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“Yes.”
“Is the baby his?”
I closed my eyes, not wanting to say out loud the truth. It would make my deception all the more real and heinous. “Yes.”
I waited for her to give me a lecture or say she was disappointment in me.
“When will you tell him? The longer you wait, the worse it will be.”
“I don’t know how. He said he wants to be with me and raise the baby — ”
“Well, that’s a good sign.”
“But I still didn’t tell him, and now it’s too late. I can’t go forward with a lie, but the truth will make him leave.” I grabbed a tissue to wipe more tears.
“You don’t know that he’ll leave. Ash didn’t. He forgave me. Second, it doesn’t matter how he responds. He deserves to know, Morgan. You know this.”
I nodded, forgetting that she couldn’t see me over the phone. “I’m scared.”
“I know, honey. But I’m here for you.”
We finished the call. I’d felt so lovely after Kade’s massage, but now I was emotionally drained, while also feeling crushed under the weight of my lie.
“Everything okay, baby?” my mother asked from the kitchen doorway.
“Yes, mom.” I inhaled a breath, hoping she wouldn’t be able to tell I’d been crying.
“Is Mr. Raven gone?” She went to the kettle, filling it with water and putting it on the burner.
“Yes.”
“I liked him. Is he special to you?”
I closed my eyes as I prepared to let her know the truth. “Yes. And you were right about one other thing.”
“Oh?” She turned toward me, leaning against the counter.
“I’m pregnant.”
Her face went blank for a moment. It was like she couldn’t decide if it was good news or bad. “Are you okay?”
I nodded. “Yes. I feel fine. Well, tired, but other than that, I feel good.”
“What about the father?” Her brows shot up to her hairline as she put two and two together. “Is Mr. Raven the father?”
“Yes, but…” I looked down, because I was too ashamed at my behavior to look at her. “He doesn’t know.”
“Why not?”
“I haven’t told him. Actually, he knows I’m pregnant, just not that he’s the father.”
“Oh, lord.” She moved to the table and sat next to me. “What are you thinking, Morgan?”
“At the time, I thought he wouldn’t want me or the baby. Or that he’d accuse me of trapping him.”
She took my hands. “So, what if he did? That doesn’t mean he doesn’t have the right to know. And you’re going to need him, baby. Trust me on this. It’s not easy to raise a child on your own, especially in New York.”
“I’ve waited too long, and I let him believe a lie. I want to be with him, but this will make him hate me.”
She squeezed my hands. “That’s possible, and if he can’t forgive you, that will be a tragedy. But there’s no other way out but to tell him.”
“I know. I just wish I could find a way to make it all right.”
“If he’s a good person, then he’ll come around. Look at Ash. He was kept from Hannah for five years, and he forgave Beth.”
She sat back as another light bulb appeared to go off in her head. “If you and Kade get married, that will mean you and Beth will be sisters-in-law. Wouldn’t that be something?”
I tried to smile, but inside my chest, my heart was breaking. Kade said he wanted more than casual and that he’d raise the baby, but that wasn’t a marriage proposal. Once the truth about the baby came out, any possibility of becoming Mrs. Kade Raven would be gone.
“That would be something.” I got my mom her tea and told her about the dinner I left in the refrigerator, and then I headed to the restaurant.
One thing was going right. Pat had everything under control.
“Did you know some of the menu items weren’t entered right into the system?” she asked me. “Some bar drinks weren’t either.”
“That’s why the last guy was fired.”
“Well, it’s all fixed now. Chef has some new ideas he’d like to pass by you, and he made a few things based on what you said you wanted.” She cocked her head to the side. “You look a little pale. You okay?”
I nodded. “Just a little tired.”
“I can expedite tonight,” she said. Since it was Wednesday, it wouldn’t be too crowded, but I knew I wasn’t in the mood to schmooze with my customers. Expediting would keep my mind busy and off my problems.
“I’d prefer to expedite, if that’s okay.”
She laughed. “It’s your restaurant.”
I went into the kitchen where Chef brought out a few samples of the fusion options we were thinking of adding to the menu. It was hard to review them, as my taste buds seemed to have stopped working.
“Have you tested any of this on the waitstaff or Pat?”
“Pat, yes. She liked them all except for the chipotle pork bruschetta.”
