Page 136 of Habits

“I told her you’d destroy her. You two are too fucked up on your own, so how the fuck are you supposed to be together? But instead of listening to me, you did it anyway. Instead of listening to me, you made a mess of everything. You fucked things up and now she’s back off the wagon and was in a fucking car accident. You broke her.”

“I broke her?” I spat out, furious. “She broke up with me! I asked, no Ibeggedher to reconsider, but she wanted time. So I gave her time.”

“Time? Is that why she’s lying in a hospital bed pregnant?”

Pregnant?

I stumble backward, his words worse than any punch he could have thrown my way.

What the hell is he talking about?

“Fucking pregnant.” Max walks around my frozen body, picking something off the ground. “I found this in her bathroom.”

He shoves a white stick in my face.

A white stick with a big, fat plus on the display.

This can’t be happening.

“That’s impossible,” I breathe, barely audible.

“The test says otherwise.”

No way, we were always careful. Always …

Our last time flashes in my mind, the images so vivid it feels like she’s back in my arms.

My fingers curl into a fist and I turn around, slamming it into the car. A sharp pain shoots up my arm.

“FUCK!”

What if she’s pregnant? She was in a car accident, for fuck’s sake! What if something happened to the baby? What if …

All the blood drains from my head, and I can feel my body begin to shake.

On autopilot, I open the door and stumble inside.

“Where the fuck do you think you’re going?”

Max grips the door, preventing me from closing it.

I grit my teeth, barely containing my anger.

“Either get in the fucking car or get out of my way.”

“You can’t leave her alone, Hill. I promise you …”

“I’m not leaving anybody alone. Now GET. IN. THE. CAR.” I speak through clenched teeth, trying to keep what little is left of my sanity. “Or I swear to God, I’ll run over you on the way to the hospital.”

He’s still infuriated, but so am I.

And right now, he’s the one standing in the way between me and the woman I love, so if he puts up a fight, I won’t be the one falling down.

Quietly, he runs to the passenger seat and slides inside.

With my sweaty hands, I turn on the car and press on the gas.

How long did she know? Why didn’t she tell me?

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