“Yes,” he sighed.
“Sit up, honey. Here’s your breakfast,” my mom said and placed a bowl of cereal in front of him.
The kids wolfed down their food while I continued to look at mine like it might contain poison. “After you put your dishes in the sink, go upstairs and get dressed. Wash your faces and brush your teeth, too. We have a few errands to run today,” Mom said to the kids.
“Where do you have to go?” I asked.
“They both have doctor’s appointments today for their yearly checkup. Then, I’m taking them shopping for back-to-school clothes. We’ll be out most of the day.”
“Mom,” I said. “You don’t have to do that. I can take them once I get better.”
Mom shook her head. “Honey, school starts next week. And besides, I don’t mind helping. I just wish your father was in town so I didn’t have to leave you here all alone.”
“I’ll be fine,” I assured her. My dad was going back and forth between Croftridge and Devil Springs. Most of the time, he could work remotely, but occasionally he needed to be on-site in Croftridge for a few days.
An hour later, I was resting on the couch while Mom was herding the children out the front door. “We’ll be back later this afternoon. You call if you need anything.”
“I will,” I promised.
I picked up my e-reader to continue reading the debut novel by Teigh Byrd when the front door opened. “Sorry, honey, it’s just me. Uh, I forgot to tell you that a visitor would be stopping by. Well, gotta go,” she said and disappeared right before Savior stepped into the room.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I mumbled to myself.
“If you want me to leave, just tell me. I don’t want to upset you, but your mom said you would be at home alone today and thought it would be a good time for us to talk,” he said.
I closed my eyes and exhaled slowly. “Fine. Come in and have a seat.” I didn’t want to talk to him, but I knew I would have to eventually.
“How are you feeling?” he asked.
I shrugged. “I’ve only puked once today.”
“You’re still sick?”
I snorted. “Yeah, and apparently I’m going to be sick for a while, possibly through the entire pregnancy.”
“I’m sorry,” he said sincerely.
“It’s not your fault. It’s just something that happens sometimes.”
“I mean about everything. I—”
I cut him off. “We’re not talking about that today. One thing that was blatantly clear when I was in the hospital is that stress makes things worse for me.”
“Okay,” he agreed quickly. “Um, is there anything I can do to help?”
“Thanks, but I’m good right now.”
“I didn’t mean just right now. I meant any time. I get that we don’t really know each other, and we have a complicated history, but I want to be involved. I want to go to appointments, or at least know about them, and I want to be there when the baby’s born.”
I closed my eyes and leaned my head back, taking a moment to process his words. I knew, deep down, that regardless of our past, I couldn’t and wouldn’t keep him from his child. I also knew, deep down, that the accident wasn’t his fault. But none of that made the situation any easier. “Maybe we should start by getting to know each other,” I suggested.
He nodded. “What do you want to know?”
“Why did you move to Devil Springs?” I asked.
He grimaced and rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m a member of the Blackwings MC. I joined the Croftridge Chapter but was transferred to the Devil Springs Chapter at the beginning of the summer. It wasn’t my choice to move here.”
“Did you know I was here?”
