Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 85154 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 426(@200wpm)___ 341(@250wpm)___ 284(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85154 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 426(@200wpm)___ 341(@250wpm)___ 284(@300wpm)
Sleep doesn’t come, or if it does it’s in spurts of ten to fifteen minutes. I toss from one side to the other before finally giving up and walking downstairs. I grab one of my coffee mugs before putting a pod into the machine and pressing the button. I wait for the last drop before moving to the stainless-steel fridge and grabbing the milk. Once I fill the cup with the right amount of milk, I walk back upstairs to get ready for the day.
I put my cup of coffee down on the side table, right near the frame of Cici and myself on the day of her christening. I smile down at it as one lone tear falls down my cheek. I grab my phone and google how long a nine-month-old can remember things. I press enter and start down the rabbit hole to make sure that in the amount of time Cici will be without me she isn’t going to suffer a trauma from being ripped away from her mother. I’m in a sobbing fit by the time I put the phone down and walk over to get ready for the lawyer.
I pull out a black pair of capri pants that are tight on the hips and go wide on the way down. Slipping my sleeveless, black silk top off the hanger and putting it over my head, I’m tucking it in when I hear the front doorbell ring and the door open. “Eva.” I hear Levi’s voice.
“Upstairs, in my room!” I holler and hear his footsteps come closer and closer until he stands at the entrance to the bedroom. He’s wearing blue jeans and a baby-blue button-down shirt rolled from the wrist to his elbow.
“Hey,” he says, looking at my face, “you okay?”
“I’m fine. I just—” I look down and let the tears come. “I just don’t want her to think I just gave her away.” I wring my hands together.
“Eva.” He says my name and comes to me, taking me into his arms. He smells like soap and his aftershave. “She’s not even going to remember this.”
“It takes a month,” I inform him. “At six months, they forget after two weeks. Nine months it’s a month and a half.” He looks down at me. “Google.” I put my head back on his chest as he rubs my back. “Good news is they don’t understand the concept of time. It could be six hours or six months to them, it’s all the same.”
“How about we don’t google anything for a while?” he suggests.
“Good idea.” I step away from him and wipe my eyes. “How do I look?”
“Amazing,” he replies, and I can’t help but laugh when I know he’s lying. “A little rough, if we’re being honest.” He picks up a strand of my hair. “Are we brushing our hair or is this the new look?”
“Are we going for the slicked-back mobster look?” I ask of his hair that is pushed back and combed to the side.
“Ummm.” He puts his hands on his hips. “I got this look from your salon two weeks ago.” He pats his hair. “It was all the rage.”
I nod before going to the bathroom and looking at my hair. It’s all over the place because I went to bed with it wet. I don’t have time to tame it, so instead, I brush through it before separating it in the middle and putting it back at the nape of my neck in a ponytail. I walk out of the bathroom seeing Levi sitting on my bed, his head down, looking at his phone. “Better?” I ask, and he looks up.
“You look like a mom,” he responds to me and I smile sadly. “Let’s go so I can get you some coffee.”
I nod, grabbing my phone and the coffee cup before walking back down to the kitchen and putting the cup in the sink, then sliding on my black heels at the door. I grab my purse while Levi holds the door open for me, and the two of us make it to his car. I get in, and neither of us says anything. I’m sure his head is spinning as much as mine is.
When we get to the office, he puts the car in park, looking over at me. “You ready?” he asks.
“No.” I reach out to the door handle. “You?”
“Absolutely not,” he returns, reaching out and opening his door. I wait for him to join me before walking over to the glass door.
I pull open the door and step in, seeing Alice there waiting for us. “Welcome. Sorry, it’s Sunday, so there is no one here but me.”
“It’s more than okay. Thank you for making time,” I tell her as I step in. “This is Levi.” I introduce her, and he extends his hand to her.