I meant to tell Adam about the pregnancy last night, but I lost my nerve once we started talking about the divorce. There’s already so much to take in knowing we’re going to be married for the foreseeable future that I don’t want to throw another wrench in the works. All I can think about is his poor fiancée, who has no idea how far things have gone between Adam and me. If I bring a baby into the world, will I be wrecking her and Adam’s future together for good?

I’ve made up my mind not to tell him about the baby until after he’s spoken to her in Illinois. After I know whether they’re going to get back together or not, I’ll know where I stand. The last thing I want to do is become an unwanted third-wheel to long-time sweethearts with their own wedding ahead.

I sit silently in the passenger seat of Adam’s Corvette as we make our way to his first hospital pitch of the day.

Adam is dressed to sell. He’s wearing a sand-colored suit with a crisp white shirt and a salmon pink tie. Even when he’s not wearing traditional colors, he looks incredible. His hair is styled so well that it hardly moves as the wind travels through the open-top car. He has a pair of sunglasses to protect against the glare. He looks like a modern, youthful James Bond.

“How many are you hoping to sell today?” I ask him.

“Just one would be a win for me.”

“Uh-huh. So, what’s your trick for making sales?”

He looks across at me. “I don’t use tricks. I know the products I’m selling, and I pitch them with a smile. I can answer questions on anything about any one of my products.”

“Oh, really?”

I twist around to pull his briefcase off the back seat and open it, pulling out a user’s manual for the KrystalMD Scanner 2.4.

“What’s so great about this product, then? Why should I get scanned in this machine?”

Adam raises one eyebrow before going into his usual sales spiel. “Many MRIs capture bad images if there’s too much movement. People must breathe. The imaging on this machine has a computer that adjusts the scan to produce crystal clear images, every time.”

He sounds confident when he speaks. He comes across as intelligent and charming. I don’t know how anyone could hear him talk and not think it’s the voice of a trustworthy man. He’s got an irresistible persona.

“I’m worried about the—” I run my finger through the manual to look for a key phrase I can test him on, “—helium boil off.”

Adam chuckles. “Understandable, doctor. I can tell you there is minimal helium boil-off with the machine due to the extremely light magnet.”

I smile. “Very good, Mr. Taylor. I’m very impressed with whatever the hell it is you’re trying to sell me.”

“A KrystalMD Scanner 2.4.”

“If you say so.” I glance across at Adam fondly. Even though I’m determined to be mad at him, I can’t stop myself loving him, even if I am angry he lied. I can’t help imagining what kind of father he’d be to our child. “You definitely know your stuff.”

A couple of hours later, we arrive at the first hospital on this leg of the trip.

“Do you want to come inside?” Adam asks.

“And do what? I hardly look like a business associate.” I gesture down to my shorts and loose tank top.

“There’s a café in there. How can you say no to hospital food? You could grab a cold drink. Read a magazine.”

“I could use a good leg stretching.”

Adam gets out the car and comes around to the passenger side to open the door for me. “I’ll only be gone for a couple of hours.”

“There’s no rush.”

It gives me more time to think about what I’m going to do.

“Great. Hey, can you help me carry this stuff?”

“Sure.”

Adam goes to the small trunk of his Corvette and hands me a rolled-up projector screen while he grabs a tablet and a bag full of manuals before finally sticking his briefcase under his arm.

“Ready.”

I follow him inside. He seems to know his way around the hospital and disappears into its depths, eventually leading us to a reception area somewhere in the back of the hospital away from where patients are being treated.

“Adam!” A red-haired receptionist with square eyeglasses stands up and leans over the counter to greet Adam with a kiss on the cheek. “Long time, no see. How’s Alice?”

Adam clears his throat awkwardly. “She’s good, thanks, Madeleine.”

Madeleine tilts her head to one side and narrows her eyes knowingly. “Don’t tell me you two are at it again.” She rolls her eyes. “It’s like you two never left high school!” She turns to me. “And who’s this?”

“This is Laura. We met in Vegas. I’m giving her a ride.” Adam leans one elbow on the reception desk with a suave smile. I can understand why Madeleine is looking at him like he’s a movie star. “Would you be able to show her to the café while I’m in my meeting?”

“Of course.” Madeleine smiles and gestures to the door opposite her desk. “The board is in there. You’re a few minutes early, but that will give you time to set up.”

“Great. Thanks, Madeleine.” He turns to me and smiles. “I’ll call you when I’m done.”

“No problem.”

Adam takes the projector screen from me and disappears into the boardroom. I glimpse the bald heads and stern faces of a group of medical professionals inside before the door swings shut. It looks like serious business.

Madeleine smiles at me warmly. “He’s great, isn’t he?”

“Yeah. He is.”

“He and Alice, though!” She shakes her head. “Now there’s a saga.” She puts a sign up on her desk to say she’ll be back in five minutes and starts to lead me away from the boardroom, back toward the heart of the hospital.

“Have you known him for a long time?”

“Not that long,” Madeleine answers, “but I started working here around the same time he started doing his tours. We were both new in our field, and it got us talking. I used to give him advice about the different people on the board and how to win them over. As it turned out, he didn’t need my help. He has the gift of gab, that’s for sure.” She glances across at me curiously. “You met him in Vegas, huh?”

I nod. “I was on a bachelorette party. He was doing a sales tour. Now he’s giving me a ride back to Illinois.”

“That’s quite a detour from his regular route, isn’t it?”

“We’ve got things to discuss.”

“Are you in pharmaceuticals, too?”

I let out a slow breath. “Something like that.”

Madeleine seems to read into my sigh and pats my shoulder. “I used to have one hell of a crush on that man. That was before I found out about his girlfriend, Alice.”

“They’re engaged now.”

Madeleine pauses a second to take in the news. Her pumps create a dull thud with every step that echoes down the long hospital halls. Around us, patients and staff mill about. Nobody seems to be in an urgent state of mind. Apparently, there’s a lot of waiting in the hospital.

“They were on a break the last time I saw him. I invited Adam out for coffee, but he called to cancel on me. He and Alice had made up. They’re like that, you see. Sometimes when Adam’s visiting, he’s all loved up with her. The next time, they’re on the rocks. They can’t help going back to each other. It’s a love and hate relationship, but neither one seems to be able to walk away.” She sighs longingly. “It’s a shame because I’d have loved to sink my teeth into him if I had the chance.”

We arrive at the café. Madeleine gestures toward the tables and smiles at me one last time.

“I don’t know what’s going on between you and Adam but take my advice. Don’t get too attached to him while he’s on a break from Alice. They always end up fucking in the end.”

I examine Madeleine’s face carefully. Her expression is kind even though she’s offering me a warning. She stands with her arms folded across her chest and her weight on one hip. She’s wearing a soft pink pencil skirt and matching jacket, with her hair pulled up into a high pony, apart from her strawberry bangs.

“Does he usually use other women when he’s on a break from her?”

Madeleine shakes her head. “You’re the first I’ve ever heard of. I think deep down, he knows that whatever argument he’s having with Alice at the time will blow over eventually.” She leans in conspiringly. “Why? Is something going on between the two of you?”

I bite my lip, shaking my head. “It’s complicated.”

I look down at the cheap, chipped silver-plated costume jewelry ring on my finger. A green band of skin is starting to appear beneath the metal. I’m marked even when I take the ring off.

Madeleine does her best to backtrack. “What do I know? I’m just the receptionist. I only see Adam a handful of times a year, and I’ve never met Alice. I’ve never known him to spend time with another woman while he’s away from her. Who knows? Maybe he’s decided to clean up the whole mess once and for all.”

I force a smile. “I’m not so sure about that. I’m starting to think I should back away before anybody gets hurt.”

“Did he tell you they were separated?”

“He didn’t tell me about her at all.”

She sucks in a sharp breath between her teeth. “That’s not like him.” She smiles at me uncertainly. “Maybe things are really, finally over between them.” She looks up at the clock above the serving counter of the café and sighs. “I’d better get back, as much as I’d love to stay and gossip about Adam and Alice. I hope things work out for you.”

“Thanks.”

I buy a lemonade and sink down into a chair alone. I turn over what Madeleine said in my mind. She paints a picture of Adam and Alice being soulmates who always find their way back to each other in the end.

I’m just a vacation nobody who got herself knocked up.