Page 65 of All Because I Found You

“Your damn straight we didn’t plan for this. You know I don’t want kids. You know I can’t be a father.”

“I know that’s what you think, but Ryder, you’re an amazing person, and I know you’ll be an even more amazing dad to our child.”

“Is that what you think?” Anger tinged his words as they hit her like acid. “Because it doesn’t really fucking matter what you think. You live in this fairytale world where you always get your way, and that’s not how any of this works.”

“I do not.”

“Bullshit. You do whatever it takes to get what you want. Is that what you did here? He won’t meet my friends, but maybe if I got pregnant, he’d have no choice?”

“Do you really think that little of me? Think that I would stoop that damn low? Don’t flatter yourself.” She jumped from the bed and snatched her skirt from the floor, shoving her legs through. “You think whatever you want to think. But that doesn’t change the fact that I am having this baby, whether or not you want it.”

“I didn’t ask for any of this.”

“And I did?” She yanked her shirt over her head and shoved her bra in her pocket. Ryder pulled on a pair of shorts, and she stepped toward him, pointing her shoe at his chest. “You are so stuck in the past, punishing yourself over and over for an accident that you can’t even see you have a future right in front of you. No, you didn’t ask for this, but maybe the universe thought you were ready. Thought after all this time, you were finally going to put the past behind you. But clearly, you’re not, and I refuse to raise this child, our child, with anything but love and acceptance. So, if you can’t accept our baby then you can’t accept me.”

She stood in front of him, waiting for him to wrap his arms around her, bury his head in the crook of her neck, and tell her everything was going to be all right because he loved her, and they’d figure it out. Except he didn’t say anything. He stood there, staring at her as if she was the devil incarnate.

His blue eyes, usually so full of peace and calm, were black with rage. The tension in his jaw turned him to stone, and she couldn’t look at him for another second. Not when the kind, loving man she knew was lost.

“I knew you’d be upset, but I didn’t think you’d look at me with such disgust. I’m sorry that this happened, but I don’t regret it. None of it.” She rested her hand on her still flat stomach and met his eyes. “Say something. Anything.”

She was desperate for him to rise above the anger, push aside the fear that consumed him, and just open himself up to what could be an amazing future together.

She waited and waited.

His lips parted, then he turned on his foot and stormed out of the bedroom. Tears pooled in her eyes, pouring over her lids onto her cheeks in a cascade of sorrow. She knew he’d be mad, but she never expected he’d walk away from her.

She grabbed the rest of her things and ran out the front door, letting it slam behind her. In her car, disappointment and heartache crashed together, ripping apart her heart. She threw the car in reverse and peeled out of the driveway, knowing that if he loved her, he would have already stopped her.

Chapter 24

She peeled out of the driveway, and he let her go. He should’ve run after her, tell her he was an idiot, but… pregnant? He couldn’t have a kid. He couldn’t be a father. He was too fucked in the head to provide a stable life for a child. And she told him she was on birth control. It was why he never used a condom. He trusted her, and now she was pregnant.

He thrust his hands through his hair, only to remember the length was gone. He yanked at the short strands, trying to figure out what the fuck just happened.

The sound of squealing tires echoed through the night followed by a bang that reverberated through the house. “No.”

It couldn’t be Raelyn. But it was two o’clock in the morning and she just left. He bolted for the door and ran out into the night. A solid weight landed heavy in his gut, and he knew.

No, no, no. This couldn’t be happening again. His heart slammed against his chest, violently battering his ribcage. He ran toward the smoke billowing in the air, the smell of antifreeze and oil. He ran until he saw his worst nightmare confirmed.

Raelyn’s car was a twisted heap of metal merged with another vehicle that he couldn’t tell what it’d been before. A car, a truck, an SUV. He had no idea. His legs shook while the rest of his body froze. He didn’t see movement. He didn’t hear any voices. Only the deafening sound of a horn blaring nonstop.

He couldn’t go through this again. Not when he finally allowed himself to be happy. Then he had to go and ruin it by getting mad at her for being pregnant. Pregnant. With his child. God no. This was some cruel, sick and twisted joke.

His stomach heaved, but he forced the bile back down his throat. Raelyn and their child needed him. He forced every worst-case scenario into the dark spaces in his mind, allowing the darkness to hold the images hostage. He ignored the memories flashing in his mind at the last accident that changed his life, and he hurried, picking up speed, until he was running as fast as he could.

“Raelyn!” he yelled as he got closer. Glass crunched beneath his feet, cutting into his flesh, but he couldn’t feel anything. His entire body was numb as he closed in on the driver's seat. “Raelyn,” he yelled her name again, not even aware he was doing it. It just kept bursting out of him, hoping she’d respond. She hadn’t.

Blood trickled down her forehead, and his entire world slipped out beneath him.

“Raelyn, can you hear me?” She didn’t answer. Her eyes were closed, and he hoped that was a good sign. Maybe she was just knocked out cold. He reached for her wrist that hung limply at her side and felt for a pulse. He moved his fingers along her wrist, desperately searching. Fear consumed him when finally, the tiniest beat ticked against his touch. “I’m going to get you help, baby. I promise. Just stay with me. Please. I can’t lose you, too.”

He fumbled for the phone in his pocket and dialed 911.

“911, what is your emergency?”

“There’s been a car accident. On Cedar Drive. We need ambulances. Both drivers are… it’s bad.”

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