This is it. The perfect moment and the right time to tell her everything.
“I’ll be right back,” I promised, pressing a kiss to her temple. “Wait here for me.”
In the bathroom, I stared at myself in the mirror and tried to organize my thoughts into something coherent.
Paige, I’ve been in love with you since we were kids. Since you punched Tommy and held my hand and made me believe I was worth defending. I’ve loved you through your marriage, through my failed relationships, through every moment we’ve been apart. And now that you’re here, now that you’re free, I need you to know?—
I stopped. That was too much for a woman who had just gotten divorced.
Paige, I love you. I want to make this real. I want?—
I reached up to close the bathroom cabinet, which Paige must have left open when she rushed in earlier, but I paused. The contents were disheveled with items pushed to one side like someone who was in a rush.
I remembered Jennifer handing Paige something in the courthouse hallway. A small package that Paige had tucked into her purse quickly without meeting my eyes.
Curiosity got the better of me as I opened the cabinet wider, looking at the various body care items Paige kept there like serums, toners, and face wash. Also, the period supplies I made sure were fully stocked.
But the period box was pushed to the back, slightly open.
I reached for it without thinking, and my hand froze when I saw what was inside.
A pregnancy test.
My heart stopped.
I pulled it out with shaking hands and stared at the small plastic stick like it was a live grenade.
There were two lines staring back at me.
It was positive.
35
BECAUSE I LOVE YOU
PAIGE
I was half-asleep on the couch, the movie playing in the background, when Derek’s voice snapped me out of my drowsiness.
“Paige, come here.”
My eyes fluttered open to find Derek standing in the hallway, backlit by the bedroom light, and something in his posture made my stomach clench.
“Come to the bedroom. Please.”
He had never done that before. He usually lifted me in his arms and took us to our bedroom.
So it was odd.
I paused the movie and stood up, my heart already beginning to race. There was tension between us. I could feel it in the air and in the way he said my name.
The walk towards our room felt endless. Each step brought me closer to whatever waited in that room, and I found myself wanting to turn back, to run, to avoid whatever conversation we were about to have.
I stopped in the doorway, and the air felt thick.
Derek sat on the edge of the bed, elbows on his knees, hands clasped in front of him. He looked up when I entered, and the expression on his face made my breath catch. He wasn’t angry.
“Hey,” I said, my voice barely a whisper.
