I unlock the front door and shove it open. I kick it shut, flick on the light, and draw up short at the sight of Adley sitting on the couch. Her book bag is beside her, along with another bag, and she’s staring at her phone—presumably reading the text I just sent.
“What are you doing in the dark?” I say, taking a step toward her.
Adley looks up. Her eyes are puffy and red, cheeks slick with tears, and my heart hurts because I know I’m the cause of her pain.
“It wasn’t dark when I sat down.”
“How long have you been here?”
“I don’t know. Three or four hours.” She holds up her phone, showing me the text I just sent. “What is this?”
“It’s my way of saying goodnight. I don’t get to kiss you and tell you how much I love you before you go to sleep right now, so I’m sending you texts with the things I love about you. I want you to believe me.”
Her chin trembles, and she looks away.
“You should’ve called me. If I’d known you were here, I would’ve come home.”
She bites her lips and nods. “I know you would’ve. How’s Christopher?”
“He’s good. They put two stents in his heart. I just dropped him off at home. Chloe is with him.”
“Good. That’s good.” Her eyes drop back to the phone in her hands. “I’ve been thinking about him a lot. I hope he knows I wanted to be there.”
“He knows.” I take another step forward. “What’s in the bag?” I ask, nodding toward the one that doesn’t carry her school books.
Adley takes a deep breath and looks up. “I came here to pack my stuff, told myself I was going to grab everything and go, but I couldn’t leave.”
A kernel of hope unfurls in my gut. “Adley, we need to talk.”
She pushes up from the couch. “I know we do, but not about what you think.”
I tilt my head to the side.
Adley sticks her phone in her back pocket. “I’m pregnant.”
Pregnant? Pregnant. “Say that again.”
She takes a deep breath and looks at something on the floor. “I’m pregnant.”
She’s pregnant. Adley is pregnant. With my baby.
I let the word soak into my body. I stand still and wait for the fear to hit—fear that I’ll end up like my parents and screw my kid’s life up the way they screwed with mine.
But that fear doesn’t come.
Because I’m not my parents. I’ve worked damn hard to be the complete opposite of them, and my kid will never grow up the way Chloe and I did. Suddenly I know that for certain.
Warmth radiates from my heart to the tips of my fingers and toes, but before I get my hopes up, I need to hear her say it one more time.
“You’re pregnant with my baby.”
“Of course it’s your baby.” Her head pops up, eyes wide, as though she can’t believe I just said that.
Turning on her heel, she grabs her bags and takes a step toward the door, but I catch her arm in my hand.
“Let go of me,” she snaps.
It kills me to let her go, but I do as she asks.