Her footsteps echoed down the hall, and I heard the front door open and close. I looked down at the beautiful woman beside me and wondered what might be going through her mind. Why her day had been so difficult. I curled up beside her, wrapping an arm around her waist, suddenly feeling very protective of her. I heard more footsteps, this time it was Cason.
“You're home early,” he said, standing in the open doorway.
“Yeah, it was slow, Nate had it covered,” I said. I looked up at Cason and asked, “So what's going on with her?”
He shrugged. “Jenn and Hailey have been shut in here all day,” he said. “I didn't want to bother them.”
Hailey jerked in her sleep, pulling away from me and muttering something I couldn't make out. Her eyes flew open and she stared up at me, eyes wide and full of fear.
“Quinn?” she said.
“Yes, it's me,” I said, trying to keep my voice low and calm. “Cason is here too. You're okay. You're safe.”
She relaxed into me a bit more, and my brother came over and sat down on the bed beside us. He watched from a distance as I held her tightly.
“Are you okay, Hailey?” Cason asked.
“Not really,” she muttered.
He moved closer, stroking her back. Cason laid down behind her, propping himself up on the pillows on the bed.
“What's going on?” I asked her. “It's okay, you know. You can tell us what's going on. You're safe here. You'll always be safe her.”
She sighed before answering me, “I'm pregnant,” she said softly.
“Are you – serious?” I asked, trying to pull myself together. I propped myself up and looked over at Cason who had the same look on his face. “How do you know?”
In my head, I tried to remember what I'd heard about knocking girls up. Could she know this soon? Could I be a father? Could any one of us be the father? My heart raced and for a moment, I couldn't help the smile on my face from growing wider. The idea that somehow, I might be a dad filled me with greater joy that I thought it would.
“I took a test,” she said, burying her face into the pillows. “And it came back positive.”
Cason looked at me and then Hailey. “So, it's not one of ours?”
She shook
her head. “Wouldn't be possible,” she said, not looking at us. “It has to be Leo's.”
My heart slipped down into my shoes, but I found myself reaching out to her still. Comforting her.
“It'll be okay, Hailey. We'll figure it out,” I said.
“Leo doesn't have to know,” Cason said. “We'll protect you.”
The front door opened and slammed, followed by the sound of heavy footsteps in the foyer. A moment later, Ben called out to us.
“Cason? You were supposed to come in –”
He stopped in the doorway, all three of us staring back at him. He scratched his face as he looked down at us laying on the bed, Hailey still hiding her face, both of us soothing her. He could tell something was wrong.
“I have Nate watching over everything,” he said. “It should be fine.”
Cason nodded, and Ben came over to join us on the bed. He sat at the end, near Hailey's feet, and stroked her leg, a look of concern on his face.
“Everything okay?” he asked.
“It will be,” I said.
CHAPTER NINETEEN - HAILEY