“Yeah?” I smiled, folding my hands in my lap.

“Yes.” Her gaze shifted to Pietro, and I followed her line of sight. My guard was drinking a cup of coffee and, for all intents and purposes, appeared to be reading a newspaper someone had left behind, but I could see his eyes shifting around the diner, keeping everyone in sight at all times. “Nova…”

I turned back to her, something in her voice making my stomach knot for some reason. When our gazes locked, I saw the tears she was trying to fight, but it was more than that. It was the fear that gutted me and had me reaching for her hands resting on top of the table.

“What’s wrong?” I whispered.

She swallowed hard, her lashes fluttering furiously as she tried to hold the tears at bay. “I think I’m going to need the health insurance. I’m two weeks late.”

I slapped my hand over my mouth to keep from screaming. I wasn’t sure if it was from excitement because I might be an aunt, or empathy for Cali because she looked anything but happy about this new development. Swallowing my emotions, I tightened my other hand around both of hers and dropped my hand from my mouth. “Okay. There’s no need to get upset. We’ll figure everything out.”

“I’m not worried about me,” she hissed, pulling one hand free to wipe at the wetness on her lashes. “Or even the baby—if there is one. I mean, this could be anything, right?”

I shrugged, not sure what she expected me to say. I’d never missed a period in my life, and everyone I’d ever met who had always ended up either being pregnant or going through menopause. Cali was barely into her twenties, so the chances of her experiencing menopause this early were incredibly slim.

She muttered a curse and picked up her drink, gulping it down before slamming the glass back down onto the table enough to make the salt, pepper, and ketchup bottle rattle in their little basket. I sensed Pietro shifting, and I lifted my hand, telling him without looking at him that everything was okay. “Well, I’m not worried about me or the baby,” she repeated. “I can take care of both of us just fine on my own if I have to.”

“Then what are you afraid of?” I asked softly.

“Garret freaking out. He’s just now really getting his shit together. I know he’s been working hard, trying to show me he’s ready for a commitment, but that doesn’t mean he won’t spaz out if I tell him he’s going to be a daddy.” She folded her arm protectively over her stomach, but she turned her hand still in mine over, linking our fingers, unconsciously seeking comfort.

I was all too willing to give it. I understood why she would think my brother might react badly to impending fatherhood, but I had also seen how much he’d grown since she’d become a part of his life. He wasn’t the same asshole he’d been when he was a kid.