Page 201 of Halo

A year ago, I probably would have.

Instead, I look at her and think about everything she survived to get here.

My hand settles low on my abdomen.

There will never be a baby there.

That still hurts. I think some part of me will always grieve the children I thought I would carry, because for so long motherhood wasn’t simply something I wanted. It was woven into every version of my future.

Except somehow, the future I planned never gave me Grady.

It never gave me Nick.

Life took almost nothing resembling the path I begged God for, and somehow I ended up happier than I ever knew how to ask to be.

Then a thought hits me.

My eggs.

I grab my phone and call the storage facility before I can talk myself out of it.

After several minutes of verifying my information, I finally ask, “I know my account was delinquent. I just need to know if my eggs are still there.”

“Oh, yes, ma’am. Your account is current.”

I sit straighter. “What?”

“The outstanding balance was paid, and you’re enrolled in automatic payments.”

“I didn’t enroll in automatic payments.”

There’s a pause and the sound of typing.

“I can’t provide the card information over the phone, but I can confirm the authorized payer listed on the account.”

My heart starts pounding.

“Who?”

Another pause.

“Nicholas Crawford.”

Nick comes upstairs later carrying a plate with a grilled cheese cut diagonally and a handful of crackers.

“Before you judge me, everybody downstairs is eating enchiladas, and I figured your stomach probably didn’t need that kind of excitement.”

“You figured correctly.”

He hands me the plate, then settles beside me on the bed.

I take one bite before looking at him. “I called the storage place.”

His eyes flick toward mine.

“I know what you did.”

“Technically, you’re paying me back.”