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“So you’re telling me she’s never lied to you?”
He doesn’t reply.
“Fine. Maybe you’re right,” I say, “but there’s an easy way to check.”
The slightest grain of curiosity taints his frustration. “What do you mean?”
“She thinks I’m Ashley. Let me go back in there and pretend to be your mom,” I say.
His mouth twitches while he thinks. His eyes darken, attempting once again to overshadow any hope he had. “You’re going to be wrong.”
I’m not wrong. I can feel it. “There’s only one way to find out.”
“Fine.”
I blink, unprepared for him to cave so easily. I figured I’dneed to state my case with an entire presentation before he’d change his mind. “Really?”
“I just want to get this over with so you’ll leave. I’ll give you two minutes, but once we confirm you’re wrong, I want you out of here. No negotiations.”
I can work with that. A lot can happen in two minutes, and I won’t waste a second. “Okay, you stay here.”
“What? Why?”
I reach for the doorknob. “I told you I have a plan. Don’t worry, I’ll leave the door cracked open so you can hear what we say.” I hold my finger to my lips and head back in, careful not to close the door all the way.
He follows me with a hardened stare, but he doesn’t change his mind. He lets me go back into the room alone.
“Sorry about that. I told Justin to leave,” I say, hoping she’ll take the bait. I won’t lie, it feels a little bit wrong to be purposefully tricking a sweet old woman into telling me her secrets, but I’m desperate.
I hold my breath, watching her every move.
She grimaces. “Justin? Why is he here? I thought you broke up.”
No, no way that worked. It’s like I broke into a bank vault.
I come closer, sitting across from her on the corner of her bed. “I think he misses you.”
She adjusts the blanket that’s draped across her shoulders. “I doubt that. He doesn’t like me very much.”
“Oh, sure he does,” I say.
She raises an eyebrow. “Not after that time I yelled at him. He’s scared of me, and he should be.”
I hold up my fingers and pinch them together. “Okay, he might be a little scared.”
She crosses her arms. “We agreed you wouldn’t tell him. Don’t tell me you’re going to break your promise.”
“Tell him what?”
Her jaw lowers as if I’ve forgotten something life changing. Something so drastic no person in their right mind would forget. She looks at the door and then back at me. She leans in and whispers, “About the baby.” Her eyes land on my stomach.
I cover it with my arms. Baby?
If she thinks I’m Ashley then the baby must be... Daniel.
I just need to push a little more. I need to be one hundred percent sure I’m not reading into this. I need to hear the confirmation from her lips.
“Why shouldn’t I tell him? It’s his baby,” I whisper back. My skin is on pins and needles. Goosebumps ripple up my arms in anticipation. This is it. This is the moment that’ll make or break my case.
