Embittered Ruby by Nicole O'Dell Page A

in her unknown reality, Carmen blinked at the test.
    P REGNANT .
    Carmen slid from the edge of the bathtub to the floor with a thud. Pregnant. She’d hoped for it, expected it, even wanted it. Then why did a lump settle in her stomach warning of things to come? Why didn’t her spirit soar with the thrill? Stuck with her choice now, for better or worse, she’d have to take some time to get used to it. Carmen would probably deserve it if her diabolical plan backfired on her, yet she clung to threads of hope and visions of a family far, far away from there.
    Should she tell Nate right away or wait a few weeks to make sure it stuck? What would he say? Should she call him?
    No. She’d have to have this conversation in person, for sure.
    Or…maybe not in person. She could send an e-mail—or even a text. Facebook status update?
    No. None of that would do. She’d have to face him as soon as possible and hope he didn’t see right through her. What if he suspected she’d done this on purpose? But he had no reason to. She’d always been the one to be paranoid about her pills. He never even asked if she’d been taking them. Because he trusted her. Ugh.
    Carmen pried herself from the floor and collected the empty box, wrapper, and instructions. She folded everything together as compact as she could get it then shoved it back into the drug-store sack. She’d bury it at the bottom of the kitchen garbage, under the contents of the yet-unwashed breakfast dishes and a pile of coffee grounds.
    Her eyes moved up to the mirror in front of her. Who stared back at her? She barely recognized her as the little privileged girl who’d had everything.
    A human being grew inside her at that very moment. A tiny little baby who would depend on her for everything. What had she done? How could she ever pull this off?
    Nate had to come through for her. He just had to. If he did, everything would be okay. But if he didn’t…
    “Carmen.
She’s
downstairs waiting for you. You okay?” Mom gave the door a few light knocks.
    “Yeah. I’m fine, Mom. Be right out.” Carmen flushed then ran the water to buy herself a few more moments and shoved the trash into her back pocket. Once she opened the door, she’d be entering a whole new world. A world in which she was somebody’s mother.
    Hand on the doorknob, she took a deep breath, opened it, then stepped through.
    “You’d better get down there. She’s honked a few times.” Mom handed Carmen her overnight bag and ushered her to the door. The last thing she’d probably want would be to have Tiffany come knocking.
    “I never did the dishes though.” How could Carmen throw away the garbage if she couldn’t get to the kitchen?
    “I’ll take care of it. Don’t worry about anything; just go have fun. I love you.”
    “Love you, Mom. See you in a couple of days.” Carmen leaned on her mom for a hug then left the apartment, pulling the door closed behind her. She waited until she heard the chain lock slide into place then dropped her bag onto the floor and zipped it open. She stashed the bag of contraband into the armhole of her favorite NYU sweatshirt then followed another long bleat of the car horn down the stairs.
    “What took you so long?” Tiffany scowled as Kimberley leaned forward and pulled the seat against her back so Carmen could climb into the rear.
    Carmen ignored her.

    “Hey, you.” Nate pulled her close and kissed her neck. “I missed you. I’ve been counting the days until Saturday morning when I could see my girl.”
    “Mmm. Me, too.” Carmen slid her arms around his neck and clasped her elbows. She breathed in his scent, letting it intoxicate her senses.
    “Sorry I couldn’t see you last night. My stupid cousin had to go and get married.” Nate scowled.
    “I know. It’s fine.” Her voice sounded strange even to her own ears.
    Nate reached behind his head and tugged her arms free then pulled back to peer into her eyes. “You okay?”
    “Do you think we could go