“Excuse me.” Adalyn takes off running into her house, leaving me alone with Captain Shithead.
We stand there, silently staring at each other, Logan with his hands on his hips, me clenching my fist at my side ready to plow it through his cocky-as-fuck grin.
“You should probably leave. You being here isn’t good for her.”
“You can fuck off.” I push toward the door, but Logan blocks me.
Grunting while he speaks, he says, “You can’t just show up when it’s convenient. This is going to destroy her.”
“I’m going to destroy your pathetic ass if you don’t let me through this fucking door. As a reminder, I take men down for a goddamn job, so I suggest you don’t fuck with me.” Pushing him to the side, I make my way into Adalyn’s house and go to her bathroom. The door is partially cracked, the light on, the sound of her throwing up on the other side.
Without a second thought, I drop my bag, push through the door, and fall to my knees next to her. Head in the toilet, hands on the seat, she heaves while I rub her back, my heart aching.
Letting out a long breath, her body slumps as she rests her forehead on the toilet seat. “What are you doing here, Hayden?”
I don’t answer her, instead I ask, “How long have you been sick like this?”
Taking her in, I notice how pale her skin is and how much thinner she is besides what looks like a baby bump. And now that I think about it, her eyes looked sunken when I opened the door, tired and weary.
“Since I’ve been four weeks pregnant.”
My teeth grind together, the tension in my body starting to grow stronger with each passing breath. “How far along are you now?”
“Twelve weeks.”
I hold her gaze for a moment before looking away without saying a word. I stand from the position on the bathroom floor and walk out to the living room where Logan is sitting on the couch. When he sees me round the corner, he stands and puffs his chest out. What a fucking douche.
Growing serious, I say, “You need to leave. Now.”
“I’m not going anywhere.”
Stepping in closer, I try to hold back the anger pouring out of me, but I fail miserably. Taking him by the shirt, I speak inches from his face. “I need time alone with her to work this out, and I don’t need you hovering over us. You can either gather your things and leave with your dignity still intact or I can escort you myself, but I will guarantee you won’t like it.”
Not flinching, not even disturbed by my threats, he says, “I’ve been the one who’s taken her to her doctor’s appointments, the one who’s been making her dinner, making sure she’s getting some sort of food in her body. I’ve been the one shuttling her around when she’s been too sick or too tired to drive herself, and I’ve been the one who’s been there to scoop her up off the bathroom floor when she’s far too exhausted to make it to her room.” Pushing against my chest, dislodging my hand from his shirt, he straightens up. “I suggest you respect the fact that I’ve been taking care of your problem.” Bending down, he picks up his keys from the coffee table and leaves, slamming the door behind him.
Fuck.
My problem? Is she pregnant with . . .No. Surely she would have told methat.
Logan’s words ring through my head, breaking me down, killing my soul with the thought of Adalyn by herself, going through this all alone when I should have been here.
“Oh.” Adalyn’s stunned voice has me spinning around. “I . . . I thought you left.”
I shake my head, pulling on the back of my neck, feeling absolutely deflated. When Emma emailed me, I never expected this scenario. Adalyn was on birth control. I remember seeing it in her bathroom, and I watched her take it a few times. I thought we were safe.
Hating that I’m going to ask, but wanting to make sure, I look her in the eyes and say, “Is the baby mine?”
Lips pressed into a thin line, she nods her head. “It happened in New York City.”
“But you’re on birth control.”
Twisting her shirt, a patch of her skin making an appearance, she focuses on the ground. My eyes focus on the little bump pushing past the waistband of her pajama bottoms. “I might have missed some days accidentally.” Her head snaps up. “I swear I didn’t do it on purpose, I wasn’t trying to trap you or anything. I just—”
“Adalyn, being careful isn’t your sole responsibility. I didn’t wear a condom, so that’s on me. This is on both of us.”
We stand there in silence, the awkward realization we’re going to be parents hitting me hard. “Were you going to tell me?”
When I tear my gaze from her stomach, I catch a glimpse of a lonely tear caressing down her cheek right before she wipes it away.
