Page 146 of Choosing Forever
“Are you ready yet? We’ll be late for my appointment if we don’t leave now!”
It’s a woman’s voice. A woman who isn’t Pauline or Poppy.
Darren winces and steps outside before trying to shut the door behind him. He pulls on it while a head of long, glossy hair appears on the other side, tugging right back.
The woman laughs at him, assuming he’s playing some sort of joke on her when the only joke here is me.
“The point is to go to the appointmenttogether. How exactlyis the doctor supposed to check the baby’s heartbeat when the actual pregnant woman isn’t there?”
Like a brick through a window, I shatter.
“Give me a minute,” Darren barks, eyes on me as I stumble down the stairs and try to breathe.
He follows, giving the woman the opportunity to open the door. I look behind him, getting only a quick look at her before my vision blurs. The small bump on her stomach?—
I palm my chest and try not to scream. “It’s yours?”
“I haven’t seen you in years, Delaney,” Sasha says, standing at the top of the stairs with her arms crossed.
Years. Since we were in high school and she was hanging around the sidelines at every football game with a new sign every week with Darren’s name on it.
Shaking my head, I ignore her and stare at Darren, willing my tears to hold off just another minute. “Is it yours?”
“Yes.”
“The baby or the ring?” Sasha asks proudly.
I choke. The missing weight on my finger is jarring.
Darren speaks again, but I’m already moving. My keys jangle in my hands as I try and use shaky fingers to find the right one. I gasp a sob when I throw my door open and fall inside. The key stabs everywhere but inside the ignition as I blink past the tears. Finally, it slides inside.
His voice follows me, getting louder before I slap a hand down on the lock and put the car in gear. The handle pulls as he thumps a fist to the door. My name comes next, over and over.
I give a warning jolt on my gas pedal before the thumping stops and he falls silent.
A beat later, I risk running over his foot and take off. I only make it around the block before I lose the ability to drive.
Bending over the steering wheel, I scream. My ears ring from how loud I am, the pained noise bouncing off my suitcases and boxes. My nose runs, tears falling as I shake and let my paintransform into anger. Suddenly, I’m whaling my fists into the steering wheel.
The baby or the ring.
The baby or the ring.
The baby or the fucking ring.
I flinch away from the door when the handle pulls again. The figure in the window isn’t Darren this time. That’s the only reason I unlock the door.
It opens slowly before a familiar, gruff voice says, “Come on, Delaney. Let’s get you home. You can’t be driving right now.”
“Why did he do this?” I whisper, my throat scraped raw.
Daryl Huntsly wraps a heavy arm around me and guides me out of the car. I don’t have it in me to be embarrassed. I’m not sure there’s much left of me right now at all.
“I’m sorry.”
I shake my head, hating those words because I’m the one who’s sorry.
I’m sorry that I ever loved Darren in the first place.
