Page 68 of Let’s Be Real

Nate and I exchanged another alarmed look. He mouthed, “Again?” and I shrugged.

As carefully as I could, I said, “With someone besides Scarlet?”

She tossed her arms to the side. “I don’t know. Probably.” Then she covered her face and sank to the floor, sobs racking her shoulders.

I stared for a beat until I couldn’t bear hearing her crying anymore and sat down on the floor beside her. As soon as I was near, she turned and buried her face in my shoulder, wrapping her arms around me like a life raft.

I stroked her back and rocked her a little. I wasn’t sure if it was the right thing to do, but she went along with it, crying until my shirt was soaked and all she could push out were hiccups and shuddering whimpers.

“Did something happen tonight?” I finally asked.

“No.” She dug her face deeper into my shoulder. “Well, not with Josh. Decker and Georgia had their baby this morning, and when I went to the hospital to see them, it hit me. It’s really over. We were going to start trying for a baby on our honeymoon, and now I have to get back on the dating apps. I don’t want to be an old mom, Sammie. Why did he do this to me?”

Jab, jab, jab.

Not even a prick. More like a machete directly to my sternum.

“Is the baby okay? What did they have?”

Kelly sniffled and lifted her head, wiping her eyes with her sleeve. “Oh, the baby’s fine. A cute, chubby little girl. They named her Riley. Isn’t that sweet?”

“Sweet, yeah,” I echoed.

My throat was tight. A million thoughts bounced off my skull. Decker had a daughter. My brother was a dad. I had a niece. Riley.

If Kelly hadn’t shown up here tonight, I wondered if anyone would have told me. I already knew the answer. I would have found out months from now when my mother mentioned something offhandedly at a family affair I was obliged to attend.

The realization settled heavily in my chest. It shouldn’t have surprised me, though. I’d spent years drifting further and further from my family, and they hadn’t fought to keep me close. Still, finding out this way felt different.

Kelly sniffled again, wiping at her swollen eyes, and guilt immediately chased away the hurt. This wasn’t about me. Not while my sister was grieving a future she’d spent years building.

Swallowing the lump in my throat, I forced myself to focus on her.

“Thirty is young. You have so much time to find a man who will love you the way you deserve.”

“Thirty is too ancient to be starting from scratch. You’re lucky you found Nate when you did—before it was too late.” She choked on a sob, and all I could do was pat her back, hoping she’d cry herself out sooner rather than later.

Fortunately, Nate was more proactive than me.

He appeared beside us, a box of tissues under his arm and two oversized glasses of wine. His gaze bounced between Kelly and me, taking in her tear-streaked face and my helpless one.

His mouth tightened. “Okay…” He set the wine on the coffee table. “Both of you, up.”

Kelly blinked at him.

I blinked at him.

Neither of us moved.

Nate sighed and placed the wineglasses on my coffee table.

“Come on.” He held out a hand to Kelly first. “Floor time is over.”

Something warm unfurled in my hacked-up chest as he hauled her to her feet then reached for me. His hand wrapped around mine, easily pulling me off the floor.

But he didn’t let me go when I was upright. He kept pulling until I was flush with his chest and wrapped his arms around me, holding me tight.

I rubbed my face against his shoulder, releasing a tremulous sigh.