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When the tears slowed to silent streams, he pulled away, peering into my face with a look so full of worry I tried to force a smile for him.
“I’m fine.”
It was little more than a rasp. My throat and eyes burned from crying, the gaping hole in my chest refusing to let me pretend.
Michael cocked a brow, calling my lie without saying a word. Gulping the evening air, I wiped my cheeks and straightened my shoulders, wrapping the ache around myself. If I hurt, I was still alive, and I had a family to take care of.
“I’ll be fine. It’s for the best.”
He continued to stare at me for a moment before speaking.
“I take it that was Leo, and he’s not coming back?”
I had thought I’d purged the worst of the pain, but those words sent a spike through my chest that forced my hands to clench at it, and another lump entered my throat.
“Yes.”
The one word was all I could manage.
Michael stood, reaching down to take my hands and pull me up to wrap me in a hug that felt like it was squeezing my pieces back together.
“We’ll love your baby enough without him.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Cadence
Days blurred together, the hollow ache in my chest never leaving despite doing everything I could not to think of Leo. It was impossible not to when each morning I saw the evidence of his time in my life as my belly grew. The bump was still small, unnoticeable to others once I was dressed, but its impact was huge.
I didn’t realize two weeks had passed until a reminder popped up on my phone for my next doctor appointment.
Two weeks since I’d seen him.
Since I’d heard his voice.
I had to choke back the urge to vomit all over my desk. My depression had become a physical thing, leaving me nauseous and drained no matter what I did.
It didn’t matter that my mind agreed this was for the best, I still missed him.
His scent…
His warmth…
The feel of his body covering mine…
Gathering my things, I said goodbye to Wendy and made my way out of the office. The heat of the day hit me as soon as the doors opened, sapping what little energy I had. Shoulders drooping and head bowed, I opted to take the bus the few blocks to the OB’s office instead of walking.
Even the cheery voice of the receptionist when I arrived couldn’t stir more than a pathetic twitch from my lips. I did my best to fake being okay at work, but I was running out of the will to care what others saw. Only the need to keep my position kept me trying.
Dropping into the first open seat I came to, I looked around for something to distract me from the memories trying to shove their way into my head. Memories of Leo sitting beside me, holding my hand, the nervous excitement clear to me despite him trying to hide it.
My heart clenched again, and I had to swallow hard to force the lump that rose out of my throat.
Voices drew my attention to the corner of the room, the news playing on the TV hanging near the ceiling.
“Shots were heard downtown again last night, and this time there were witnesses to the gunfight that happened outside one of the most popular, but questionable, clubs in the city. Two men were visibly wounded, yet when paramedics arrived, there was no one to be found, and no one arrived at the local hospitals with injuries.
“This seems connected to the ongoing issue that’s been taking place throughout the city over the last few weeks, but no one can say what’s going on. The police believe there’s a gang war happening in our streets, and they’re begging anyone with information to come forward so they can put an end to the nightly firefights before innocent lives are lost.”
