Chapter 3

Back home, dresses and lingerie lay scattered across the living room.

I looked away and headed for the master bedroom.

Just as I reached for the door, Abraham came out in a bathrobe.

When he saw me, his face darkened.

"Didn't you check your messages? Didn't I tell you not to come back yet?"

I said nothing. My eyes went past his shoulder.

On the bed, Clarissa slept soundly.

She was wearing the red silk nightgown I'd bought for the wedding.

From her neck down to her collarbone, red marks were scattered across her skin.

Abraham glanced back at her, gritted his teeth, and dragged me into the living room.

He pinched the bridge of his nose, irritation coming off him in waves.

"I told you, out of sight, out of mind. You just had to rush back and see for yourself."

"And now that you've seen it, you feel awful. What's the point?"

I looked at the bite mark on his earlobe and said nothing.

He scratched at his ear, sank back into the couch, and crossed his legs.

"So? You've seen it, you know now. And then what?"

"Kayla, what are you actually going to do about it?"

He looked at me, worn out.

"Why not just turn a blind eye, pretend you don't know?"

"Why put on that wounded face and make me feel like I've wronged you?"

So he'd known all along that it would hurt me.

And he'd still brought her home, put her in my nightgown, laid her in my bed.

I caught them, and somehow it was my fault for coming back at the wrong time.

My hurt was something I'd brought on myself.

Even his guilt, apparently, was my fault too.

I let out a short laugh.

"Abraham, we already broke up."

"Whoever you bring home, whatever you do, it's got nothing to do with me."

I turned toward the master bedroom.

"I came back for my things. I'll pack up and go."

His hand snapped around my wrist and I fell back into the couch.

He leaned over me, his eyes cold.

"That's twice today you've said we're breaking up."

"I don't like it when you act out like this. Find another way."

Act out?

Even saying I wanted to break up.

He thought that was me acting out too?

A wave of exhaustion hit me. I pushed him off and got up to leave.

"I'll be packed in a minute."

Behind me, Abraham's voice went cold.

"You woke the girl up. We're pushing the wedding back a week."

"What wedding?"

Clarissa stood barefoot in the living room, looking from me to Abraham.

Something seemed to dawn on her, and her eyes filled with tears.

"Honey, you still don't believe me. You're still going to marry her!"

She dropped to the floor, sobbing so hard her words ran together.

"I already told you, three years from now the three of us die in a car crash."

"I just wanted to protect the baby, and then everything went black... and when I opened my eyes again, I saw you."

"He's only two and a half. It breaks my heart just thinking about him."

"Honey, if you don't want me anymore, what happens to our baby?"

Three years from now? A baby? Two and a half?

Something roared in my head. Slowly, I turned to Abraham.

"She's pregnant?"

He froze, then rubbed his nose.

"It was an accident."

Then he went quiet.

Numbly, I asked.

"What are you planning to do?"

He'd already helped Clarissa to her feet.

Sleeves of his bathrobe pushed up, he was carefully wiping away her tears.

At my question, he shot me a startled look.

"What else can I do? Kayla, how can you even ask something like that?"

"Whatever else is going on, he's a life too. There's no way I'd stop him from coming into this world."