Total pages in book: 35
Estimated words: 32845 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 164(@200wpm)___ 131(@250wpm)___ 109(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 32845 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 164(@200wpm)___ 131(@250wpm)___ 109(@300wpm)
When I opened the door, I saw that Cyclone had moved to the edge of the mattress and sat up. Waiting on me?
He cleared his throat. “Hey.” He stood slowly, moving toward me. “I didn’t want to bother you, so I stayed here. Thought you’d want some privacy.” He looked back over his shoulder at the bed, waving a hand in that general direction. “Are you all right? Do you need anything?”
I nodded, but the tightness in my chest told a different story. I couldn’t keep up the lie any longer. “No, Cyclone. I’m not okay. I haven’t been since that night.” My voice came out shaky, betraying my emotions. God, I was so done with crying! He wasn’t worth crying over and I was just too exhausted to spend that much energy again.
Cyclone’s expression shifted from concern to worry. “What can I do to help, Willa? That’s all I want. To help. To make things better for you.”
“Why are you here, Daniel?” It was the first time I’d called him by anything other than his road name except for when he’d answered the phone and I’d expected to talk to Bohannon.
He was silent for a long moment, and I thought maybe he wasn’t going to tell me or that he would make up some bullshit reason. Instead, he scrubbed a hand through his hair and muttered his response. “I wish to God I fuckin’ knew.” Without looking at me, he held out a hand. “Come back to bed. We’re not heading back in the morning because you need rest. There’s no reason to hurry back, especially when we have stuff between us that needs to be resolved.”
“I don’t want to talk about it right now.”
“I know. And I’m not sure I’m ready to talk either. There’s so much rolling around in my mind and I need a chance to process it all.”
“I know what you mean,” I muttered. “I’ve had a few days to deal with it and I’m still not there.”
“Then let’s rest here and relax for a while. Tomorrow. The next day. Whatever it takes. Once we’ve both had time to come to terms with what’s already happened, we’ll figure out what’s going to happen next. Together.”
I wanted to deny him, but the truth was, he was right. Any decision I made, he deserved to be a part of, if he wanted to be. He hadn’t asked for this any more than I had but done was done. He was also right that I’d had far longer to process being pregnant than he had.
“You’re not stupid, Cyclone. You knew when I told you I was pregnant the baby was yours.”
He gave a heavy sigh. Did I imagine the tinge of red that spread over his cheeks? “Yeah. I knew. Was hoping I was wrong, but I knew.”
“Do you still wish you were wrong?” I hated how small I sounded, that his words affected me so much when he obviously didn’t want to be in this situation. Also, that thought made me feel like a hypocrite because I didn’t want to be pregnant either. But the fact was, I wouldn’t want this baby to be anyone’s other than Cyclone’s.
He didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he held my gaze for several moments, taking a couple of slow, deep breaths. “I can’t answer that honestly, Willa. Give me some time to think. Like I said, we’ve got time. I have no intention of leaving here until we’ve both decided what we want to do. Can you give me that?”
I lowered my gaze. “Yeah. I can do that. I want any decision I make to be rational and I’m not capable of that right now.”
Cyclone’s hand enveloped mine as he led me back to the bed. “Come on.” He urged me to climb in first. I followed his direction, sliding under the sheets, feeling the cool softness of the material against my skin. He climbed in beside me, his body warm and welcoming as he pulled me back against him, spooning his body around mine.
God, I loved being in his arms. It had felt just as good that morning when I’d woken up so hung over. The longer we lay there quietly, the more the tension between us faded away to be replaced by a sense of comfort I hadn’t felt before. In that moment, it felt like everything would be all right. Cyclone would help me. He’d make sure I had what I needed in material things and possibly even emotional support. We might not be in a relationship or be a couple, but I knew he’d do right by me. If not, my daddy and his momma would probably kill him. But that wasn’t who Cyclone was. He wouldn’t shirk his responsibilities for any reason. Which was another thing I worried about.