Page 1 of My Girl to Use

Prologue

Zora

The knock comes out of nowhere. I’m in my room, but the walls here are thin enough that it might as well be at my elbow.

Amelia groans from the couch. “If that’s Jess’s ex again, I swear…”

“It’s not mine,” Jess snaps from the kitchen. “I blocked him.”

I smile gently to myself just as the knock comes again. This time, I hear Amelia groan. She gets up noisily to open the door.

A few seconds later, it’s slammed shut.

“Zora!” Amelia calls. “There’s a…package out here for you.”

“What? Me?” I mutter.

I don’t get packages. Ever. Still, I sigh, tossing the shirt I was folding onto the bed. I walk down the short hallway, wiping my hands on my shorts. Amelia is already at the door, peeking through the peephole.

“That’s weird.”

“What?” I step closer. “Who is it?”

“It’s a baby,” she mutters.

I blink. “What do you mean ‘a baby’?”

She hesitates, then slowly opens the door. Cold air slips in first. Then I see it. A box. Just sitting there on the floor.

Jess leans over Amelia’s shoulder. “Did someone…leave a baby at our door by mistake?”

“No,” Amelia replies. “Zora’s name is clearly written on the card.”

And there it is, sitting right on top of the blanket. I’m already stepping forward.

“Move,” I say, pushing past her.

I crouch down slowly, my heart beating too fast. My fingers tremble as I peel back the thin blanket inside the box, and everything stops. A tiny baby, dressed in a blue onesie. His face is red, scrunched, his mouth opening in a weak cry that barely makes a sound. He’s been at it long enough to lose the sound of it. Nobody has held him in hours.

“Oh my God…” I breathe.

Jess swears behind me. “Nope. Nope, absolutely not.”

I pick up the folded piece of paper tucked beside him. My name is also written on it.

Zora.

My chest tightens.

“Zora…” Amelia’s voice is sharp now. “Don’t touch it.”

Too late. I’m already lifting him. He’s warm. So warm. And so small it scares me. His crying softens the second he’s against me, like he knows. My throat burns. I open the letter with one hand, my fingers shaking so badly I almost drop it.

Zora —

His name is Levi. He’s yours now. I can’t do it again, and I’m not going to pretend I can. Don’t look for me.

—Janice