She wrapped her arms around herself and shook her head. “I think I just need to cope tonight, Jensen. I don’t fault you for having a son. I love Lilyanne, and now, I understand why you’re so good with her. But I just fear that you’ll never really trust me. Maybe you’ll never trust anyone again.”
Her words lingered between us.
Half an accusation, half a prayer.
I didn’t know what to say to that. Had I not trusted her? Had I really been trying to push her away? I’d been planning to tell her, yet that hadn’t been enough. Landon had known that when he had confronted me two weeks ago. Even if I had told her tomorrow, she would have been upset. I could see that now. Falling in love with someone and leaving out the most important thing in your life was showing no trust at all.
I could see the hurt and despair in her eyes. That I had claimed to love her, yet I had fed her lies about my life.
She turned her face away from me, and I was struggling to find words when her phone started ringing from the pocket of her coat.
“Kimber,” she whispered when she checked the screen. Her mouth opened slightly in worry. She picked up the phone right away. “Hey! What’s going on? Is everything okay?” There was silence as I waited for an answer. “Yes. Yes. I’ll be right there. Do you need anything? Okay. Don’t worry about it.”
She hung up, and I knew what had happened.
“She’s gone into labor?” I asked.
“Yes. I need to get home, so I can drive over to the hospital.”
“What about Lilyanne?”
“My mom is watching her.”
“Then, I’ll have the limo drop you off.”
“No—”
“We’re going straight there,” I insisted.
“Okay,” she said.
She didn’t argue at all, which was a sure sign of how worried and excited she was for Kimber.
I told the limo driver where to go, and we sped off to the hospital. The rest of the ride was silent. She was brimming with nerves about her sister, and I couldn’t bear to bring up what had happened with us and what we were going to do next.
The driver stopped in front of the entrance to the hospital wing where the maternity ward was.
“Thank you for dropping me off,” she whispered.
“You’re welcome. Tell Kimber good luck.”
“I will.”
She reached behind her, unclasped the necklace, and held it out to me. “You should keep this.”
“It was a gift.”
“It’s your mother’s. I only want you to give it to me if this works out. And, right now…”
She dropped the necklace into my palm, and I suddenly felt cold.
“Right now what?”
She started to slide away from me, but I reached out and pulled her in close.
“What does this mean for us?”
She shook her head. “I don’t know. I can’t think right now. I just need to be with my sister.”
“I understand. That’s what’s important.” I placed a soft kiss on her forehead. “We’ll figure the rest of this out another time.”
“Yeah,” she said, sad and distracted. “Another time.”
With a weight on my chest, I watched her disappear. I’d thought tonight would be the start of everything new. I’d thought, tomorrow, she would meet Colton and see why I loved him so much. And, now, I was left wondering if we were even going to make it to tomorrow.
Thirty
Emery
Tears streamed down my face as I stood in front of the elevators. The hospital ward was empty. I was sure the ER was packed with drunken accidents, but here, in this part of the hospital, it was deserted. And I was grateful.
I couldn’t seem to stop crying. My breaths were coming out in short spurts, and my chest constricted. I felt like I was hyperventilating, unable to get enough air in and hiccuping to try to recover.
My heart ached. My chest ached. My head ached.
Everything hurt.
Walking away from Jensen hurt.
I hadn’t wanted to do it. But I’d meant every word that I said. He didn’t trust, period. And I couldn’t be with him if he didn’t trust me. That left us at an impasse.
After the mess back in Austin, I’d thought moving home and trying to figure out what I wanted in my life would be easy. I’d spend time with Kimber and Heidi. I’d find a real job. I’d discover what I wanted.
Instead, my heart, mind, body, and soul belonged to Jensen Wright.
I should have stayed sworn off of men.
I should have stayed far away from the Wrights.
Then, I wouldn’t be standing here with a heart threatening to shatter.
“Fuck,” I whispered, jamming the button to go upstairs. I scrubbed at my face.
No more tears.