Page 56 of Wild Night

Adrenaline is coursing through my veins, which is the only reason I’m standing here and not sitting on the floor in a pile of flesh and bones. I blink rapidly. I don’t know what to do. What to say. And then I feel my body being scooped up and placed on the sofa.

Once I’m sitting on the soft cushions, I reach for my throw blanket and wrap it around myself. Void walks back over to the recliner and sinks down, his eyes finding mine as he watches me, never looking away.

“You good?” he asks.

“I’m pregnant,” I state.

His lips twitch into a smirk. “It just hitting you?”

“Like a fucking freight train.”

He lets out a chuckle, then shifts in his seat slightly. “You want to stay here—with me?”

My eyes widen, and a million things flash in my mind. A baby, marriage, a life here, where I’m comfortable but also very alone. Then I think about Ivy. Falling asleep beside him, kissing him, being with him. The way his arms feel, the way his smile makes me feel—then him inside of me.

“I don’t think I can.” My words come out slowly.

Void hums. “Figured as much.”

“You knew I’d say no, yet you asked me anyway?”

He lets out a chuckle. “I asked you because I knew you’d say no. I don’t plan on ever doing the old lady and kids thing.”

I tilt my head to the side, and my eyes search his before I continue. “What if I had said yes?”

He presses his lips together, no doubt attempting to hide his smile, but he fails…miserably.

“You’re in love with that guy. You’re not going to say yes to me, even if it’s the easy way out. I had to offer it, though. You needed to see for yourself that North Carolina is what you want.”

“Is it?” I ask. “How do you know, but I don’t?” He shakes his head, and I open my mouth, continuing and not letting him respond. “Because you have sisters?”

Void smirks. “Bingo, babe.”

Before either of us can say anything else, the doorbell rings, and we both swing our gazes to the door, knowing exactly who is on the other side. I’m not going to be able to keep this secret from the gentle giant of a man.

“I guess I’ll be going back to North Carolina,” I whisper.

Void stands and takes a step toward me, then another. His hand reaches out and he wraps his fingers around my shoulder, shaking it gently. “Not fucking with you, Posey. But you do have a place here if you want it. If that shit doesn’t work out, call me, and I’ll come there and get you.”

“Will you?” I ask. “Even if you don’t want a woman?”

His eyes focus on mine, his expression beyond serious. It’s so much so that my breath hitches as I wait for him to continue. I was only half joking, but it seems he is no longer in a joking mood, like, at all.

“Doesn’t matter what I want or don’t want. A woman in any kind of situation will always have a way out of it through me. However that looks, Posey. Whatever you need. I’m in your life now, and I’m not going to let you fucking drown.”

“How are you real?” I ask in a whisper.

That’s when his lips curve up into a smirk, and the serious expression fades as his eyes begin to dance. “I’m real, baby.”

He releases me and, without another word, walks over to the front door and opens it to Shocker, who is standing on the other side, a pink bakery box in hand. He remembered the pastries.

I can’t fight back the tears.

When a few escape, I chalk it up to pregnancy, but it’s the sweetest thing. He remembered snacks, and honestly, the way to my heart is a good snack… especially a pastry-type one.

IVY

I pace. It’s late, and I’m waiting for Shocker to get back to me. He’s met with her tonight, and I’m fucking waiting for him to call me with something. Anything. I need to know that she’s okay, but also every fucking detail of their conversation.

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