a box that didn’t go either way. What would you like us to do with it?”
Charlie gave the woman her address and credit card details to cover shipping the stuff from Melbourne, then ended the call and returned to Gina.
“What was that all about?” Gina asked as she sipped her wine.
Charlie explained briefly before changing the subject. There wasn’t much to discuss, after all—her father was dead, and the odds were good that the box contained a bunch of meaningless bits and pieces. Keith Anderson Long had been too organized and orderly a man for it to be any other way.
They continued to slurp their wine and made each other laugh with anecdotes from their respective days as they consumed the pastries. Finally the box was empty and Gina pushed herself to her feet.
“Fantastic. I’m now going to loll on your couch and complain about how full I am and how I couldn’t possibly fit another thing in while you finish making dinner,” she said as she headed for the bathroom.
“Or I could put you to work, stringing the beans and whatnot.”
“Hard-hearted wench,” Gina said, her voice echoing down the short hallway.
Charlie smiled as she sat back in her chair, sipping her wine.
“Hey, Charlie—my stupid period has come early. Can I borrow a tampon?” Gina called, her voice muffled by the closed door.
“Sure. In the cupboard behind the mirror.”
There was a short pause then Gina called out again. “There’s nothing here.”
Charlie set down her glass and stood. “Did you have a boy look or a girl look?” she asked as she headed for the bathroom.
“I had a girl look. A really good one. Smarty-pants.”
Charlie paused outside the bathroom. “You decent?”
“Give me five secs. Okay, come in.”
Charlie entered. Gina was standing in front of the open bathroom cabinet, a frown on her face.
“I dare you to find a tampon in there.”
“Watch.” Charlie stepped toward the cabinet, one hand already raised in anticipation of finding what she was looking for. She frowned as her gaze scanned over toiletry and medicinal products and failed to find the familiar pink-and-white box.
“That’s weird,” she said. “They should be in here. I always make sure I restock after my period.”
“Guess you must have forgotten last month, then,” Gina said lightly. “No worries. I’ve probably got one lurking in the bottom of my handbag.”
She slipped past Charlie, who remained staring at the bathroom cabinet, her frown intensifying as she tried to remember when she’d had her last period… and couldn’t.
“Don’t be stupid,” she muttered to herself.
She must be getting mixed up somehow. She could remember having her period in Perth because the cramps had come at exactly the wrong time. Two weeks later, she’d cleared out the flat she’d been sharing with another female officer, packed her bags and flown to Sydney.
And she hadn’t had her period since.
And in the interim, she’d had sex with Rhys-the-unforgettable. Three times in the one night.
Adrenaline fired in her belly, sending a shock wave through her body. She took a step backward, appalled by the thought that had snaked its way into her brain.
“Told you I’d have one,” Gina said as she returned. “Hey. What’s wrong? You’re pale.”
Charlie took another step backward and sank onto the edge of the tub.
“What’s the failure rate for condoms?” Her voice sounded as though it was coming from a long way away. Cleveland, perhaps. Or maybe Moscow.
“I don’t know. Not high. One or two percent, maybe?” Gina was still frowning, but suddenly her eyes rounded and her eyebrows headed for her hairline. “Oh, my God. Tell me you’re not thinking what I think you’re thinking.”
Charlie looked at her friend, her mind busy doing the math and getting the same answer over and over.
“I’ve missed two periods. I’ve been so busy getting everything sorted that I didn’t even notice. That’s why there are no tampons in the cupboard.”
Gina swore and sank onto the bathtub beside her. There was a moment of profound silence as they both processed their own thoughts.
“Okay. First things first—before we hit the panic button, we need to know what we’re panicking about.” Gina looked at her watch. “It’s only four-thirty. The pharmacy around the corner should still be open.”
“Good idea,” Charlie said. She pushed herself to her feet. A wave of anxious dizziness hit her and she sat again.
“I’ll go,” Gina said instantly. “You stay here. Don’t start freaking yet, okay? I’ll run all the way.”
“Okay,” Charlie said meekly.
Gina’s hand dropped onto her shoulder, warm and reassuring. “It could just be stress. Changing your life is a big deal.”
Charlie nodded. Gina gave her a quick squeeze before she slipped past. Charlie stared at a cracked floor tile, her mind ricocheting from one thought to the next.
If she was pregnant…
But she couldn’t be. They’d used condoms. A new one each time…
But condoms failed. That’s why they weren’t one hundred percent foolproof. Still, what were the odds of one of them failing and it being the exact right point in her cycle…?
Big. Too big. Way too big. Huge. She couldn’t even calculate the probability it was so large. She probably had a better chance of winning the lottery.
And yet she’d missed two periods.
“Oh, God,” she said, bracing her elbows on her knees, her head dropping into her hands.
She couldn’t be pregnant. She simply couldn’t. She’d just started her own business. She’d barely unpacked from the move. She was single, in a new city, essentially unemployed if anything went wrong with her business.
She moaned, digging her fingers into her skull.
Please let it be stress. Please let it be stress. Please let it be stress.
The front door slammed and when she looked up Gina was standing before her, a bag in hand. “Okay. I have no idea how these things work, but I’m sure we can figure it out.”
She handed over the bag and Charlie pulled out a slickly branded box. Her hands were shaking so much that she couldn’t pull the flap from the slot and Gina took it from her.
“Whatever
