Page 45 of Two Minutes for Holding

I lay there, staring at the ceiling. The only thing on my mind right now was Peyton. God, I wished I’d kept a level head earlier. Instead of her being back in her room alone at Knox andLorelai’s, she could have been here in my bed, wrapped in my arms, where she should be anyway.

“Fuck it,” I muttered to myself and reached for my phone.

I quickly opened the chat she and I had going between the two of us.

CLAY: Just so you know, if the baby is mine, I will be there with you every single step of the way. You aren’t alone in this and I’m only going to tell you that once. I’m also going to say that tonight, I was an idiot. I’m sorry.

The moment I hit send, I felt a little better. At least she now knew how I felt. It would be up to her what she did with that information.

I placed my phone back down on the charger, placed my hands behind my head, and closed my eyes. Morning came early, practice came earlier and so did tomorrow night’s game. One that was far too important for the team to lose.

Chapter 14

Peyton

When I wokeup this morning, I’d seen Clay’s message from last night and immediately I wanted to see him, but they were at practice and then gearing up for tonight’s game. I didn’t want to distract him from what I knew was important.

I didn’t respond to his message. Instead, I’d waited until everyone had left for the game, then I left a note letting Mom, Lorelai, and Knox know I was going out with some friends and wouldn’t be back until morning. I’d come to Clay’s building and waited outside until someone came along and I could sneak in. I took off to his floor and parked myself in the hallway, waiting for him to come home.

I glanced at my watch. It was just after eleven. The game finished half an hour ago. They’d won, allowing them to advance to the second round of the playoffs. Part of me had wished I’d gone to watch them play, so I could be a part of the excitement.

I jumped when I heard Clay’s voice coming down the hall. I quickly got up, brushing off my pants and straightening myshirt. I knew Knox had to head straight home after the game because he was taking my mom to see another condo early in the morning, so I knew he wouldn’t be with Clay.

As the voices got closer, I looked up in time to see Clay and Dylan coming down the hall, neither one of them noticing me at first. They were laughing and talking about the game, and then Dylan made eye contact with me. It was then Clay looked up, surprised at seeing me here.

“Peyton? How long have you been—”

“I…I shouldn’t have come,” I said, wanting to bolt as Dylan stood there looking between the two of us.

“Clay, how about I see you in the morning?” Dylan said, placing his hand on his shoulder.

Clay nodded, still looking in my direction. “Sure thing. Thanks for the lift.”

“No problem. Peyton, good to see you, as always,” Dylan said, before he turned and made his way back toward the elevator.

“What are you doing here?” Clay asked, pulling his keys from his pocket and slipping one into the lock.

“It was stupid of me to come without warning you. Fuck, now my brother is going to—”

“Don’t worry, Dylan won’t say anything. Come on in,” he said, holding the door with one hand and waiting for me as I looked down the hall in the direction Dylan had gone.

“How do you know that?” I asked, still looking down the hall in the direction Dylan had gone.

“Trust me, okay. I know. Come on.”

I walked into Clay’s apartment and waited while he shut and locked the door.

“Here, give me your coat,” he said, waiting while I slipped out of it. He hung both our jackets in the closet and then placed his hand on my lower back, guiding me into his living room.

“Want something to drink?” he questioned as I took a seat on his couch.

I nodded and watched as he made his way to the fridge, where he grabbed two bottles of water and returned, sitting down beside me.

Immediately, we both spoke, only for us both to stop and smile at one another.

“Go ahead,” he urged, taking my bottle of water and cracking the lid for me.

“Thank you. I got your message this morning. I thought it would be best if I came to see you instead of messaging.

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