Page 170 of Darling Obsession

“Then why did you cheat?”

“Because.Fuck.I was scared.”

Savannah sighs. Maybe she’s taking pity on me. “I do believe that is literally the first time I’ve ever heard those words out of your mouth in my entire life.”

“Yeah.” I toss back most of my Manhattan. “First time for everything.”

Savannah eyes me, maybe pulling together all the pieces in her head. “And what about Quinn? Did she know about… all this?” She waves her manicured fingers in the direction of the cat.

“She does now.”

“I see.”

“And also…” I take a breath. “She’s pregnant.”

My sister blinks at me, looking about as confused as she should.

“I really should’ve prefaced that,” I add, “by telling you that I’ve been seeing her ever since I told you that I broke up with her.”

I wait for her to tell me I’m an asshole for lying to her yet again. But instead, she gasps a little. “I’m going to be an aunt?”

“Yes. I believe that’s how it works.”

“Oh, shit. I love that for me!” She gets up and comes to give me a hug.

I pat her awkwardly on the back. “Yeah. Congratulations.”

“Congratulations, you!” She pushes me away. “Why aren’t you excited?” she demands.

“I’m just trying to figure this out, day by day.”

“Oh, god. The mental computing you must be doing. The hard drives must be overheating up there.” She knocks a knuckle lightly on my skull.

“Funny.”

“But true.” She settles into the armchair next to mine. “I demand, as your twin and the auntie of your unborn child, that you tell me everything. Right now.”

“Unfortunately for you, that kind of demand doesn’t work on me. But anyway, there’s nothing to tell. Quinn is amazing. End of story.”

“Amazing, how? I want words, brother.”

I groan. Honesty is a bitch.

“Fine. In a nutshell… she’s been working her ass off for years to take care of her mom, Lorraine, who’s battling cancer and raised her as a single mom. They live in a shitty old rental house, and Quinn is literally holding that place together with duct tape and a positive attitude. She’s been through so much. I’m just trying to make the pregnancy as easy on her as possible. But honestly, I’ve never felt so powerless.”

Savannah waves her hand in the air dismissively. “You have money, though. You get a bunch of nannies, and you take care of her mom. You’ll be fine.”

“I don’t think I want that. I mean, sure we can get a nanny, to help us. But I don’t want my children to be raised by strangers.”

“Children?” Savannah raises an eyebrow.

I ignore it. “You know what I mean. I don’t want them to be raised the way we were. I want to be accessible to my children.”

“You said children again.”

I frown at her.

She’s looking at me with a kind of awe. This is new to me, and I don’t know how to take it. “Well, then. If you’ve already thought about stuff like that, you’re a giant step ahead of Mom and Dad already.”

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