The two friends met each other’s gazes and stared at each other in utter and complete shock. There was so much to think about. She hadn’t even taken a test yet, but…gods…but she was certain she was right.
“What?” Gabe demanded. “Can’t we talk about this back at the hotel? This is our chance to find—”
“PICKLES,” they said together. When he didn’t get the significance of that, Emily said, “You picked him.”
“I know,” Ingrid said. She put her face into her lap and tried to deep breathe. But she was wet and covered in muck and cold, and she needed to pee. And puke.
Emily stood, smacked the back of his head and repeated in a growly sort of whisper, “Pickles.”
“Pickles?” Gabe said. He shook his head and looked between them as if they were dense.
Ingrid stood slowly, looked Gabe over, and told Emily, “I suppose he’ll have to do. It’s too late now.”
Emily rose and nodded as if she were considering carefully instead of knowing it was always going to end this way. Perhaps not quite so soon, Ingrid thought, but Emily wasn’t surprised.
Gabe paused and then said, “You love me.”
“Yes,” Ingrid agreed, though she wasn’t prepared for this. Not one little bit. She could barely take care of herself and only because of food delivery.
“You adore me,” he said.
“Yes,” she agreed. She did. Oh thank the gods that she did.
“What’s the problem?”
“I mean,” Emily said, “Is it a problem?”
Ingrid took a shaky breath, held out her hands to see them quiver as if she were seizing and said, “I really don’t know.”
“I mean, it’s kind of exciting, isn’t it?” Emily’s face was dawning with the light of excitement. “I’m excited. You’ll get there. Think of the shopping.”
“What is exciting?” Gabe demanded, he took Ingrid’s hand and hauled her to his feet and then wove back and forth as he caught his breath.
“I’m pregnant, Gabe.”
Gabe took a step back and sat down on the pavement while Ingrid and Emily stood over him. Emily was cackling, but Ingrid couldn’t feel that way. She needed to know he was ok with this. That he was happy. Even if she wasn’t excited yet, she needed him to be.
Ingrid put her muck covered fingers into his hair, swirled them around, and said, “I mean…how hard can it be?”
Gabe rose back to his feet, picked Ingrid up—muck and all—and swung her in a circle.
“A baby?” He asked softly, kissing her right on her filthy lips.
“Pretty sure,” she said, utterly certain.
“Wonderful,” he said, and the joy shining from his face was enough to convince her that he was, indeed, truly happy.
“So…” Emily said after she came back from finding a taxi. Ingrid hadn’t even realized Em had left until she spoke. “Maybe this is a good time to say I’m ditching you to hang out with Dean in Moscow.”
Ingrid turned. Gods no, she thought. But then she saw the excitement in Emily’s eyes and realized that if Dean were Em’s Gabe, then Emily had to go.
“Make sure,” Ingrid said, “To send me Russian booze and coffee for when this parasite exits.”
“Yeah,” Emily agreed, “you’re probably going to need it. Gabe’s a big man. You’re probably going to have stitches—if you know what I mean.”
The End
Hello! Thank you so much for reading about Ingrid, Emily, and Gabe! We hope you truly enjoyed this story! Please consider leaving a review to help others who might enjoy the antics of Ingrid and Emily. Reviews don’t just help readers, they help authors too, so thank you in advance for leaving one.
If you’d like to discover what happens next, check out Murder By Degrees which is available for preorder now and will be the next adventure of Ingrid and Gabe.
If you happened to have read the Rue Hallow series, the next one is coming in April and is called Ruby Graves. If not, you just might enjoy Hallow Graves about a young witch who goes away to college and discovers far more about herself and her family than she ever expected. This book is a spinoff of the Inept Witches series and Rue Hallow is the daughter of Autumn also from Sage Island. You’ll discover a few crossovers from other members of the Sage Island Coven.
ALSO BY AMANDA A. ALLEN
The Inept Witches Mysteries (co-written with Auburn Seal)
Inconvenient Murder
Moonlight Murder
Bewitched Murder
Presidium Vignettes (with Rue Hallow)
Prague Murder
Murder By Degress
The Rue Hallow Mysteries
Hallow Graves
Hungry Graves
Lonely Graves
Sisters and Graves
Yule Graves
Fated Graves
Ruby Graves (Coming April)
Curses of the Witch Queen
Fairy Tales Re-Imagined
Song of Sorrow: A Prelude to Rapunzel
Snow White
Kendawyn Paranormal Regency Romances
Compelled by Love
Bewildered by Love
Persuaded to Love
Other Novels
These Lying Eyes
ALSO BY AUBURN SEAL
Roanoke Vanishing
Maya Vanishing
First Watch
The Immortals: A Vampire Fairytale
Goodbye Love: A Kendawyn Story
Author’s Note
In moments of gratitude, the people to list are too many to count. As always, my most fervent gratitude goes to my children for being awesome. I am also especially grateful to Laurieann who was kind enough to edit this book for us. Gratitude to Auburn as well <3
Loves Amanda
Copyright
Copyright © 2017 by Amanda A. Allen & Auburn Seal
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof
may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever
without the express written permission of the publisher
except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.