Down Fall (Fallen Duet 2)

I moved toward the sink and cupped my hand under the running water. “How much did you hear?” I stared at her reflection in the mirror.

“All of it.” She winced but didn’t say anything else.

I blew out a breath and splashed my face with some water. “I didn’t know he was married.” I swallowed and spun around to face her. “I fell in love with him and then found out he was married. If I’d have known, I never would have—”

“I know.” Jan waved her hand in the air and stepped forward. “I take it the baby is his?”

My hand moved to my stomach automatically. “Yeah. But…he doesn’t know yet.”

Jan nodded. “And you’re going to tell him, right?”

“Yeah.” I blinked several times. “I just don’t know how.”

“It’s easy,” Jan said. “I’m pregnant. There. Done.”

I laughed, and this time it was real, not a fake sound in sight. “I just don’t want him to think he has to be with me because of the baby. Like…” I worried my bottom lip and looked down at the floor. “He came to me and said he left his wife, but I didn’t believe him, and now…”

“Now it’s confirmed.” Jan placed her hand on my arm, and I looked up at her. “We all make mistakes, hon. It’s how we rectify and learn from them that matters.” She flashed me a small smile. “Tell him what you just told me. You won’t know what’s going to happen until you do.”

I stared at her, listening to every word she said, and I knew she was right. I couldn’t keep this a secret anymore. I was only a few days off from the twelve-week mark, and I’d be out of the “danger” zone. I couldn’t preach to Brody about being honest while I was holding on to a huge secret myself. It was time to come clean to him. He was showing me that his words meant something, now it was time for me to meet him halfway.

* * *

BRODY

I tapped my fingers on the steering wheel, trying in vain not to look through the windows of the diner. If I saw her face, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to stay away and not go in to her.

I was trying to do what she’d said: give us time and space.

The problem with that was the more space I gave her, the more I wanted to drive over to her place and wrap my arms around her. I’d never questioned how I felt about her. I’d told her that day in her apartment I loved her, and I meant it. It was always about doing what I thought was right. But what was right and wrong in the grand scheme of things?

Was it wrong to love someone so much you felt the ache in your chest when you weren’t around them?

Was it right to stay with a woman you didn’t love like you used to because, by law, you were meant to stick by her?

Was it wrong to need someone else’s touch so much that you thought you’d die without it?

Movement from toward the back of the diner gained my attention, and I spotted Sal heading right for my car. I pushed my door open, frowning at the grim expression on his face. “Sal? Everything okay?”

“Cade’s in my trailer. He’ll be out in a minute.” I planted my hands on my hips as he halted a few feet away from me. “I wanted to talk to you first.”

I tilted my head to the side. “Okay.”

“Moira showed up here.”

“Shit.” I let my head drop back and groaned. I had a feeling that day in the living room wasn’t the end of it. “Did she say anything to—”

“Lola?” Sal interrupted, and I looked back at him. “She did. Exact words were ‘You think because my husband put his cock in you that you can take my place?’”

“Fuck!” I slammed my door closed and took a step toward the diner. I knew this wasn’t going to be easy, not after all the lies I’d told and secrets I’d kept, but that didn’t mean Moira could do that. She’d practically admitted she’d cheated on me too—not that it was an excuse—so why did she care so much?

“No.” Sal’s large hand gripped my shoulder, squeezing to halt me. “Leave her alone.”

“You trying to tell me to back off, Sal?” I growled. He’d become a close friend over the years, and even though things hadn’t been the best between us since I’d been back, he had no right to warn me off Lola.

“No.” He let my shoulder go and shook his head. “I’m telling you she’s going through enough shit at the moment. It’s wearing her down. Let her figure her shit out, and when she’s ready, she’ll come to you.”

“I just…” I pushed my fingers into my hair and gripped it, relishing in the burn on my scalp. “I need to make sure she’s okay.”