Lainey stared at the door as if opening it would release every fear, every truth she’d been holding in since the day she found out she was pregnant.
She didn’t rush to answer it. Finn wasn’t going anywhere without answers.
Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to move forward.
This was it. This was the day she dreaded. No more pretending, no more what-ifs.
She reached for the knob and opened the door.
Lainey opened the door,looking as devastated as he felt. But he wasn’t feeling sorry for her. No sirree. She kept Luke a secret from him. That was unforgivable in his book.
“Come in,” she said quietly, stepping back and opening the door wider.
Finn walked into the living room. The same room where, less than fifteen hours ago, his entire life changed.
Without a word, he handed her the updated project report.
“We need to talk,” he said, doing his best to keep the venom out of his voice.
He was beyond furious but not as angry as he had been all night.
Lainey stood there with the report trembling in her hand, her face pale.
“Sit,” he commanded.
She sat on the sofa across from him, clutching her knees together. Almost everything about the room reminded him of last night, except Dex wasn’t there cracking jokes.
This time, it was just the two of them.
“Is Luke here?” he asked.
Lainey shook her head. “No, he was feeling better and wanted to go to school.”
Finn scrubbed his face with his hands. This wasn’t going the way he had planned.
Last night, this went a lot better in his mind than it was going now. He imagined going absolutely ballistic on her. Threatening to get custody of Luke. Threatening to ruin her life like she ruined his.
But now, all he saw was a woman he once loved. Thought he had feelings for her when she came back into his life before she flipped his world upside down.
“Why?” His voice was low.
Lainey took a deep breath, placed the report on the table, and cocked her head. “Why? You’re askingmewhy?”
“Yeah, Lainey. I’m asking you why,” he spat out. “Because I’ve been up all night thinking about it. I still can’t figure out how the hell you looked me in the eye for weeks—weeks—and never said a word.”
She opened her mouth to answer, but he didn’t give her a chance.
“I missed everything,” he said, his voice rising. “His first steps. His first words. His birthday. All of it.”
Lainey flinched.
“Was I just some mistake you wanted to forget? We had sex, and that was that?”
Her eyes filled with tears. “No. God, no…”
“Then what?” he demanded. “Did you think I wouldn’t have stepped up? That I wouldn’t have wanted him?”
His voice cracked, and he hated how exposed it made him feel.
