Page 150 of Oathbreaker

I whip the door open, practically running to our bedroom.

It takes everything within me not to slam the door.

Being in this room feels strange after the intensity of the last day and a half.

Finding out I’m pregnant.

Running away and having an anxiety meltdown.

Intense lovemaking and intimacy with Hunter back at my old apartment.

The pseudo proposal.

The ultrasound.

And then a car chase.

I flop back on the bed, the plush mattress sinking under me and contouring to my body. I press the heels of my hands to my eyes to stem the tears streaming out of them.

Feel what you feel, Winter.

So I do. My breakdown is silent, letting the swirling mix of anxiety and terror and joy and hope blend inside me like some fucked-up emotional gumbo.

I’m not alone for five minutes before a light tap on the door shakes me out of my daze.

“Come in,” I say in a voice that doesn’t sound like mine.

Veronica pops her head around the door, and through the opening, Kitty bounds in, jumping on the bed. He puts his head in my lap.

Veronica chews on her lip, which is an unusual move for her. “Can I come in?”

I sit up, wiping my face roughly with both hands. “Of course,” I say.

She sits primly on the chair across from me, clasping her hands together as she perches her body on the edge of the seat.

I inhale, holding my breath in before blowing it out in a long stream.

“I’m sorry I disappeared on you, Veronica.”

“Again,” she says through tense lips. “You disappeared again.”

Then, as if all the energy she funneled into her desire to be composed evaporates, her face crumples into an ugly cry.

I rush to her, and Kitty flops over on the bed at my sudden movement. “Oh, Rons, I’m so sorry. I wasn’t thinking. I?—”

“You can’t do shit like that, Winter!” I pull her to stand, clutching her trembling body close to mine.

“I’m so sorry. I just—I’m so sorry. I won’t do that to you again. Ever. I promise.”

She pulls away from me and wipes her nose on the sleeve of her shirt. I must make a face because she says, “I don’t care if it’s disgusting.”

“As if I would judge you,” I reply in a level tone.

“Winter, what the hell is going on?”

She looks at me, and I know she deserves the truth. I owe her that much.

At least you can use your big girl words.

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