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Riley digs into his pocket and produces a set of keys. He unlocks the door and pushes it open, stepping aside to let me in. The layout of his condo is pretty similar to Jackson’s. There’s a small kitchen with a large island to the left and a living/dining room combo immediately off the entryway. The space is tidy for the most part with the exception of several empty liquor bottles on the counter. Geez, that’s a lot of alcohol. Has Riley become a heavy drinker? I raise an eyebrow as I wonder but say nothing.
RILEY
DEVYN IS EYEING THE empty bottles of liquor in my kitchen. What gives her the right to judge me for having a rough night when she’s been hiding my son from me? For almost five years! What possible reason could she have for doing something so fucking selfish?
I still haven’t said a word at this point and I can tell that it’s making her nervous. Good.
She nods towards the couch. “Do you mind if I take a seat for this?”
I cross my arms. “By all means, make yourself comfortable.”
She winces. Probably from the tone in my voice that says I want her to be anything but comfortable right now. Remaining completely silent, I continue staring her down.
She slinks down into the cushions and sighs. “Please say something.”
“I’m pretty sure you don’t want to hear what I’m thinking right now,” I scoff. “It’s probably better if you start.”
“Ugh, I really should’ve grabbed a coffee first,” she groans.
I storm over to her and shove my cup from the coffee house into her hand. I’m towering over her right now and I’m irritated at how badly I want to take her into my arms. I angrily step back and sit on a barstool across the room.
“Talk, Devyn.”
RILEY
SHE TAKES A SIP of my coffee. “You still drink mochas, huh?”
I scrub my hand over my stubbled jaw. “I wasn’t talking about the fucking coffee, Devyn. Help me understand why in the hell you thought it would be a good idea to hide the fact that we have a child together.”
She takes a deep breath. “I called you as soon as I found out. You were too busy plying some girl with drinks to answer.”
I think about that for a minute. Oh hell, she must be talking about the time that annoying girl answered my phone in Boston. “Jesus, Devyn. One phone call? You didn’t think something like this was important enough to try again?”
She juts her chin out and glares at me. Fucking glares! “Not one phone call, Riley. Twelve! Eleven phone calls and countless text messages after our night in the hotel. And another attempt almost two years later but you had changed your phone number. It was pretty clear you had no interest in speaking with me.”
I run my hand over my head. “That’s what this is about? I was a stupid kid! You should have tried harder.”
She stands up and flings her arms out, spraying coffee all over the hardwood floors. “That’s my point, Riley! I was having a kid! I didn’t have the luxury of indulging a grown man who couldn’t pull his head out of his ass and see what was right in front of him! I didn’t have time to try harder! I had seven months to figure out a new plan in life. It wasn’t just me anymore. I had another human being that I was going to be responsible for. I needed to focus on that, not trying to make you talk to me.”
“You still should have told me,” I grumble.
She sits back down and hangs her head in her hands. “Yeah, maybe I should have. But I was scared. And heartbroken. And hormonal. That’s not exactly a good recipe for rational thought.”
One word sticks out. “Heartbroken?”
She lifts her head and rolls her eyes. “Oh please, Rye. Are you really going to make me say it?”
I walk towards her and sit on the edge of the coffee table. She shivers when our knees touch. “Say what?”
She stares at her hands. “That night…it meant something to me. I know that wasn’t part of the deal, but I know you felt it too. For whatever reason, you obviously weren’t willing to acknowledge it and that hurt. After everything we’d been through…we knew each other better than anyone, yet you chose to run. It hurt.”
Every bit of anger I had inside of me melts. I lift her chin with my finger. “I was a coward.”
She laughs mirthlessly. “You think?”
Tears are forming in her eyes and it’s killing me. I lean in closer. “Devyn, I—”
Her phone rings, startling us both. She pulls it out of her purse and I can see that the asshole from last night is calling.
