Page 91 of Slayin Villain
He walked ahead of me, trailing a hand over the edge of a sleek modern crib with brass trim.“This looks like it belongs in one of them influencer nurseries.”
“I’m not that kind of mom.”
His head snapped toward me.“What kind are you?”
I paused.“The kind that wants her kid to be safe.Loved.To not grow up wondering if their father gave a damn.”
He flinched.Good.
But then he straightened, squared his shoulders, and nodded.“Then we’re gettin’ the sturdiest damn crib in here.That one,” he said, pointing to a rugged oak piece in the corner.“Looks like it could survive an apocalypse.”
I laughed before I could stop myself.“It does look indestructible.”
“So’s this kid,” he muttered.“Already got a hell of a mama.”
We ended up picking out more than just a crib.
He helped me decide on soft sage green sheets.We argued over stuffed animals.He insisted on a wolf, I chose a rabbit.He carried everything out to my car like it was sacred.
But when we got in the car, silence settled in.
“I didn’t think I’d be here,” he said quietly.“I didn’t think I’d be allowed to be.”
“I didn’t think I wanted you here,” I admitted.
He nodded.“I get that.”
I glanced at him.“But… you’re showing up.That matters.”
His hand reached over, hovered for a second, then rested lightly on mine.“I don’t just want to be the guy who shows up now and then.I want to be the guy who stays.”
“You said that once before.Right before Ember.”
He flinched again.But this time, he didn’t pull away.
“I let the past twist me up,” he said.“Thought if she was pregnant, I had to do the right thing.Thought that was love, but it wasn’t.It was guilt.Obligation.You, you were always something else.”
“And what am I now?”I asked, voice softer than I meant.
He looked at me, eyes stormy and raw.“You’re the one I can’t forget.The one I can’t stop fighting for.The one I…”
I put up a hand.“Don’t say it.Not yet.”
He nodded.“Fair.”
But that look in his eyes?
That look said it all.
We got back to my place just as the sun was starting to dip, that late summer gold making the world look like a movie.
Villain was carrying the last of the crib boxes inside when my phone buzzed on the counter.
It was a message from Eve.
Eve: Hey darlin, you okay?Just wanted to check in.We had a little drama earlier.Ember and Rome… things ain’t good.
My stomach twisted.
