Page 100 of Mistaken Intention

“Ready?”

I nod my head, and he knocks. We both wait and after a few seconds, the door opens. Josie’s eyes dart from him to me, and although I have a moment to take in her red-rimmed eyes and tear-streaked cheeks, it’s only a moment, before she raises her hand to her mouth and pushes the door closed.

Fortunately, my reactions are fairly quick, and I hold up my hand, resting it against the door, just before it shuts tight, pushing back against it and stepping over the threshold.

“I told you not to shut your door on me,” I whisper and she looks up, blinking back more tears.

“Why are you here?”

“Because I need to know why, Josie. I need to understand why you left me.”

“Don’t say it like that.”

“Like what?”

“Don’t say I left you.”

“Why not? It’s what you did. You packed your bags and ran out in the middle of the night without a word. I need to know what I did wrong.”

“You didn’t do anything wrong,” she says.

“Then explain to me why I woke up to an empty bed this morning.”

She stares at me for what feels like a lifetime and then her shoulders drop, like she’s admitting defeat. “You’d better come in.” She steps back, opening the door wide.

“Would you prefer if I waited in the car?” Hunter says, and she looks up at him.

“No. I think I’d like you to stay.”

Personally, I’d rather he left. I have a feeling this conversation could get intimate, and while I seem quite comfortable around my brother, I’m not sure I’m all that comfortable. Still, if Josie wants him here, I’m not going to argue.

We step inside and wait while she closes the door.

Initially, I wonder if she’s going to invite us to sit on her pale gray couch, but she doesn’t. She just stands in front of me and puts her hands in her pockets. Hunter steps back, leaning against the door, leaving the two of us facing each other.

“I’m sorry,” I say before Josie can even open her mouth.

She frowns, shaking her head. “Why are you sorry?”

“I don’t know. But I must have done something to make you leave, and whatever it was, I’m sorry.”

“I—I told you, you didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Then why did you run? I told you yesterday, you’ve gotta stop doing that.”

“This is different.”

“How? Explain it to me.”

She sucks in a breath, pulling one hand from her pocket and pushing her fingers back through her hair. She musses it up and I reach out, pushing a stray strand from her face. Her eyes fix on mine, brimming with unshed tears.

“What is it, Josie? Tell me.”

“Y—You said you wanted us to have children,” she whispers.

“Yes. One day. Not right away. I said, there’s no rush. You didn’t have to…” My brain suddenly switches a gear and I grab her shoulders, holding on to her, grounding myself. “I—I’ve just realized something.”

“What’s that?”

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