Page 41 of Falling for You
“In March. I found out I was pregnant right after the Valentine’s Dance, but then I lost the baby as soon as I found out and I … I …” her tears are spilling down her cheeks faster, staining the silk tank top.
“Does everyone… is that why you stayed away? Is that why...” I have too many questions running through my mind.
“No one knows but Mom. And I just told her the other day when we went shopping. Don’t worry Hunt won’t find out.” Her face drops.
I pull her into my arms, “Sunshine, I don’t give a shit about that. I just want you to be okay, you never told anyone then you stayed away from everyone who cared about you for months.” Her tears soak my shirt. “Clearly you are not okay. What can I do?”
“Nothing. I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you, and that I am telling you after you made this such a good night. And now I’m just adding to the stress you’re under. I just… I want… Hearing you talk about how it should be us hurts so much because we were so close to it being us and I just don’t know what to do about it. But I like to think that Blair is with our baby, while we’re with hers. It makes me feel better to think that way. Like she knew I needed Olivia to fill the hole in my heart.”
I crush my lips to hers. I can’t bear to hear more right now. I just want to take all the pain from her.
I can’t believe she kept this to herself for so long. I should have been there for her. I should have done something for her, cried with her. Instead I was here being a fucking coward, afraid to tell my best friend that I’m in love with his sister. I want to be mad that she didn’t tell me, but the guilt that she did this on her own begins to eat at me. She never should have been alone.
I pull back from her. “I’m going to make everything right, Sunshine. I’m going to tell Hunter right now. I’m going to…”
She places her finger to my lips. “No you aren’t. I don’t want this to be the reason. I want to be the reason. Don’t do anything that you weren’t already ready to do.”
She wipes a tear from my cheek, I didn’t realize that I was crying along with her.
“What can I do?” I whisper to her. I want to fix everything for her. I want to take away all her pain about the baby, about Olivia, about all of it.
“Just this, Stud. Just hold me.” I squeeze her tight. If this is what she needs, I’m here to do it.
Until we hear Olivia crying from her room.
She’s been sleeping so well, it’s almost as if she can sense the emotions from us. “I’ll go get her,” I offer, but Emma is already getting up.
“I got it. Don’t worry. I need to take care of her right now.”
My mind is racing with Emma’s revelation and I don’t want to be away from her and Olivia right now.
I go off to Olivia’s room in search of my girls. I find her sitting in the rocking chair, looking at Olivia and crying. Olivia is whimpering and not settling.
“I think she knows we’re upset. I tried to not be around her. But looking at her sweet little face just makes all of it hit me all over again.”
“Come on,” I take Olivia in one arm, and lace my other hand with Emma’s.
I tug them along into my room and settle us on my bed, turning on the show we had started in the living room.
We snuggle in on my pillows until Emma’s breathing is soft, and Olivia has fallen asleep alongside her. I gently take Olivia back to her room to sleep, and return to Emma.
Everything in my world feels right again to have her by my side. I won’t continue to fuck this up.
I wake up and stretch out, hitting a warm, hard body next to me. Suddenly I’m hit with a memory of telling Roman about the miscarriage last night. And falling asleep in his arms with Olivia.
Oh shit.I hope I didn’t roll over on her. I throw the sheets back looking around the bed when Rome wakes up.
“What happened?” He has no idea what is going on but he joins me in looking through the sheets.
“Olivia!”
“She’s in her crib, Sunshine. I just gave her a bottle a couple hours ago, she’s asleep.”
“Oh, thank God.” My hand flies to my chest. “I thought we crushed her in our sleep.”
I let myself fall back to the pillows and he pulls me into his side. “I put her to bed after you both fell asleep.”
I roll to face him, placing some distance between us. “I’m sorry about last night, for just dumping all that on you.”
