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“You better be.”
“And Ben?”
I pause, my fingers gripping the door handle of Nacho Nirvana. “Yeah?”
“I’m glad you’re with her.”
Chapter Fourteen
Phoebe
“Those nachos hit the spot so good.” I wipe the corners of my mouth and revel in the spiritual experience those nachos gave me. “I feel like a new person.”
“It’s like those nachos resurrected you from the dead.” Ben grabs the back of his neck and sits on the edge of my bed. “Between you and your brother, I feel like I’m on a rollercoaster.”
“Did Elijah tell you about—” I wave my hand over the prenatal bottles that have become a symbol of my secret.
“No.”
“Then why’d you come here?”
“For you.”
I try to hide my surprise. He came here on his own? For me? I’ve been convinced that if Ben Steel were to show up on my doorstep ever again, it would be because my brother took it upon himself to tell him what I was hiding. He’s the type of guy to do the right thing and marry me or something, even if he doesn’t love me.
And why would he love me? We had a couple of good days and then I ghosted him.
“Why didn’t you tell me, Phoebe?” The anguish in his eyes has me ready to cry.
“I didn’t mean to hurt you.” I sniff back some tears and he’s by my side quicker than I can comprehend.
“The fact you’re hurting is killing me. Don’t worry about me, okay?”
“I don’t want you to hurt,” I whisper. “I don’t want you thinking I tricked you into this.”
“I don’t—I would never.”
“You can leave if you want. No strings attached.” I suck in a breath to steady myself. I can be strong and let him walk away. It’s what’s going to happen, anyway. Might as well skip some steps and save some tears.
“I love you Phoebe Decker.”
“You can’t mean that. We hardly know each other. We had a good week—if even that—and I ruined it. This—” I point to my belly. “Ruined it.”
“Ruined? Do you really feel that way about our baby?”
The possessive growl in his voice cuts through the chatter in my mind.
“Of course not.” I drop my hand to my belly, protectively cradling it. “But you don’t want kids, so I knew it was better to give up any shot I had with you before—”
“When in the hell did I say that?”
My cheeks burn as I recall the exact moment. “In the park—against the tree—when I told you I was on the pill.”
He buries his face in my shoulder, chuckling. “Phoebe, what was I supposed to say?”
“What?”
He lifts his head up, his eyes so open and vulnerable, I can’t stop my tears. “I didn’t have the courage to tell you I was already falling for you. That I wanted to build a future with you, make babies with you, grow old together—”
