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“It can do that?” I gasp.
“Oh yeah, and I feel really stupid because I should’ve thought of that, but then we were using condoms, almost every time, but there’s still a small chance they’re not effective.”
“Jesus.”
“Yeah, I know.” She sighs, and I can tell her mind is racing. “So that brings me to why I’m here, aside from telling you the news of course. Once I found out, I contemplated on what my next step should be. I thought about just raising the baby on my own and being a single mom because I thought dropping this huge bomb on you would be too crazy for you to handle. Not that you can’t handle it, just that people don’t typically expect to start a life with someone they were just randomly hooking up with on vacation…”
My eyes burn into her as she continues to nervously ramble on, and as much as I want to tell her to stop—that this isn’t too much for me to handle—I allow her to continue. “Anyway, once I finally came to terms with it, I decided I’m definitely keeping the baby. I wanted to come and inform you out of respect, but basically, tell you I don’t expect anything from you. We live completely different lives, so you can be as involved or not as you want, no pressure.”
What? Was she seriously thinking I’d walk away from her? From our baby?
“What?” I blurt out. Was being delusional a symptom of pregnancy? It had to be if she thought I’d let her get away again.
“Well, it’s just I live in Wisconsin, and you live here, and like you said, you never want to leave Texas, so the only thing I can think of is to—”
“Move here,” I blurt out, interrupting her words.
She blinks, looking up at me. “What?” Her voice is soft, almost a whisper.
“Move here, River,” I plead. “I want you. I never stopped. Let me take care of you. Let me provide for our baby.”
Her breath hitches, and I can tell she wasn’t expecting that kind of a reaction from me. “I have a life back home, and what if—”
“We can have a life here. Why not?”
“I’d be lying if I said the thought hadn’t crossed my mind, knowing that’d be the most logical and smart choice, but how? We’re basically strangers. How are we going to raise a baby together?”
“Well, I wouldn’t say we’re strangers exactly.” I grin, and she flashes me a mock smile. “Okay, listen.” I take her hand and hold it gently in mine. “I’ve thought of nothing except you for the past three months. I’ve been angry, sad, furious, heartbroken…and I had just talked myself into moving on and getting over you. I couldn’t continue to live with the fact that things ended the way they did.” She visibly cringes, and I feel bad for bringing it up at a time like this. “However, that same day you walked back into my life and told me I’m going to be a father. If that’s not fate, River, then I don’t know what is.”
Her lips part but no words come out. She closes her eyes, and I know she’s trying not to cry.
“River…” I whisper, tilting her chin up so she’ll look at me. “We can do this together. Let me do this with you.”
Her chest moves as she inhales a deep breath, and I know she’s already been considering it. “I don’t want to be a relationship out of convenience, Alex. I wish I could say I have enough confidence to just let us be together, but it’ll always be in the back of my mind. Then what if we try, and it doesn’t work out? How are we going to raise a baby together then? And how would this even work, given our history? Do we date? Do we start over? Do we pretend we didn’t spend any time apart and continue where we left off? What if—”
“River!” I press my finger to her lips, needing her to stop rambling because it’s all nonsense. Her insecurities are nothing she needs to worry about, and I honestly can’t even believe she’d have them.
“I. Want. You.” I pluck her bottom lip with the pad of my thumb. “I wasn’t lying when I said I haven’t thought of anyone except you, which you should know, never happens to me. Trust me when I say I’ve been driving my brothers and Dylan insane talking about you nonstop.” I chuckle, and she flashes me a small smile. “So, to answer your questions, what if everything works out? What if I show you and prove that we can make this work, however you want to do it, but I’m not letting you go this time. Do you hear me? I stupidly left last time without telling you my honest feelings, but I’m not going anywhere now. We’re having a baby.”
