Page 5 of Make Your Save

I’m sorry.

Holy shit. I’m momentarily frozen. My feet won’t move. I don’t know if my heart is beating. I can’t get my lungs to cooperate. I stare down at the baby who’s nowasleep in my arms and then look at the things in my other hand. The picture of Rowan.

My ex’s brother.

This might be his baby and I’m not sure he even knows about it. Considering the fact that the baby was dropped here at the safe haven, I’d be willing to bet he knows nothing of her existence. If I take the baby inside, she’ll immediately be placed in custody of child protective services. She’ll be thrown into the system and Rowan will have to fight to get her.

If she is actually his child. . .

I glance back at the front desk.

Janet is still MIA. I don’t think or breathe. Some type of panic kicks in, rendering any logical thought useless. My feet begin to move and I don’t know what the hell I’m doing. Reaching into my back pocket, I retrieve my phone, scroll through my contacts, and immediately tap on Rowan’s name.

At this point, I’m already outside without even realizing I walked in the opposite direction of where I should have gone with the baby. Rowan answers on the third ring and there isn’t a single ounce of guilt inside of me for waking him at this hour.

It’s been almost two months since I ran into him here when he was at the hospital for his friend.

“Hadley?” Sleep is heavy in his tone, but it is laced with concern.

“Rowan. I’m sorry to wake you up. I don’t even know what the hell I’m doing.” I pause, realizing I’m standing in the middle of the parking lot, holdingsomeone else’s baby. “Holy shit,” I breathe as the situation hits me like a ton of bricks.

“Hadley.” His voice is louder now, clearer and fully awake. I have his undivided attention. “What’s going on? Are you okay?”

“Yes. No. I don’t know.” The words tumble from me in a rush, the panic setting in as it weighs heavily on my shoulders. I keep walking in the opposite direction of the hospital like a goddamn fool. “I’m on the corner of Miller and Somerset. I need you to come here.”

The sound of rustling comes through the speaker. “I’m on my way.”

I sit down on the bench by the bus stop, ending the call without another word as I hold the baby close to my body. I stare down at the sweet baby girl, my eyes scanning her delicate features. Her button nose crinkles, a smile cresting her lips before her expression relaxes again.

The severity of this situation settles in my chest like a block of concrete.

I just walked out of the hospital with a baby that isn’t mine.

What the hell did I do?

CHAPTER TWO

ROWAN

Tripping over my own feet, I shove them into my slides, grabbing my keys as I pull open the door to my garage in a rush. I haven’t seen or heard from Hadley since I ran into her at the hospital when Riley was there. When I told her to let me know if she was ever in Aston, this isn’t what I had imagined. I didn’t imagine getting woken up by a phone call in the middle of night.

Hearing the sheer panic in her voice left me feeling unsettled. A chill slithers down my spine, tangling around my spinal cord. My movements are rushed, but they aren’t quite fast enough as I wait for the damn garage door to open.

As I start to drive, I don’t even know if I closed the door, but at the moment, I don’t care. I don’t know what happened, but she called me. She needs me and after I found her the night that my brother ended things with her, I feel like I can’t leave her hanging. I have to help her.

It’s a short ride into the heart of Aston and I know the intersecting streets she gave me. It’s right down the street from the hospitalwhich has me even more worried and confused.

The entire drive is a blur. I move on autopilot, somehow getting there in one piece as I race down the streets in the middle of the night. There isn’t any traffic and barely any cars on the road. It’s a quarter after one when I slip onto the street, my eyes laser-focused as I slow down, looking for her as I drive.

Relief floods me as I see what looks like her sitting beneath a streetlamp, tucked away from the elements on the bench at the bus stop. Her head turns to the side when she sees my headlights as I come to a stop along the curb. Leaning across the center console, I push open the door as she reaches it before I even have the chance to get out and open it for her.

Hadley slips inside, her body turned away from me at first. She looks awkward with her arms in front of her body, bending in a strange fashion to pull the door shut.

“You came.” She lets out a breath of relief, her voice barely audible.

“You needed me,” I tell her, my voice catching in my throat. “Are you hurt? Are you okay?”

She slowly turns, her body adjusting in her seat as she turns to face the front of the truck. “I’m okay,” she admits, glancing at me as she starts to angle her torso to me. My eyebrows scrunch as my gaze drops down to her arms positioned near her chest.

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