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She looks away, her silence confirming my fear. The little color left on her face drains away, replaced by a haunted look that makes my heart clench in anguish.
Taking a deep breath to rein in my anger, I gently tilt her chin back to face me. "I'm so sorry, sweetheart," I whisper. My heart is pounding so hard it threatens to break through my chest. "He will never hurt you again."
“I told them I was pregnant,” she smiles.
“I have a feeling they weren’t happy.”
She laughs. “No. I don’t think my mom was all that upset. She’s the one that let me call you. She wasn’t really an ally, but she also didn’t seem to be as angry as my father. She seemed surprised, disappointed but not mad.”
“So, who’s sending the people to find you?”
“Adrian, but it sounds like my father is a part of it.”
“Do you think it's safe for us to stay in Miami?” I ask her. “Maybe it's time for us to move on, to start fresh in a place.”
She considers my words, her brow furrowing in thought. “I like it here,” she says. “I like Miami.”
I know she does, and I do to, but I don’t see how we can stay. “Babe, he knows where we are. What’s to stop him from coming back for you?”
“I believe he’s done,” she says with a nod. “He knows I’m never going back. He knows about the baby. I guess you could say I’m tainted goods.”
I chuckle. “I love me some tainted goods.”
“Good, because I love you.”
“Do you know what this means?” she asks.
“What do you mean?”
“We can be ourselves again,” she smiles. “They know where we are. The jig is up. We don’t have to live like we are on the run. You can be you. You can be a pilot again. We can use credit cards and have a checking account!”
“That’s a good point,” I nod. “But are you sure they are going to leave you alone?”
“Maybe,” she shrugged. “I think we can try. I did have money in my account. My grandmother left me a good deal of money. I haven’t really used it because my dad gave me a pretty nice allowance.”
“You don’t need that money,” I tell her. “I know we don’t live a glamorous lifestyle, but we’re surviving.”
She gives a soft laugh, shaking her head. "I don't expect us to live lavishly," she assures me. "But it's there if we need it. And we might need it now, more than ever."
Her hand moves to rest on her stomach and a tender smile curves her lips as she speaks. A pang of both joy and fear seizes my heart at the sight.
“You don’t know if it’s there,” I remind her. “There might be strings attached. I’m worried, Paige.”
“If you think we should go, then we’ll go,” she shrugs.
I exhale deeply and run my hands through my hair, trying to think. "I just want you to be safe, Paige."
"I know," she says, her voice soft. "And I appreciate it. But I believe this is over.”
“There’s a lot of unknowns here. We don’t know how far Adrian, or your father will go. We might have just kicked a hornet’s nest. This might blow up in our faces.”
I wish I could be as confident as she was. “Okay. If you want to do this, I’m here. I’ll be right beside you.”
“Tomorrow, I want to check my bank account,” she says.
I can see the light in her eyes. She wants her money. She wants nice things. I get it. I’m just not sure we’re on the same page. Obviously, it would be nice to have money, but I’m afraid there are strings.
“And then what?” I ask her.
