Page 194 of Say My Name

I stare at her, trying to reconcile the woman across from me with the impossible truth she just spoke.

The rational part of my brain knew this was a possibility. The seventeen-day timeline, her hand covering her mouth in the office, the sudden leave request—I’d spent the flight running the data again and again.

But logic is a flimsy shield against the force of her saying it out loud. Nothing prepared me for this.

“You’re pregnant,” I repeat.

“Yes.”

“With our baby.”

“Yes.”

A rough laugh leaves me and breaks halfway through. My eyes burn. I don’t bother hiding it.

I push my chair back and stand, but I stop before reaching for her.

“Are you okay?”

“I think so. I haven’t seen a doctor yet. I took two home tests Thursday morning, and they were both positive.”

“Any pain? Bleeding?”

“No.”

A cold spike of fear shoots through the joy. An appointment. We need an appointment now. Vitamins, diet, what is she supposed to avoid? The questions swarm me, a chaotic list of things I don’t know, things I need to control.

I look at her face, and the fear in her eyes cuts through my own panic. She doesn’t need a medical task force. She needs me.

I hold out my hands.

She looks at them for a moment, then places hers in mine.

Her fingers are cold. I close mine around them and rub my thumbs over her knuckles.

“How long have you known?”

“Since Thursday morning.”

Her knuckles are ice-cold against my palms. She knew. She stood outside my office with this truth inside her and boarded a flight alone, believing I might not want the life attached to it. That she had to carry it by herself for even a day feels like a physical failing on my part.

“Jesus, Elena.” The name is a breath, an apology.

“I tried to tell you.”

“I know.”

“Three times.”

“I know that too.”

Her chin trembles. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I’m sorry I ran.”

I lift her hands and kiss her knuckles. “We’ll talk about the rest. Right now, I need you to tell me how you feel.”

“Terrified.”

“So am I.”