Page 151 of Keller

"Quinn's pregnant."

The words hang in the humid air between us.

Cain lowers his bottle. His hazel eyes catch the string lights. "Yours?"

"Yeah."

He nods slowly, but doesn't ask for details. He also doesn't crack a joke, which I appreciate. I know that takes extreme self-control on his part.

"Four months." I take a drink. The beer tastes like nothing. "She told me tonight."

"How are you feeling about it?"

How am I feeling?

I laugh. It sounds hollow even to my own ears. "I have no idea."

Cain stretches his legs out, crossing his ankles. "That's big."

We sit in silence. A dog barks somewhere down the street. The string lights flicker again.

“I want to tell you something I've never told you.”

The words sit between us for a second before I decide not to take them back.

Cain glances over, brow tightening. “Are you about to tell me about your secret fetish? Because if so, I'm good. Best to keep those things to yourself.”

I ignore his sarcasm.

“A couple of months ago, I went to Savannah.”

He frowns slightly. “Uh huh…”

“To find the man in those photographs with Mom. The ones you found in Dad’s office.”

Recognition flickers. “Oh, right, the old photos. And that receipt and hotel key?”

“Yeah.”

He nods once, waiting.

“I tracked him down. His name’s Charlton Grant. He's a preservation architect.” I take a slow pull from my beer and set it on the deck rail. “I went there ready to confront him about the affair.”

Cain’s head turns sharply. “The what?”

“The affair.” I look straight ahead instead of at him. “I thought Mom was cheating on Dad. I thought that’s what she and Dad were fighting about the night she died.”

The words hang there. I’ve never said them out loud to anyone.

Cain goes very still. “You thought Mom was having an affair?”

“I heard them, Cain.” My jaw tightens as the memory presses in. “I woke up to them yelling at each other, so I came out and sat on the top of the stairs. They were both screaming, and Dad accused her. He told her to get out. That's why she left that night.”

Cain doesn’t interrupt.

“She got in the car, and she never came back.” I swallow. “So I assumed he was right. I had so many emotions about it. About her betraying him and us, about him pushing her out, and her leaving upset.”

“Does anyone else know this? You never said anything.”