Page 110 of A Good Book

I turned while opening the door.

He crooked a finger at me, and I shook my head.

“You’re stubborn,” he said.

I grinned.

“Skip your classes. I’ll help you study. We’ll go to lunch. I’ll braid your hair.”

I shook my head.

Ben sauntered toward me. It wasn’t fair that he was half naked. “You say no, and yet you’re still here.” He took my bag from me and dropped it on the ground before pushing the door shut. Where was my willpower?

I had none.

No willpower, and less than sixty seconds later, I had no clothes on my body, just naked Ben between my legs.

* * *

Why did you finally read my letters?

I had so many questions,and since Ben convinced me to skip schoolandhe fetched me breakfast, I had all day to quiz him.

He sipped a bottle of orange juice, sitting in my desk chair, while I lounged in the bean bag chair I got from Sarah and Isaac for Christmas.

“I don’t want to tell you.”

I signed, “Why?”

He capped his juice. “Because I’m a stubborn asshole. And I honestly don’t know how long it would have taken me to open them had Tillie not opened them the day she cleaned my room.” He stared out the window.

Tillie knows!

I panicked because I didn’t want anyone telling my parents before I did.

“She won’t say anything.”

How do you know? That’s a big secret to keep. Where are the letters? The ultrasound picture? What if your mom finds them?

Ben stared at the notepad that I held up, and he twisted his lips for a few seconds, then he leaned to the side and pulled his wallet out of his jeans. “Some of the letters were damaged, and the rest are hidden.” He slid the ultrasound photo from his wallet. “But I have this.”

It melted my heart at first, then I set the notepad aside and rocked forward to pluck the taped-together photo from his fingers.

Ben cringed, scratching the back of his head. “About that …”

I narrowed my eyes.

“Tillie didn’t say you were pregnant. She just told me to read them. So I started to read them in order.” Ben shot me a look. “Do you recall what you wrote in your first letter?”

Pressing my lips together, I nodded slowly.

“So I ripped up the letters, but then I stopped when I noticed shreds of the photo. It took me forever to piece it back together. Then I read the letters that I hadn’t destroyed. And here I am.”

That’s not how I wanted him to find out. It left me crestfallen.

“Gabby.” He reached for my hand, but I plopped back into the bean bag chair before he touched me.

Were you ever going to read them?

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