Another shake of her head.
I ran through a number of questions as to what would have caused this, even carefully broaching the topic of her ex. I was seething with anger at the thought of him doing something to her. But he wasn’t the reason. The entire interrogation, I avoided the one question I couldn’t bear to know the answer to. IfIwas the one who had caused her green eyes to be rimmed with tears.
“Please, tell me, Sadie.”
“It’s nothing,” she said, finally speaking. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
“Obviously, it’s notnothing.” Not getting anywhere, I pulled myself to stand and took the seat next to her. I looked at her with concern. Even sad, she looked beautiful. I noted the new skirt and blouse she wore, feeling guilt eat away at me that she had put extra effort in this morning. The effort I had asked of her. Demanded of her. And now she sat here, falling apart next to me.
“I can’t tell you,” she said.
“What? Why?” I asked, confused.
She sucked in a breath before letting it out, her words trembling. “Because you’ll hate me even more than you do now.”
Her response took me off guard.
“I don’t hate you,” I said, more of a question than a statement.
She let out a half laugh, half sob before looking at me.
“Sure you don’t,” she said, a touch of sarcasm in her voice as the first tear fell down her face. I resisted the urge to brush it away as she continued. “You hate my shyness. My work ethic. My clothes—well, my old ones anyway. My lack of money.”
“That’s not true,” I exclaimed, sheepishly remembering all the times I had berated her for everything she had just said.
“Yes, it is,” she insisted as more tears fell. “The only thing you like about me is between my legs.”
She wasn’t wrong that I liked that part of her. Loved it even. Craved it. But it wasn’t the only thing I liked about her, despite trying to make it be.
I stayed quiet for a moment, watching her frustratedly wipe her tears away from her cheeks. My guilt slammed into me like a semi truck, as all the things I had said to her since meeting her poured into my mind. I had truly been an asshole. The “bosshole” she had rightfully dubbed me as in her phone. I had slowly chipped away at her already lacking confidence until it was in a pile of rubble.
But that had been before. When we were in Dallas, everything had changed. I could see her confidence. At our dinner on the roof. In the way she took charge and took care of me. During the meeting with Vincent James. Trying on dresses at the mall. In the back of the town car when she accepted my challenge. In the way she pleaded for me to fuck her. I thought the Sadie I had first met was gone, but she was right here again. Because of me.
“I don’t hate you,” I repeated, reaching for her hand which lay limply in her lap. I brushed my thumb softly over her soft knuckles. “Please, tell me what’s wrong. Let mehelpyou.”
She turned and looked me in the eye, her bottom lip trembling. She pulled her hand from mine before reaching into her purse beside her. She pulled out a plastic stick and held it in front of me. I frowned, confused at what I was looking at. But then as my eyes focused, they read the small digital screen on the stick. The air left my lungs.
Pregnant.
Chapter 27
Sadie
My heart thundered so furiously in my chest that I was convinced it pressed through the silky fabric of my blouse. I watched Jeremiah carefully as he just stared and stared at the stick I held shakily in my hand. His expression was unreadable. My heart was beating even faster now. It was a wonder he couldn’t hear it. I pulled the pregnancy test back, clutching it to my chest tightly, trying to rein in my emotions that had been on the ride of their life ever since I read the wordspregnantin the Starbucks bathroom.
When I read the word, I would have crumpled to the floor if it weren’t for the knock at the door that startled me. I had quickly grabbed the test and crammed it in my purse, tossed the box in the trash, and ran out of the bathroom, nearly knocking over the waiting customer. The next thing I knew, I was here in Jeremiah’s office feeling like I was about to jump off a cliff. I was still falling now, waiting for any sign of understanding from his beautiful, unreadable face.
I swallowed hard before steadying my voice as best as I could. “It’s yours,” I said.
His eyes lifted from the pregnancy test I pressed against my chest and found mine.
“You’re the only person I’ve been with in months,” I added, the slightest firmness in my voice.
Without saying a word, Jeremiah got to his feet slowly and walked toward the large window, placing his hands behind his back. I watched him carefully from where I sat, still clutching the test. I tried to read his body language. His muscles were tense under his pale blue suit. His stance was one he bore often, lending itself as a stance for his many emotions. It gave me no inkling as to what he was thinking. What he was feeling.
Was he angry? Confused? Scared? All of the above?
I knew my own feelings were all over the place. I couldn’t imagine his were any different with the bomb I had just dropped on him. It was sad, but I knew out of all the feelings that were probably swirling around inside him, happiness probably wasn’t one of them. Hell, I wasn’t sure if it was at the top of my own list in this moment.
