The Unwanted Bride Of Atticus Fawn

~SCARLETT~

“Have you put on weight?” Clara asks me as we step out of the car.

Things were already returning to normal between us and I was happy about that.

I looked down and noticed that my tummy did look slightly bigger. It was usually flat.

“I have been eating more since that night,” I answer her. “It’s probably just from that.”

“You said that you were sick earlier, didn’t you?” She asks me.

I nod.

What was she getting at?

“I think I know the answer, but did you have s*x with Carter?” She asks me. “Did you reach that far with him?”

I blush at her question, unable to look her in the eyes.

“Scarlett?” She says my name as she waits for me to answer.

“Yes,” I finally say. “We did take things that far. I know you might think I’m stupid, but I’m in love with him. I did that with him because I thought he had feelings for me, also. I knew there was a chance that I would regret it, but my body and emotions took over.”

She seems like she’s lost in thought.

“What’s wrong?” I ask her.

“Carter never slept with me, not even once.” She says suddenly. “He would always find excuses not to take things that far. There were times that I even begged him like a fool. He didn’t think twice to do it with you.”

My heart breaks at her words, “Maybe this just means that Carter cared about you more than he ever cared about me. Think about it: if he always knew your relationship wouldn’t last, why would he not want to sleep with you? The only reason I could think of was that he was trying to protect you from his ways. If you’d slept with him, the break up would have been much worse.”

Her gaze softens, “like it is for you.” She whispers. “I don’t know if this is the right time to say this, but I think you should take a pregnancy test.”

My eyes almost pop out of my head at her suggestion.

“A pregnancy test?” I ask in horror.

“Pregnancy test?” Jenna asks behind us. She’d just arrived and must be as lost as I felt in this conversation.

“Why on earth would I take a pregnancy test?” I demand.

“Yes,” Jenna whispers. “Why would Scarlett need to take a pregnancy test?”

She was frightening me.

“Did you use protection when you slept with him?” She asks me.

Protection?

“It never crossed my mind to use it,” I confess. “He also. . . I think he was so lost in me. . . I don’t think he used any.”

Memories of that night made my feelings for him come alive. The pain that followed was almost too much for me to handle.

“Wait a minute. I thought a she-wolf had to go into heat to get pregnant.” Jenna points out.

I never paid much attention to the pregnancy classes at the academy. Maybe I should have.

“Not really,” Clara answers her. “When a She-wolf goes into heat, it increases the chances of her getting pregnant because of how often they have s*x in just one night. The male releases multiple times to ease her pain. That’s why most people assume she must go into heat to get pregnant. According to our professor, that’s not always the case.”

I could feel myself begin to turn pale.

I couldn’t be pregnant. Could I?

Carter did release multiple times inside of me that night. He did it against my car and even in the middle of the woods.

“I’m only suggesting Scarlett.” My sister informs me. “You have been eating more, gaining weight, and sick. All of those are signs that you could be pregnant.”

“This isn’t right,” I whisper.

“It wouldn’t hurt to take a test,” Jenna tells me. “Since when have the two of you started talking again?”

“We worked things out earlier,” Clara informs her.

I couldn’t pay attention to their conversation.

What would happen to me if it turned out that I was pregnant?

Carter wanted nothing to do with me; I’m sure he wouldn’t want anything to do with our baby, either.

Does this mean that I’ll have to take care of our baby on my own?

I never wanted to have a baby at this age; I always wanted to finish the academy, get a nice job, and find my mate.

Nothing was going the way I had planned all my life, and all of it was because of Carter. He’d turned my world upside down, and he was nowhere around when I needed him the most.

“I’ll get the test,” Jenna tells me. “I’ll be back in less than a half an hour. Meet me in the bathroom when I return.”

This wasn’t happening.

Please tell me Clara was wrong.

She had to be.