Broken Hearts (Light in the Dark 5)

Nova swims over to Thea and reaches for the baby. Xael dives into her arms and splashes at the water.

“Don’t think you can distract me so easily,” Thea warns. “You two were up to something.”

I reluctantly swim over to the girls. “I told Nova we should go somewhere for a while.”

Thea nods. “That’d be good for you guys. You never go anywhere. You’re a bunch of hermits. I swear you’d never emerge from your apartment if it wasn’t for the need for food and to work.”

I laugh. She has a point. Nova and I are notorious homebodies. Why go out when home is so much better?

Thea gathers her hair up and secures it. “I’m going to swim around while she’s occupied.”

She swims away, leaving Nova and me alone with the baby.

Xael begins to fuss when she sees her mom leaving, but Nova bounces her and soon she’s giggling and smiling again.

“Are you sure you’re ready for one of these?” she jokes.

I smile at her. “Been ready.”

She shakes her head, amused by me. Normally in a relationship I guess it would be the woman pushing for kids, but we’ve never done anything normal so why start now?

Nova

“What’s it say?” Jace asks from over my shoulder. I block his view as much as I can.

“It’s negative,” I murmur, laying the pregnancy test on the edge of the bathroom sink.

I’m shocked by how sad I am by the outcome. I didn’t realize how much I’d come to want this.

I know realistically it’s normal to not get pregnant when you first start trying, but I don’t feel any better.

I feel like I’ve failed at something.

After all, I got pregnant at sixteen without trying.

Jace turns me to face him. “It’s okay,” he tells me, sensing my sadness. “This just means we have to try harder.” He winks, trying to get me to smile or laugh or do something.

But I feel numb.

I take a shaky breath and sit down on the side of the bathtub.

“Can you … leave me alone for a little bit?” I plead. I need a moment to myself to breathe and wrap my head around this. I can’t do it with Jace standing there looking at me with sadness and pity in his eyes, forcing a sweet smile for my benefit.

The fake smile falls completely off his face. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah.” I nod. “Please?”

I can tell he’s not happy about it. “Maybe it’s too early,” he muses.

I shake my head but mumble, “Maybe.”

“If you need me, yell.” He reluctantly leaves the bathroom closing the bathroom door behind him.

I lock it so he won’t be tempted to barge in.

I start running hot water in the bathtub and add bubbles.

I strip out of my clothes and slip into the steamy water.