Page 2 of I Replaced His Husband
I had nothing to offer him, only my body.
I walked slowly over to the nightstand and picked up the photo of Maurice. It had been lying there face-down. One of the few they hadn’t packed away in the attic.
His face smiled up at me, those gray eyes catching the light, full of life and warmth. That smile… it felt too joyful now. Almost mocking.
Why were you so reckless? I loved you more than anything. You were my anchor, my guardian angel, my world.
And now this.
My lips trembled. I hated what I had to do. I hated what Fate had pushed me into.
I nearly threw the photo against the wall, but stopped myself just in time.
Pointless. Stupid. Maurice hadn’t chosen this; it was the brakes. Faulty brakes decided how our love story ended.
My hand dropped to my lower stomach, where a faint cramp reminded me that he was gone. His supportive strength, his energy, his child growing inside me… all of it was fading.
So now, there was only one thing left to do, find a new source of energy, a new alpha.
Simply, I had to push through it.
I could only hope the man downstairs was strong enough to weather me, that he’d understand why I was like this, why I needed what I did, and why I wouldn’t—couldn’t—make it into something normal.
Because I didn’t plan on showing him gratitude or kindness. Not now. Maybe not ever.
RAIN
We stood just by the stairs leading up to Kay's room. I was fresh out of the shower, had grabbed a quick bite, but still felt out of place.
Adam and Marco looked tense, both watching me like I was some kind of last-ditch hope for their brother. But that was ridiculous. Inside, I felt like a string pulled too tight, buzzing with panic and anticipation, full of that jittery, weakening fear that only shows up right before life shifts in a big way.
Marco gave me a pat on the back. Adam squeezed my hand.
"You’re doing the right thing. This is positive. Helpful," he said. But it came out a little too rehearsed, and the slight tremble in his mouth gave him away.
"It’s still going to feel like a violation," I murmured, looking away from his uneasy expression. "No way around it."
"He agreed, Rain. He’s in pain. He needs this. You know that."
"Let’s be real. Most of the pain is from losing his husband. The pregnancy cravings are just a side issue."
Marco snorted, clearly annoyed. He’d drifted a little away, like he didn’t want to stand too close. I didn’t know him nearly as well as Adam, my old college roommate. Marco had been a couple of years ahead of us, but we’d hung out some back then. Despite his clear discomfort with the whole situation, he eventually came around, because he deeply cared about Kay. Now his eyes, cobalt blue and hard, locked on mine.
"But they’rereal. And constant. We’ve been over this already. It’s gotten worse since the first time we talked. This past month has been hell. He barely sleeps. We were at the doctor’s yesterday because he had some residual bleeding. The baby is small. And there’s an issue with the placenta. Kay could lose the pregnancy, and that would destroy him. Nothing matters more than stopping that."
Stress, or maybe just plain irresponsibility. That’s one way to describe thesnapdecision they made four days ago when they called: agitated, desperate.
I was a stranger to their brother, a wild card. And yet, they summoned me.
Now the stress was mine too, and I pressed both hands to my temples. I probably looked like I was getting cold feet, but it was too late now. Standing here, staring at the stairs, it was suddenly all too tangible. My eyes drifted toward the second floor, where Kay was waiting.
"I just wish he’d let us talk first. Get to know each other, anything. Not like this, total strangers."
Marco was absently fiddling with the paper showing my STD test results, folding one corner over and over.
Adam answered. "It’s better this way. He’s not in a place for a relationship. Besides, you’re not atotalstranger. We’ve been friends forever. He’s heard plenty about you, we talk. We even gossip, you know?" He tried to smirk.
It didn’t work. I couldn’t even pretend to smile back.
