That night I sat alone in the guest room, huge bed, white linens, ocean view through floor-to-ceiling windows. Hand on my belly.
Whispered to the baby.
"We'll make it work. Somehow."
But doubt crept in hard.
This wasn't a home.
It was a prison.
And I didn't know how to get out.
Chapter 15
Hadley
Cal texted me the appointment details the night before like he was scheduling a dentist visit. “Ultrasound tomorrow, 10 a.m.Sharp. I’ll drive.” No emoji. No “you okay?” Just time and place. I stared at the message until my eyes burned, thumb hovering over the keyboard. Part of me wanted to type back “I’ll go alone” and mean it. The other part, the exhausted, scared, lonely part, wanted him there. Wanted him to see the screen. Hear the heartbeat. Maybe then something in him would crack open.
I didn’t reply. Just set an alarm for 7:30.
Morning came gray and heavy. I woke Eli gently, rubbed his back until his eyes opened. “Time to get up, bud.” He mumbled something about trains, rolled over. I helped him brush his teeth, combed his hair, pulled on his favorite blue train shirt. The house felt too big without Zariah’s laugh echoing down the hall. She’d left yesterday after hugging me so hard I thought my ribs would crack, promising to call tonight, promising to visit soon. I missed her already.
Cal was in the foyer when we came down. Jeans. Black hoodie. Sunglasses even though the sky was overcast. He glanced at Eli, quick, almost awkward, then at me.
“Ready?” he asked.
“Yeah.” I adjusted Eli’s backpack. “You sure you want to come?”
He rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s my kid too.”
I nodded. Didn’t push.
We walked outside. The black SUV was already running. Syd was in the passenger seat. Legs crossed. Phone in hand. She looked up, smiled that too-sweet smile.
“Morning, family.”
My stomach dropped. “She’s coming?”
Cal opened the back door for Eli. “She asked. I said yes.”
I stared at him. “This is my appointment. Our baby. Not hers.”
Syd twisted around. “I’m just here for support. Cal’s nervous. I thought I could help.”
Kei appeared from the garage, keys dangling. He saw Syd in the front seat, saw my face, sighed like he’d seen this movie before.
“Syd,” he said quietly. “Back off. This is between Cal and Hadley.”
She laughed, soft, almost hurt. “It’s fine, Kei. I’m not crashing the ultrasound. Just riding along. Cal said it was okay.”
Kei looked at Cal. “You good with this?”
Cal exhaled through his nose. “She’s family.”
Syd turned to him, voice dropping to that small, trembling tone she used when she wanted something. “You promised. You said I could come.”
Cal’s jaw ticked. “Yeah. It’s fine.”
