Page 59 of Private Tutoring
I ran a hand across my sweaty forehead. “You have to swear to me you won’t say a word to anyone. Not one word.”
She mimed zipping her lips. “Your secrets are my secrets.”
That was all it took for me to tell her everything. I explained about the professors, making it clear that I’d still earned my grades though we were having sex. The overflow of admissions cleansed my heart though it remained heavy with the final secret. I told her about the threatening text messages, then held out the pregnancy test. “And there’s this.”
Delilah looked down at the pregnancy test and her eyes went super wide. “Holy shit, Harmony.”
“I know.” I groaned. “I never meant to get pregnant. I’m on birth control.”
“Well, it’s done now.” Delilah had sat in the chair opposite me at some point. She scooted closer and wrapped both arms around my shoulders. “It’s going to be okay. We’ll get through this together. One step at a time.”
I sniffled through my tears and returned her hug. “Thank you.”
“Of course. You’re my best friend.” She grasped my shoulders and pushed me into the chair. Our eyes locked, hers full ofsympathy. “First things first. You have to stop sleeping with them.”
“Kind of pointless now, don’t you think? I can’t get any more pregnant.” Despite my plans to end everything yesterday, faced with the command from Delilah, I found it grating against my nerves.
Delilah shook her head. “That’s not the point. Are you going to keep the baby?”
“I…Yes.” The answer came in a single breath. I might not have planned on getting pregnant, but I wanted the baby.
“Then you should consider a leave of absence.” Delilah released me and stood. She’d always thought better on her feet, and she reminded me of Stephen when she began pacing across my room. “Are you sure you want to keep it?”
It would be easier if I gave the baby up for adoption. But I’d never chosen easy. “I’m sure. I know I said I wanted my career first. After the way I grew up, I never wanted to be a young, single mother.” I cupped one hand over my flat abdomen. How long did I have before I wouldn’t be able to hide the truth? “I know how hard it can be, but I’m strong enough. I can do this.”
Delilah gave me a disbelieving look. “Okay. That’s your choice. But this next one is for all of your sakes.” She stopped pacing and rubbed her forehead. “Harmony, you can’t tell them you’re pregnant.”
“You mean not yet?” My voice rose. “Right?”
She shook her head, the motion slow and painful. “No. Not ever. That will only make things worse. You don’t know which one of them is the father. Learning one of them put a kid in you would cause strife. You don’t want to break up the Dream Team, do you?”
“No.” I didn’t want that. But why would it cause a problem? I tried to voice the question. “What if…”
“No.” Delilah returned to her seat and grasped my hands. “Trust me. They don’t need to know. They’ll lose everything if the truth comes out. You can’t risk that. Take a leave of absence, have the baby. When you come back in a year, it’ll be like it never happened. This is what’s best for everyone.”
What was best for everyone. I withheld my continued objections. Maybe Delilah had a point. I wanted to tell them because they deserved to know one of them had fathered a child.
Stephen. My heart constricted so hard I lost my breath. He’d lost his wife and daughter in childbirth. My pregnancy would bring all that history to the forefront. It might cause him to spiral into grief again.
Did I want to risk that? I shouldn’t be selfish enough to put him through the misery of my pregnancy. We’d promised no feelings, and having a baby together compromised all of that.
“Harmony?” Delilah squeezed my hands. “What are you thinking?”
“I won’t tell them.” Every word cost me a sharp pain beneath my ribs. They meant too much to me. Even if it was wrong for me to keep their child a secret, I’d do it to protect them.
29
MATTHEW
By the time I listened to Leighona attempt once again to claim the role of Cosette on Monday morning, I knew I had no choice. I stopped her when her voice cracked then fell off altogether. “Leighona, I’m sorry.”
Her head snapped up, her entire body turning to face me where I stood in the shadows off stage left. “What do you mean?” Even as she tried to talk, her voice failed. She raised a hand like she wanted to rub her throat but stopped with a glare in Harmony’s direction. “I thought you said the tea would help.”
“It should have.” Harmony’s eyes were wide and innocent.
“Really? Then why am I getting worse?” She stalked toward Harmony. “You’re sabotaging me.”
“Leighona, you and I have been drinking the same tea. You watch me make it, and you make me drink it before you do. So how could I be sabotaging you?”
