Page 96 of Ruck Me

I stared up at this girl I’d loved with all my heart, and all I could think was I can’t trust her. “I can’t be here,” I said through clenched teeth.

Aoife laughed cynically. “No one’s keepingyou.”

I raised a condescending eyebrow. “You’re blocking mypath.”

“So move me. Or better yet, ask me tomove.”

“I’m not touching you ever again. Fuck, I can barely stand to look atyou.”

Aoife staggered back, my words a verbal blow. With her hand resting on her belly, her eyes filled with tears.

“And spare me the pitiful act,” I spat, the hate I felt for her at this moment turning my words to acid. “Your tears are wasted onme.”

“I knew it,” she whispered, her chin quivering as salty tracks cascaded down her cheeks. “I knew this would happen.”

“Of course this is what happened!” I roared, surging to my feet. “You get rid of my fucking baby without telling me, and you think I’m going to throw you a fucking parade as a welcome home present? Did you expect I’d be happy?”

“Yes!” she roared back, her meek little bird act dropping away. “I did! You made that abundantly clear on more than one occasion!”

I stepped forward and she stepped back until her spine was pressed flat against the wall. “We weren’t talking about you and me,” Isaid.

“Iwas.”

“No, you weren’t. You were talking about Aidan and Katelyn.”

“Not the other day,” she argued, recalling our conversation two days prior.

“Yeah, and you’d already gone to London! You made your decision before I told you I wanted to marry you and put babies in your belly someday so don’t try to pretend I’m the bad guyhere.

“You don’t want a baby,” she breathed, as if repeating it would absolve her of her actions.

“You’re right; I don’t want a baby!” I agreed, my voice echoing off her walls.

“See! I already knewthat!”

“Will you let me finish, goddamnit!” I exploded, my palm slamming flat against the wall near her head. Crouching so we were eye-to-eye, I added, “I know it makes you feel better to tell yourself I’m the villain here, that you went to London because you already knew what I would say, but you’re fooling yourself, Aoife. You obviously don’t know the first fucking thing about me, because when Tanya told me where you’d gone—why you’d gone—it ripped my fucking heart out.” My words came out a strangled groan. “You didn’t just kill my baby. You killed us too.” I pushed off the wall and staggered to the door. Before leaving, I turned to Aoife and my throat caught. This was it; this was how we ended.

I didn’t know if I’d ever see her again … if I’d ever wantto.

I imagined our paths would cross in the years to come. I prayed they didn’t though because I didn’t think I could handle it, trying to pretend Aoife hadn’t gutted me, that she hadn’t destroyed my faith inlove.

I let my eyes roam over her, taking their fill one last time. I’d loved her and if she had just told me about the baby, I would have spent every day of my life showing her just how far that love extended. I would have dropped to my knees and begged her to marry me. We were young and the odds were stacked against us, but we could have made it work. I knew that as surely as I knew myname.

Except now we'd never get a chance to findout.

"We're done." I shook my head regretfully and stormed out. I couldn’t stay a moment longer.

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