I snort, leaning back. “Trust you to give it straight.”
He claps me on the shoulder. “Sometimes you need a kick in the ass more than a drink. Go home, man. Give that girl the answer she needs—a promise you’ll stick around.”
I push to my feet. “Later, brother.”
Another grin. “Later, champ.”
Violet
The house is silent except for the hum of the microwave. I heat a frozen dinner I’ll probably never eat. I haven’t messaged him, haven’t chased him up, because I know he needs time. That doesn’t mean I haven’t spent the night overthinking and crying, trying to wrap my own head around it. I eat one bite of food, then groan and toss it, heading to bed. There is no point in even trying tonight, my brain isn’t going to let me do anything.
Somehow, I manage to fall into a deep sleep. It’s around midnight when I feel the mattress dip beside me. Travis’ arm snakes around me, heavy, reassuring. I freeze until he slips a hand under my shirt and palms my belly.
“Is there really a baby in there?”
I swallow the lump in my throat.
He came back.
“That’s what the doctor said.”
“My little bean,” he murmurs.
I blink. “Bean?”
He hums quietly. “Yeah.”
Tears sting my eyes as I roll toward him. “You came back.”
“I was out of line, kid. I shouldn’t have let you walk out thinking that I don’t want this.”
“I understand why you did,” I admit, my voice small. “We have been through a lot, and things aren’t exactly stable. It’s a big thing to happen, and I know that you are feeling the weight of it all.”
He traces a finger over my belly. “It’s not just that. I lost you once, Mischief, the idea of losing you again, with a baby, is fucking soul crushing.”
He thinks I would leave again, and take the baby?
My heart breaks.
“I won’t do that to you again. You are my heart. I can’t give it to you again because you’ve always had it. What happened between us is what helped us get here. But things are different now. I made a choice to be with you and I’m sticking to it.”
“I know,” he murmurs. “Fuck, I’m sorry I let you walk away.”
My voice wobbles. “So, does that mean you’re okay with the baby? Because I need you to be okay.”
He rolls me onto my back and props himself on an elbow, staring down at me. “I was floored, yeah. But I’m okay. We’ve done hard things before, this should be a walk in the park.”
“Really?” My chest tightens with hope.
“Really,” he whispers, pressing a kiss to my forehead. “I’m already a dad.”
“I worry it’s too soon.”
“Mischief, we’ve been two halves of the same whole since we were kids. There’s never a wrong time for us.”
“I love you,” I whisper.
“As much as I love you, I hope.”
“Probably more.”
He laughs, laying back down beside me.
After a moment, I whisper into the darkness. “We made a baby, rockstar.”
“Yeah,” he murmurs, then laughs. “We fuckin’ did.”