Page 106 of Beneath the Surface

I snort under my breath. “And to take a pregnancy test,” I mutter.

Chase snaps his head to me, and so does Lee, her eyes narrowing. “If you’ve got somethin’ to say, Lily, you can just come right out and say it.”

Dropping the crayon, I raise my hands. “I didn’t say a thing.”

“Pwegnanc-eeeeeeee,” a tiny voice to my left croons.

Shit.

Chase’s eyes grow wide, his head twisting back to Lee.

“Nope,” she says, throwing her hands up. “Nope. Nope. We arenothavin’ this conversation right now. I’ll be inside.”

She hustles away and Chase sits down across from me, running a hand through his hair. “Do you really think...?”

I shrug. “That’s between you and her. I just know when I was pregnant with this one.” I point to baby Chase. “I was throwing upconstantly.” My fingers scratch at my wrist. “That being said, I was also going through heavy withdrawal, so who’s to say? Your fiancée done any hard drugs lately?” I smile wide, attempting to lighten the mood.

It doesn’t work.

“That’s not funny, Lil.”

My stomach tenses, but I soften my smile. “Sometimes humor is the best way to cope.”

He blows out a breath, his eyes glancing around the patio. Leaning forward, his elbows rest on the table. “Listen, no one who is coming knows about us being engaged. We were thinking of announcing it today. So until we do, mind keeping it quiet?”

My brows shoot up, shock circling through my insides. “What?No one knows yet?”

He smiles. “It happened the same day I found out where you were. I’ve been a bit preoccupied.”

Guilt spirals through my center but I ignore the heaviness. It’s not anewfeeling, after all. “Well.” I mime zipping my lips. “Mum’s the word. Your secret’s safe with me.”

Ten minutes later, the doorbell rings, making my body jolt. I grip the purple crayon in my fist, taking deep breaths. My nerves are frayed, my mind having had all evening to run through the ten thousand different ways this reunion could go.

Mainly, I’m scared of Becca.

While she was never as close with me as Lee, at the end of the day it was still the three of us. But Becca never held on to friendships quite as tight, especially when someone else was already letting go. And I pulled away first, I won’t deny it, which made it easy for her to wash her hands, firmly aligning herself to Lee’s camp, becoming protective of her and pushing me to the side.

Speak of the devil, and she’ll appear.

Becca walks through the back patio, her curly red hair bouncing with every step, and anextremelyattractive blond guy with his hand around her waist. My hands press against my thighs, and I swallow down the anxiety, preparing for the worst. Becca isn’t one to hold back her sharp tongue and her opinions.

Chase walks over, his eyes bouncing from me to baby Chase. “Hey, man, you want to come learn how to flip burgers on the grill?”

Baby Chase’s eyes light up and he squeals, scrambling off his booster seat. I reach out to help him, but he barely touches my hand before he’s off and running to his uncle. My heart spasms against my sternum at the sight of them.

I’ll go through whatever steps I need, and face off anyone from my past, no matter how terrifying and hurtful. Because my baby boy deserves to have his family.

“Well, look at what the cat dragged in.” Becca stands at the head of the table, her hip cocked to the side, as she stares me dead in the eye. Immediately, I can sense a difference from the girl I knew; a softness surrounding her like an aura. It makes me slightly less on edge.

I force a grin. “Hi, Becca.”

Her lips twitch. “Is that all I get? A ‘hi’? After you up and disappeared, leavin’ us all here in shambles?”

My insides squeeze tight, nerves racing through my insides.I don’t know if I can do this.

Her arms open wide and her lips curl up. “Theleastyou can do is get over here and give me a hug.” Shock floods my chest, drizzling down through my extremities like a watering can, dousing the nerves with relief.

I stand up slowly, a flush rising on my cheeks as I move toward her. She pulls me in, wrapping me in her arms. I sink into her hold, trying like hell to stem the tears from where they’re burning behind my eyes. The BeccaIknew would never have done this. She would have strung me up with her cutting words, and beaten me blue out of spite. It makes me wonder what happened to make her able to lead with love instead of fire.

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