Page 41 of Seven of Hearts

“Yeah,” I whispered into her hair as I glanced at the time on my phone. No way had she actually eaten dinner with her family. It hadn’t even been an hour since she texted me that she was going in.

I wiggled her keys out of her hand, unlocked her door, and escorted her in. “Did you eat?”

She shook her head. “Never got around to it.”

I tugged her down onto the couch and didn’t even question what the hell was wrong with me when I pulled her into my lap. “What happened?”

“My mom ambushed me with my ex the moment I said I was pregnant,” she cried.

“What?” I raised my voice a little too sharply, startling her. But goddamn, that pissed me off.

Leah and our baby weremine.

The epiphany of exactly what I needed to do hit me like a ton of bricks. But it wasn’t just what Ihadto do to make things right. It’s what Iwantedto do.

I listened while she told me what had happened—about how her mom had been a judgmental shrew from the outset, how she had been ambushed with her ex, and the ensuing commentary on my lineage.

As she recounted every horrifying thing, I slid our twined hands onto her belly. Leah didn’t protest. She didn’t even take a breath between words. She curled into me as I held her with one arm around her waist and the other hand cradling the life we had created together.

“I wish I had been there so you didn’t have to go through that alone,” I said softly when she wrapped up the events that had transpired over the course of a few unfortunate minutes.

She rested her temple on my chest and closed her eyes. “I’m glad you weren’t. You don’t deserve to be subjected to that.”

“You don’t deserve to be subjected to it either,” I reminded her as I flexed my fingers over her small bump. “I’m sorry that you were.”

Leah wiped her eyes with her sleeve. “I just want one reveal to go right.” She let out a trembling breath. “It sounds so stupid. I...I just wantoneperson to be excited for me. Because I’m excited. I’m scared as hell, but I’m excited.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t take it better,” I said honestly. “I was...”

“Shocked is probably an understatement,” Leah said.

“Something like that. I felt really unprepared. That’s not something I like feeling. I like having a plan for everything. It was a curveball. But I’m working on it. I think I’m still processing.”

“I’ve had months. It’s barely been a week for you. I’d say you’re handling it pretty well.”

“I still feel guilty for walking away from you that night that I showed up here. I should have stayed and talked it out with you. I should have figured my shit out before I made it your problem.”

Leah didn’t argue, but she also didn’t pull away. We lay together on her couch, curled up in one another like we had been the night that everything changed.

“This okay?” I murmured against her forehead as I traced abstract shapes on her belly with my splayed fingertips.

She nodded and closed her eyes as she let out a deep breath. “The DeRossis and Lawsons will probably be nice about it, but I know I’m messing with their schedules because I’ll need time off. I know Kylie isn’t going to take it well because you’re her brother and she’s my?—”

“Best friend,” I said, filling in the blank. “You’re lucky to have each other.”

“Have you told anyone besides Will?” she asked.

I shook my head. “I don’t really have anyone else to tell.”

She looked up at me with kindness in her eyes. “I’m excited.”

I pressed a kiss to her forehead. “You should be. You’re going to be a great mom to this little bumblebee.”

She laughed. “Why do you say that?”

I held her closer. “Because you walked away from your parents tonight and put yourself and our baby first. And for the record, I’m sorry for whatever happens with Kylie when she finds out, but I’m on your side no matter what.”

I slipped outof Leah’s apartment after seeing to it that she had eaten, thanks to her next-door neighbor, Dr. Mehta. She was emotionally exhausted and just wanted to go to bed. I couldn’t blame her.

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