Page 116 of The Sleeping Girls

ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-ONE

Cord waited until the morning crowd died down before stopping at the café. Lola had left half a dozen messages the night before and two this morning, saying that she had something important to show him.

Guilt nagged at him. She wanted him to move in with her. He’d turned her down before. But now… the baby needed a father.

He had to learn how to be one. Even if his heart belonged to another woman.

When he entered, a few patrons were left but his bar stool was empty, so he crossed the room and sank onto it. Lola popped out from the back with a smile.

“Hey, it’s about time you got here.”

“It was a long night.”

“I saw the news report. Y’all found the girls.”

“Yeah, they should be home by now with their families.”

“Speaking of families,” Lola said. “Come back to my office.”

Confused, Cord followed her into the small space, filled with recipe files and photographs of her dishes displayed on a bulletin board.

Lola removed something from a manila envelope then handed it to him. Cord narrowed his eyes. It looked like an X-ray.

Lola curled her fingers around his arm. “It’s a sonogram of our baby.”

Cord’s breath stalled as he looked down at the small dark blob on the ultrasound. Except for the head, he could hardly distinguish any features.

His gaze met hers. “Is it a boy or girl?” he said, his voice thick.

“We won’t know for a few more weeks.” She took his hand and pressed it over her belly. “But seeing this makes it feel so real. And I got to hear the heartbeat.”

Cord’s throat closed. Lola cupped his face in her hands and kissed him. It was breathy and fast and the world blurred for a moment. When she released him, she accidentally knocked the envelope off her desk and it fluttered to the floor.

He stooped to pick it up and saw the label on the outside. Baby Parks. Due Date: May 1.

May 1?

He was going to have a May baby.

Excitement burst inside him. A beat later, he looked at the date again.

He mentally calculated the months. The last time he’d been with Lola was Memorial Day weekend. Nine months from that… would be February.

His fingers tightened on the envelope. This had to be some mistake. The timing didn’t fit. “Lola, the due date is not till May?”

Her eyes widened and she snatched the envelope. For a moment she simply stared at it, biting her lip. Her hand began to shake and tears filled her eyes.

“The baby isn’t mine, is it?” Anger sharpened his tone as he realized she’d lied to him.

Her lower lip quivered.

“Is it mine?” he asked.

Her hand trembled as she shoved the envelope onto the desk, and he took her by the arms and forced her to look at him.

“Tell me the truth.”

“I… wanted it… to be yours,” she said in a choked whisper.

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