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Liam
It was too quiet. Ozzy walked into the foyer slowly, and he stopped when he saw me. There was no happy greeting or wagging tail. I’d spent the entire drive here going over what I would say, but in the silence, there was an alarm going off in my head.
“LIBERTY!” I called, stalking toward the back of the house to look outside. “LIBERTY!” I shouted again as my heart beat frantically inside my chest.
What had she done? It was one night. She wouldn’t do this. She wouldn’t leave.
“LIBERTY!”
Maybe she had gone to the store. I paused, then remembered my car was outside. She had to be here.
“LIBERTY!”
I headed for the kitchen. She normally started dinner by now. She could be in the shower after gardening.
I stormed into the kitchen, desperate to see something. A sign that she was here. I scanned the clean, tidy, unused area, until my gaze landed on keys and a note.
No!
I rushed over to it and read it to find out where she was so I could go get her. She’d tell me where she was going. She wouldn’t disappear. She was hurting. She’d left because she was upset. I could fix it.
The world fell away around me the moment I saw it. That small photo. Slowly, I reached for it as my hands shook. My eyes burned, and I sucked in a ragged breath.
Written at the top of the photo were the words, It’s a boy!
My teeth grinding together was the only sound I heard as I stared at the picture. I had missed being there when she’d found out that our baby was a … a boy. She’d been alone. I couldn’t go back in time and fix that.
A hot tear rolled down my cheek, and I picked up the letter, written in her neat, feminine script.
Liam,
As you can see, it’s a boy. His heartbeat was once again very strong. He has all ten fingers and toes. He moves a lot, and I might be in for it when he’s big enough for me to feel the kicking. But he will be worth it.
Before I say anything else, I want to say thank you. For him. There will never be a greater gift that I receive on this earth. We might not have meant to create him, but I believe he was meant to save me.
I was lost and lacked direction.
He has given me a reason to find both.
You and I both know that me staying here until he was born wasn’t for the best. It was kind of you to offer, and I stayed because I wanted to be with you. I wanted things you’d told me I couldn’t have. That we would never have. But I stayed, believing I could make you fall in love with me. I realize that you can’t make a heart love someone. It either does or doesn’t.
I sent out a few résumés last week, and today, I received a call. I was offered a job. It pays well, there is a chance for promotion, I’ll have normal hours, and I’ll have health insurance.
It’s time for me to make myself worthy to be our son’s mom. I want him to be proud to call me his mother. I don’t want to be an embarrassment. I’ve had enough of that to last a lifetime. I might not be there yet, but I will be. My new life starts now.
As for what happened with Madeline, it was something I needed. I had made up in my head all these fantasies and believed them because I wanted them. That was a wake-up call that we should both be thankful I got.
We have twenty weeks to work out the details before our son arrives. I need some time first without meeting in person or communicating at all. Until I can heal and I’m ready to face the future.
I do not intend to keep you away from our son. I will share him with you. Every kid needs their father. I know that all too well.
But for now, I’m not going to share details about my new job or where I am living. It will give me time to get my feet on the ground. Once I am ready, I’ll contact you so we can discuss an arrangement that will work best for him. That’s all that matters now. Giving him a happy life full of love.
I’m sure you understand and perhaps you’re even relieved.
Liberty
The letter fell from my hand and fluttered slowly to the floor. I stared out the window, not moving for several minutes. When the reality of what I’d done finally sank in, I picked up the glass bowl, filled with fresh fruit, sitting beside the neatly placed keys, and smashed it against the wall while a wail that barely encompassed half of what I was feeling echoed off the walls of my house.
