Inside, Mia stands by the counter, gripping the edge like she needs to steady herself. She doesn’t look angry. She doesn’t even look upset. Just… lost in thought.
She turns when she hears us. “I’m sorry,” she says before we can speak. “I didn’t mean to freak out. I just—” She exhales, running a hand through her hair. “This is a lot.”
Zane leans against the fridge, arms crossed. “We figured that much.”
Damon steps closer, voice low. “Mia, if you don’t want this?—”
“That’s not it,” she interrupts, shaking her head. “That’snotit.”
“Thenwhatis it?” I ask. “Because, no offense, but walking out like that was a hell of a way to react.”
She presses her lips together, searching for words. Then, finally, she sighs. “I didn’t mean for you guys to find out like this.”
She hesitates, then turns to face us fully. There’s a flicker of fear in her eyes, something raw and uncertain.
Then she holds out her hand.
I stare at the plastic stick in her palm. Two pink lines.
Pregnant.
My stomach drops.
Zane swears under his breath, and Damon takes a step closer, his gaze locked on the test like it might vanish.
Nobody speaks.
“Surprise,” she says sheepishly.
Damon is the first to find his voice. “You… how long have you known?”
“Since this morning.” Her grip tightens on the test. “I was going to tell you after dinner, but then… you proposed.” She laughs, but there’s no humor in it. “And I panicked.”
Zane runs a hand through his hair. “Jesus, Mia.”
“I know.” Her voice wobbles. “I know this is a lot. I know we weren’t expecting this, but?—”
“You think we’d walk away?” My voice comes out rougher than I intend.
Her eyes snap to mine, wide. “I don’t know, Asher. That’s the problem.” She takes a breath, frustration and fear bleeding through. “I have been raising these girls on my own. Even with you guys here, my brain doesn’t just switch off and assume it’s all fine. It tells me I need a plan. It tells me I need to be prepared for when things don’t work out.” Her voice drops to a whisper. “Because I’ve never had anyone stay.”
The room is dead silent.
Then Damon moves. He takes her hand—the one still clutching the test—and brings it to his chest. “We stay, Mia.”
Zane steps in, voice firm. “You’re not alone in this.”
I let out a breath, moving closer, placing a hand on her waist. “We love you. All of us.”
Damon is the first to move. He steps back, his expression unreadable. He drops to his knees.
Right there, in the middle of the kitchen.
Mia stiffens. “Damon, what are you?—”
Zane follows, lowering himself beside him. “You panicked because you thought this wasn’t real,” he says quietly. “That we'd leave. That this—us—wouldn't last.”
I swallow hard, my chest tightening, and then I kneel, too.
