Perfect

That had Lena smiling. “But his job in Colorado…” She took a deep, fortifying breath. “If I tell him, he’ll want to come back here and be with me, I know it.”

“And as he should, sweetheart. But whether he does or not is his choice, but you have to tell him. He needs to know about the baby.”

Her mom was right, of course, but it was the truth that he’d want to come to her, be with her. She didn’t want him leaving his job behind when there was nothing he could actually do right now anyway. Besides, he had been so determined and anticipated making something of himself with it. She didn’t want to ruin that for him, but she also wouldn’t keep this from Rory either.

He deserved to know. He deserved the truth.

13

The feeling of his cell vibrating right by his face had Rory opening his eyes and searching the bed for his phone. He found it wedged under his pillow, grabbed it, and lifted the brightly lit screen to his face. The time read it was three in the morning, and the image of Lena’s gorgeous face on the screen stared back at him.

He sat up, still slightly drunk, but he’d guzzled water and popped some pain relievers when he’d gotten home, so he was in much better shape than he had been hours ago.

He scrubbed a hand over his face to wake up a bit more, and hit the accept button to answer the phone.

“Lena, you okay, baby?” His voice was deep and guttural from sleep and still being partly buzzed. But the longer he sat up, the more he focused and the better he felt.

“Rory …” She exhaled slowly, but he could hear the tension, the tightness laced in that lone word.

That had everything in him coming to alert. This wasn’t about their conversation earlier in the night, he knew that with everything in him. No, his girl was calling him in the middle of the night because shit had happened.

He stood, his heart beating fast as adrenaline pumped through his body. “Lena, what’s wrong? Are you okay?” There was more crying, and he was feeling frantic now. Rory was thousands of miles away from her, but at that moment, he wanted nothing more than to hold her.

“I’m sorry to call you this late, and to have to tell you this on the phone …” She was breathing hard, sniffing every so often, but he could tell she was trying to get control of herself.

“Baby, you don’t ever be sorry.” The first thing that came to his mind was that someone had died. He didn’t think it was about Brian because that son of a bitch was built like a tank, and no matter how he abused his body with alcohol and wear, he kept on ticking. Maybe it was Lena’s mother or father?

God, he wanted to be there with her. Sitting back down on the edge of the bed and trying to calm himself as well, he took a deep breath in and focused on the wall across from him.

“Talk to me, baby,” he said softly this time, giving her time to regroup and relax a little.

“I called …” She paused a moment. “God, I wish I didn’t have to tell you any of this on the phone.”

Yeah, he wished that, too, wished like hell he were with her right now. He gave her a moment to regroup, to find her comfort zone in whatever she was struggling with right now and having a hard time telling him. But inside Rory was a wreck. He was a beast wanting out, wanting to make things right for Lena.

“I called earlier to tell you I was pregnant, Rory,” she said so softly, in a rush, and he almost didn’t hear her, or maybe he was in such shock it felt like he hadn’t heard her correctly.

“What?” Rory wheezed out. He felt like his chest was on fire, like someone had a vise grip around his heart and lungs, squeezing, intent on sucking the very life from him. “Pregnant?” He wheezed out that lone word, but the silence stretched out between them. “Lena, baby, talk to me.” The shock was limb numbing, mind scattering, but he had to keep a straight head right now, for Lena’s sake. She was dealing with that alone, and he was in another state, not able to help her with this or be there for her.

“Rory,” she said his name but started crying harder this time. That was when he heard someone else talking, heard her mother’s voice, and also made out what sounded like an overhead message because it sounded like it echoed. Sitting up even straighter, he knitted his brows.

“Where are you, Lena?”

Her mom kept saying something softly to Lena, and although he couldn’t make out the words, the tone told him it was comforting.