Page 57 of Forsaken Vows

I grabbed her favorite candy too, the nasty things shaped like little dots that tasted like Play-Doh. I didn’t overthink buying the test. It was just in case. But cool and calm didn’t last past checkout.

By the time I got back to the room, my nerves were tight and my palms were sweating. She was sitting on the edge of the bed in one of the hotel towels, drying off.

She looked up when I walked in, and my chest squeezed.

“Got you some stuff,” I said, setting the bag on the dresser.

Her eyes went through it fast, then stopped when she saw the pink box.

Her lips parted. “Sam…”

I sat down across from her, leaned forward with my elbows on my knees.

“I need you to take that,” I said, quiet. “Please.”

She held my gaze for a long second, then nodded slowly. “Okay.”

She went into the bathroom without another word.

I sat still. Counting seconds. Thinking about how we’d been reckless under the circumstances but not being able to conjure up a bit of shame or guilt. We didn’t start this. Janet and Mark did.

Five minutes felt like twenty.

When the door finally opened, she didn’t say anything. Just walked over to the nightstand and turned the test around so I could see it.

Two lines.

Clear as day.

Shit.

“Shit,” I said out loud before I could stop myself.

Her face shifted from neutral to sad. Her eyes dropped and her whole body went tight.

“You mad?” she asked, voice barely above a whisper.

“No,” I said quickly, standing. I cupped her face in my hands. “No, no. I’m not mad. I swear.”

She still looked unsure, like she was bracing for me to say something fucked up.

“I’m just thinking,” I said. “I gotta move my whole damn timeline up now.”

She blinked. “Timeline?”

“Yeah. My divorce. Your divorce. The wedding. All of it has to come before little SamKeisha gets here.”

There was an awkward moment of silence before she blinked, then burst out laughing.

“I swear to God you are not naming my baby SamKeisha—”

I kissed her, tasting her mouth.

This wasn’t how I planned to do things.

But none of this had been planned.

Suddenly, she jerked back, eyes on mine, plush lips in a small “O.”

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