AllFreeNovel
Share Us
More than you would ever know. But there was no way I would say that, so I resorted to something a little more casual.
“Shut up.”
“It’s okay,” she yawned. “I know you care.”
Her fingers interlaced with mine. Then she tilted her head up. Her eyes were much duller than usual, but that little Amelia sparkle was there.
“How was work?” She smiled up at me. “Did you just get off?”
I brushed her cheek, loving the soft feel of her skin under my thumb. “I did. You should sleep.”
“But I want to talk to you instead.”
“I’ll be here when you wake up.”
“Promise?”
I nodded. “I promise.”
“Okay.” She turned back, resting the back of her head on my chest. Within minutes her breathing regulated, and she fell asleep in my arms. Her hands were still clutching onto mine, and her body was warm, but at least the medication would have time to work.
I lay with her for some time before I finally decided it was best for me to lay her down.
The wiser thing would have been to leave her to rest and check on her later, but I couldn’t bring myself to leave her like that. So I decided to stay and play Nurse Nate.
I cleaned her studio and even ordered some soup for her. I put away the dishes she had cleaned the night before and organized her desk.
While putting away one of her books, I spotted a picture on her desk. It was a Polaroid of me lying on her couch, knocked out cold. I remembered when this day was. She had been editing the entire day. I had come over for a quick little session, but I had been so tired from the day before that I just passed out cold. When I woke up again, the sun had fallen, and it was dinner time. She had made me some chicken soup and had forced me to watch Marvel movies.
She had said they were her favorite but hated them, from what I could tell. She had only done it because she knew I liked them.
That was the thing about Lia. She always thought of everyone else’s needs before her own. She was the embodiment of selflessness, which was even more apparent to me after today. She had the kindest and most gentle heart. And I had been an asshole.
I flipped the Polaroid around and saw her little inscription at the back.
‘My brooding sunshine’
I smiled.
Call it an aha moment, or call it whatever you want to. But in that second, that’s when it all fully clicked. I couldn’t deny it now, even if I wanted to.
I loved her.
I was in love with my brother’s ex-girlfriend and that scared the shit out of me.
27
AMELIA
I had been sick for the past two weeks. After that night, when Nate had come to nurse me back to health, I had been fine. But then I started feeling sick all over again. I had been unable to keep anything down for the past three days. Selena had joked that maybe I was with a child. Then when I thought back on it, I realized that I was three days late on my period.
Being on the pill made me very regular in my cycle. So it was odd that I was suddenly late.
But there was no way because I took the pill every day at the same time. I was very strict with myself, especially now that I was active. I needed to ensure that there were no slip-ups.
But that was a little late because I was reading the back of a pregnancy box.
“You just got to pee in it,” Selena called on the other side of the door. “Do it in the cup and then dip it in.”
