Page 42 of Break Me Gently

“What happened?” he hissed, eyes scanning my face like he was searching for injury.

“I’ve got no idea,” I said, shaking my head, still half-lost in my own thoughts.

He pulled me into my room and shut the door behind us, the click of the lock loud in the quiet.

“You can finish your exams in June, then move into my place,” he said, already pacing, floorboards creaking under his bare feet with every turn.

“I’d been so lonely as a kid,” I said, watching as he stopped mid-pace. “The same as you. All that time I wanted a sibling. I thought that’s what you wanted too.”

I saw the darkness gather in his expression.

But it wasn’t anger or resentment this time. It was bleakness.

“Mum’s pregnant,” I blurted out.

His mouth opened and closed.

Then again.

A perfect circle, like a fish in a tank.

“Pregnant?!”

I nodded, watching as he began to pace once more, muttering to himself, hands dragging through his hair.

“What was she thinking? What age is she? It’s that dickhead’s baby. Fifty percent his. Argh. That’s disgusting. Why is your mum still having sex?”

That was only what I caught.

I glanced at my phone, still sitting on my nightstand. Next time I divulged any big news to him, I needed to capture this on video.

“Are you sure she’s pregnant?”

I never got a chance to reply.

“Does she know she’s carrying the anti-Christ?”

Oh, boy.

I walked over to him and put my arms around his neck.

“We are going to have a baby brother or sister, Zach.”

His eyes locked on mine.

“A baby,” he murmured, his eyes softening.

I smiled.

There was something precious about an innocent life entering our lives.

This was all about family.

Chapter 22

Zach

Amber sat next to me on the couch, our hands knitted tightly together, her thumb tracing small, anxious circles against my knuckles. Isabella sat across from us in the armchair, hands folded in her lap, while Luke perched on the edge of the settee behind her, one arm draped along the back like he owned the whole room. The rich prick liked lording over everyone.