ISABELLE
“Would it be alright with you if we used condoms for a little while? Maybe a week or so?”
I stared at him. “What do you mean?”
“This might sound strange, but I rarely go without protection. With anyone.”
Something in my chest pulled tight. “So why the change with me?”
“The doctor may want us to use protection while the shots take effect. I’m only going off something I read — we’d have to hear it from her directly.”
“How long?” I heard myself asking, and immediately felt absurd. I had grown so used to the thought of him inside me without anything between us. The idea of losing that — even briefly — sat worse than I wanted to admit.
“A week. Maybe less.”
Not even a day felt like too long. What was wrong with me?
“So you really don’t — not with anyone?” I asked, still not qu
