As far as anyone else is concerned, I’m a grown-ass woman with a ring on my finger.

If only they knew the truth about my current situation…I bet she’d begin judging in a heartbeat if she knew I only said my vows to secure a cottage. And Kingston only agreed until death do us part so that he could take over my family’s company.

I shake my head, trying to forget about reality as I tuck the box in my purse and walk back out of the store in search of a place to discover my fate.

I should probably go home.

Home…

Where even is my home right now?

Without thinking too much about it, I find the closest bathroom and lock myself inside a stall.

It is nowhere near the ideal place to do this, but I can’t wait to get back to Kingston’s apartment.

I need to know if all this freaking out and panicking is for nothing.

Or if…

I blow out a slow, calming breath in an attempt to get myself together before doing this, but it does very little to settle the riot inside me.

Pulling the box from my purse, I rip into the plastic covering and pull out the test and instructions. I scan the text, taking note of the important parts I need to remember before pulling my skirt up around my waist, dropping my panties, and lowering my ass to the toilet.

“Here goes nothing,” I whisper to myself as the sounds of other women using the facilities float around me.