As I drove down the long gravel path leading to Jace and Cassie’s cabin, my stomach turned. No—it didn’t just turn. It was doing full-on cartwheels and backflips.
I’d given myself about a hundred pep talks before getting into the car. Every single one had ended the same way:I’m not leaving Jace’s tonight until I tell everyone the truth.
Well… at least half of it.
As I pulled closer to Jace’s front lawn, I spotted him leaning against his hot tub with his arms crossed. My dad and Colt stood a few feet away from him, deep in conversation about who-knows-what.
June—Colt and Ellie’s daughter—was running around with their dog, Sadie, tumbling down into the grass as Sadie licked her face which made June giggle uncontrollably.
There was no Liam in sight. As far as I could tell, he wasn’t there.
Everything was going according to plan so far.
I grabbed the container of desserts from the passenger seat, my tennis shoes crunching against the gravel as I walked up the driveway.
“There’s my favorite daughter,” my dad joked when he saw me.
“Funny enough, Dad, you only have one daughter,” I joked back.
He winked. “We were just talking about the time Jace here spray-painted penises onto the side of the old high school,” he said casually.
“I lost a bet with Liam,” Jace added, attempting to defend himself.
Liam.
Hearing his name sent a sharp sting straight through my chest, but I forced myself to keep my expression neutral.
“Is he, uh… coming tonight?” I asked.
“I don’t think so,” Jace said. “He mentioned he might have to work another double. Dude’s been working a ton lately.”
Relief washed over me. “I’m going to go put these in the kitchen,” I said, nodding toward the desserts still balanced in my hands.
Jace smiled, clearly enjoying the rare moment of having everyone together. “Cassie should be in there getting all the fixings ready,” he said, motioning to the kitchen window.
The guilt settled heavy in my chest. I hated lying to anyone, but lying to my brothers felt worse. No matter how messed up things had been when we were growing up, we always had each other’s backs.
Dad’s story reminded me of the night before Jace’s spray-paint adventure, when I found the bag of spray-paint cans hidden under his bed. When I questioned him about it, he told me to stay the hell out of his room. The next day, the school walls were covered in red penises, and I knew exactly who was responsible. I didn’t have to rat them out though. They somehow managed to tell on themselves and get grounded for eternity. Watching them use rags and soapy buckets of water to scrub the paint off the walls was the cherry on top.
I walked away from the trio, doing my best to hide the emotions swirling through me.
Inside the kitchen, Ellie and Cassie stood at the island, chatting as they got the food ready for tonight’s dinner. The moment they noticed me, their expressions sobered.
“Don’t look so happy to see me,” I said, forcing lightness into my voice and laughing. Barefoot, pregnant, and dumped—apparently that was my new normal.
“How have you been feeling?” Ellie asked as she sliced tomatoes and onions for the burgers Jace was grilling.
“Morning sickness sucks, but I’m managing. My doctor swears it’ll ease up soon. I hope she’s right, because I wake up every morning feeling like death.”
“And the panic attacks?” Cassie asked gently.
“Surprisingly, I haven’t had one since the night Liam and I—well, made a baby apparently,” I said, chuckling. “You’d think I’d be having one every day, but honestly, I think I’m just numb at this point. It’s like my body doesn’t even know how to feel anymore.”
“Have you heard from Liam?”
I laughed at Cassie’s question. “No. Did you expect me to? The guy’s been swerving me this long—what makes you think he’d suddenly get chatty now?”
“No reason…” Cassie said, her tone innocent, though her eyes gave her away.
