Best Mistake

"Hey Whitney?" I heard Stevie say. I turned from the cooler where I was getting a customer's beer and looked at him.

"Can you come with me, please?" he asked.

I nodded, popping the top off the bottle for the customer and sliding it to him. Stevie motioned for me to follow him as he led me back to the managers office where Frank and his wife, Jill, were waiting for us.

"Have a seat, Whit," Frank said, pointing to one of the empty desk chairs in the room.

I'd never gotten in trouble at work. I racked my brain quickly for something I may have messed up or done wrong, but couldn't think of anything. But there had to have been something, or else the three owners wouldn't be asking to speak to me in the privacy of their office.

I nodded and slowly eased into a chair, adjusting my shirt around my bump. My cheeks began to flame as all three of them watched me, staring at my belly, and I suddenly knew what the meeting was about.

"Is there anything you want to tell us, sweetie?" Jill asked.

I feigned, shrugging and shaking my head. When I noticed they weren't buying it, I looked down, swallowed hard, and nodded.

"Yes, actually," I said quietly before looking up at them. "I'm almost eight months pregnant."

Instead of looking shocked, they all just nodded.

"Yeah, we know," Frank said. "We've known for a while now, actually."

"Hell, I've known since Thanksgiving," Jill scoffed. When I looked at her with bewilderment, she said, "I've had three kids, Whitney. I know pregnancy when I see it."

I blushed, looking down at my bump. "Why didn't you guys say anything before now?"

Stevie shrugged. "We figured when you were ready to tell us, you would. But as more time went on and you didn't, we figured it was time we took matters into our own hands."

I swallowed hard, nodding. "So am I fired?"

"No," Frank laughed. "You're not fired. You're too valuable of an employee for us. Plus, we can't legally do that."

"But we are sending you out on an extended maternity leave. You can finish out your shift tonight, but after that you need to take some time to yourself," Stevie added.

I nodded. "How long is my leave?"

"Lets say three months?" Jill asked Stevie and Frank, who nodded in agreement. "We'll give you two months after you have the baby to decide if you want to come back. If you don't, we completely understand, but we will miss you around here."

I nodded, feeling a little relieved. "Thank you guys."

Frank smiled and stood, extending his arms out to me. I hugged him tightly.

"Congratulations, by the way," he said. "You excited yet?"

I nodded, backing away from his embrace. "Very. It's a boy."

"Nice," Stevie smiled, giving me a high five. "You'll have to bring him by sometime so we can meet him."

"Definitely," I laughed.

The rest of the night was somewhat eventful. Word of my maternity leave spread fast, and soon all of my coworkers were asking me about it. I was embarrassed when they all said they knew, too. Apparently I wasn't doing as well as I thought keeping my bump concealed.

As I was cleaning up at the end of my shift, I heard one of the barstools being pulled out. I looked behind me from where I was restocking the shelves to see Eric, a sad look on his face.

I walked to the cooler and pulled him out a beer. "Why the long face, hubby?" I asked, handing it to him.

He shrugged, turning the bottle in his hand. "You're leaving."

I sighed and walked around the bar, taking a seat next to him. "Yeah. But I may come back."

"No you won't," he shook his head. "You're dating this famous celebrity that makes a lot of money and can take care of you without you having to work. You're not coming back."

"He's not that famous," I tried to joke, but when he didn't react, I frowned.

"I just," he said before pausing. "I just wish I had the chance to take care of you like that."

"But you did," I smiled, giving his arm a gentle squeeze. "Eric, when I first started working here, you were the only one that talked to me. You showed me the ropes and taught me how to bartend. I can't think of a single instance when you didn't have my back."

He shook his head, then slowly turned to look at me. "I love you, Whitney."

"I love you, too," I smiled, squeezing his arm again.

He glanced down at my hand and shook his head again. "You know I meant if differently than you."

I slid my hand away from him, nodding. "I know."

His smiled a little and slid his arm around my shoulders. "I'm gonna miss you, girl."

I sighed, resting my head on his shoulder. I always did find comfort in Eric's presence, and I wasn't lying when I told him I'd miss him too.

"But we can still hang out sometimes! It's not like I'm leaving the country or anything. I'll come visit often," I promised.

He laughed a little. "You better."

I stood from the barstool and opened my arms, inviting him into a hug. He quickly moved in, wrapping his arms tightly around my shoulders. I smiled and sighed with content when he pressed his lips to my temple.

"This mother fucker better be on his game," he chuckled a little. "The first time he fucks up, I'm gonna be there to swoop in for the steal."

"I'm holding you to that," I laughed.

He pulled away a little and his hands slid up to my cheeks. My stomach turned as he licked his lips. I knew it would hurt him if I protested, so I stayed quiet as he layed his lips on mine.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I just needed to do that one more time."

I nodded, smiling a little. "It's fine."

He kissed my cheek before moving out of my arms. "Bye, Whit."

I watched as he walked out of the bar and felt a hint of sadness hit my heart. I really was going to miss him. I was going to miss everyone.

I clocked out for what may have been the last time and hurried out to my car. I couldn't look up at the neon signs as I passed them, because I knew that surely I would lose it.

Once I got home, I found Alex passed out on the couch, one of the Harry Potter movies playing in front of him. I sat on the edge of the coffee table and gently rubbed his arm.

"Hey," I smiled once his eyes fluttered open.

"Hi," he yawned. "How was work?"

I shrugged, playing with my fingers. "They put me on maternity leave. They said I could come back two months after he's born if I want to."

Alex nodded, his eyebrows risen. "That's nice of them."

I smiled and stood, bending over to kiss his forehead. "I'm gonna go shower then go to bed. You coming?"

I woke up in the middle of the night to an overwhelming urge to pee. It had been happening a lot the past couple of nights, and I figured the baby found some comfort in my bladder as it kept pushing against it. I detangled myself from Alex and hurried to the bathroom.

I sat on the toilet, my panties pushed down to my knees. I instantly felt relief as I started doing my business, and looked down before gasping.

Fear set in quickly when I saw the large stain of blood in the crotch of my underwear. That was so far from normal.

"Alex," I said.

I quickly folded some toilet paper and wiped, more blood transferred to it. My heart started pounding in my chest and I felt like I was going to throw up. "Alex!" I yelled.

I heard him groan and move around in the sheets, and soon he was shuffling into the bathroom, his eyes still closed.

"What?" he asked, sleepily.

I couldn't find words. I began panting heavily and he opened his eyes. When he saw the blood stain in my panties and the blood on the toilet paper, he became wide awake. Panic set in on his features and he grabbed a towel before hurrying over to me.

"Come on, baby," he said, helping me stand. "We have to go to the hospital."

Notes