Page 13 of All Our Secrets

I caught my footing on the steps right before I fell face first on the porch. I chuckled, then tried to stifle it with my hand.Shh.The wife wouldn’t like me coming home drunk so late, even if it was Devin’s birthday. I knew those last few beers were a bad idea—King told me not to drink too much, but I did it anyway.

“Shh,” I murmured as King revved his piece of shit up as he backed out of my driveway. He’d given me a ride home, but he needed to leave before Peyton chewed us both out.

Ah, Peyton. This was going to be the night.I could feel it. Tonight, I’d give her a baby.

Thinking the door would open when I twisted the knob, I rushed ahead. Pain radiated through my forehead as it bounced off the wood. “Shh,” I told the door.

After wrestling with my keys, I unlocked the door, but it swung open too quickly. I swayed, then my weight tilted—No, no, the door did. That pesky thing moved and smacked the wall. I winced. “Shh.”

Jesus. The door kept coming back and hitting me, so I might have hit it back a few times. The knob might have gone through the wall at that point. Fuck it. My boots thudded as I made my way through the hall to the stairs.

“Baby, I’m home.”

But Peyton never answered, and she always did.

Something felt wrong. My wife… Where was she?

Chapter Six:

Theodore Jr.

Peyton

“What do you mean, you’re spending the night at my house again?” I screeched into my cell phone, then winced as the burning sensation moved through the incision on my stomach.

Nothing had gone as planned during my delivery. I peeked down at the blond fuzz of hair on my son’s head and his wrinkly face and smiled. Well, at least Theodore Johnson Jr. was perfectly healthy. Tears filled my eyes when I brought my finger to his hand and he gripped it. Such an overwhelming amount of love swelled inside my chest. I hadn’t thought I could love the baby in my belly any more than I already did until I saw him for the first time.

Mesmerized so quickly by my newborn, I forgot I had the phone to my ear until Silas spoke, his throaty voice firm. “Everything must have gone well if you still have the energy to scream in my ear.”

Not entirely. I’d had an emergency cesarean since Junior decided to breech himself at the last second. Pain sliced into my stomach every time I moved, and I was terrified of my bladder because relieving myself also pulled at the c-section incision.

“I had a c-section, but it went well,” I finally said.

“What happened? I thought you wanted to attempt a natural birth or whatever.”

“Things don’t always go as planned, Silas. Such is life.”

There was a pause. “You’re both okay?”

I supposed Silasdidhave a caring bone in his body. Over the years, I’d witnessed his cold affection toward the people in his life. Although grumpy, he always,alwayslooked after my husband, even bringing his drunk ass home some nights, helping him fix the leak in our water lines, and replacing all four of my flat tires over the years. Theodore sucked at those things, and I had a feeling that had something to do with his best friend being the fixer upper who did it all for him.And now…Silas still went out of his way to help me.

The problem with that was he had never gone out of his way to know me. His dislike for me was immediate and apparent. So when he showed up everywhere I needed him, it drove me crazy. I wasn’t desperate enough to tolerate someone who clearly only endured me for his friend.

Well, I supposed, I could try being nicer to Silas once more, but his attitude made that hard, and it would be weird—I think—if I tried being good to him now. He’d point it out, and I’d stab him with a pencil or something. Maybe.I don’t know.

“He’s perfect, Silas,” I whispered as I beamed down at my son for the billionth time in the last twelve hours. “What little hair Junior has is blond like Theo’s.” I really didn’t want Silas to come, but another part of me knew he might want to see Junior, so I added, “You’re not going to come see him?”

He grunted. “I’ll drop in after I leave the store.”

∞∞∞

“What are you doing?” I stiffened at Silas’s deep, authoritative voice, then immediately winced and hunched over, holding my stomach.

“Jeez. Why didn’t you knock?” I grumbled as I walked to the hospital bed, still bowed forward, holding my stomach like an old woman.

“Why are you walking like that?” he asked, still hovering near the door.

“I’ve been cut open. It hurts to move.” I groaned as I sat down slowly.

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