Page 98 of Set me Free

”Cree…” he uttered. “Cree Sienna Langston.” I turned and looked at him. “I always wanted to name my daughter Cree.”

“I love that.” I smiled. “So, we are either going to meet Cevyn or Cree today.”

“I hope it’s Cree. I want a little princess I can spoil to death. And I hope she comes out looking just like you.” I wrapped my arms around his neck as he held my waist.

“I hope it’s Cree too.”

The car ride to Brooklyn was quiet, neither of us saying much. There was an unspoken tension in the air—one that neither of us wanted to acknowledge just yet.

Once we arrived, we were ushered into the exam room. I lay back, lifting my sweatshirt as the cold gel was spread across my stomach. Creed reached for my hand, his grip firm, his eyes locked on the monitor.

The doctor moved the wand across my stomach, and within seconds, the sound of our baby’s strong, fast heartbeat filled the room. Creed’s lips parted, his eyes wide.

"That’s... that’s our baby?" he murmured.

I nodded, squeezing his hand. "Yeah."

The doctor smiled, pointing at the screen. "Everything looks great, see it’s little fingers and toes. Baby is measuring tall—just like Daddy." Creed chuckled, his thumb rubbing over my knuckles. "And now, for the gender..." I held my breath. "It’s a... girl!"

My heart clenched, a daughter. I turned to look at Creed, and to my shock, a single tear slid down his cheek.

"A girl?" he repeated, his voice hoarse. “Cree…” I nodded, my own tears welling up. "Damn..." he whispered before he pressed a deep, emotional kiss to my lips, pulling away just slightly to whisper, "Thank you, Serenity. Thank you for giving her to me."

I cupped his face. "She’s gonna be so spoiled," I murmured.

"Hell yeah, she is," he chuckled, wiping his face. "Nobody’s ever gonna mess with my princess."

I felt warm, safe, like for the first time in weeks, things were falling into place. I wanted to bask in this moment forever. But reality had an unpleasant way of creeping back in.

That night, Creed was packing his bag, getting ready to head back to Phoenix. I sat on the edge of my bed, watching him. He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.

"I don’t wanna leave," he admitted.

I swallowed. "I know."

He turned to face me. "Serenity... I know things have been messy, but this? What we have? It’s real. And I need you to know that I’m gonna do whatever it takes to make things right."

I looked away. "Creed... I need to say something."

He frowned, sitting next to me. "What’s up?"

I took a deep breath.

"Last night... it was nice. But it doesn’t change anything," I admitted.

His entire body tensed, eyebrows hitched up high on his face. My heart was racing, hating that after the beautiful day we had, I was about to ruin it.

"What you mean it doesn’t change anything?"

"I mean... we’re not back together. And honestly? I don’t know when—or if—that’s ever gonna happen."

Creed clenched his jaw, inhaling deeply. "So what, last night was just... what? A mistake?"

"No," I said softly. "But it wasn’t me letting you back in, either."

His shoulders dropped. “Fuck, SB.”

“I know, I’m sorry. I hate to think I used you, but I needed that. My hormones got me feeling crazy and I was horny and you were available. I didn’t intend to hurt you, but I needed you in that moment.”

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