But she didn’t have to stay.
She could take the money, carry the baby, and walk away clean when it was over.
That was the deal.
That was what I’d promised her.
And I kept my promises.
Even when it cost me.
I pulled my phone out again and stared at the screen.
No messages.
No missed calls.
Nothing from Truth.
I told myself that was good.
Told myself she was probably at one of her sisters’ houses right now, laughing, talking, being normal.
Told myself I didn’t need to check on her.
But my thumb hovered over her name in my contacts anyway.
I could call.
Just to make sure she got home safe.
Just to make sure Phillip didn’t come back.
Just to?—
I locked the phone and set it on the nightstand.
No.
I wasn’t doing this.
I wasn’t crossing that line.
Tomorrow, I’d go to my mother’s house.
I’d meet Alexis St. John.
I’d be charming and polite and exactly the kind of son Odette Landry wanted me to be.
And I’d remember that Truth Renois was my surrogate.
Nothing more.
Nothing less.
I climbed into bed and stared at the ceiling.
But even as I closed my eyes, I could still see her.
