Page 70 of Undeniably

At the sight of Victoria lying on the floor, I panic. I try to fit in the gap but can’t. “Can you move her just a little? I can’t get in.”

“Yeah.” Sage rolls V onto her side, giving me just enough room to slide through the small opening.

I lean down, pick her up, and carry her to the bed. Once in my arms, she comes to. “Shh, calm down, V. It’s me,” I murmur.

“Keat? What are you doing here?”

I look at Sage, not knowing what to say.

“You called us, silly,” Sage says softly. “Lay her on the bed.”

“How did you know where I was? How did you get in here?”

“You called, babe. Don’t you remember?” Sage asks her with worry in her eyes as she lies down next to us.

“I did?”

I go to lay her down, but her anguished voice stops me.

“Please,” V begs, not wanting me to let go of her.

“Always, V. You know that,” I whisper as I lie down on the bed behind her, holding her tight, her back to my front and Sage and her chest to chest.

“What happened?” Sage asks, softly pushing the hair off V’s face.

“I’m pregnant,” V whispers, crying.

I go taut, mumbling, “Fuck,” under my breath.

“Okay, we can do this. It’s okay,” Sage assures her.

“We got you, V. We got you,” I promise as I hold her tight, her sobs breaking my heart.

“I’ll be right back.” Sage looks at me with murder in her eyes.

“Please, don’t go. Don’t leave me. I need you,” V begs.

“We’ll figure this out,” Sage promises as crawls back into the bed.

The three of us lay there in bed for a while, holding each other as she cries. After a while, she pulls out of my hold.

I sit up and really look at her. My heart breaks at what I see. Her clothes are disheveled while black makeup runs down her face. She looks like her world just ended.

As she moves to get off the bed, I use a gentle voice to ask, “What are you doing?”

“I just want to go home.” Her voice, void of emotion, worries me more than the crying.

“Then we’ll go home.” Sage grabs V’s hand and leads us out of the room.

As we make our way down the hall, I don’t miss the looks cast in our direction. Victoria’s messed up bad. She’s like a robot, only going through the required motions to get from point A to B.

I place a hand on her back, guiding her into the elevator. I slip in behind Victoria and cast a worried glance towards Sage. Her own worry is showing. She’s concerned for Victoria, but even more, she’s angry. Angry at Sterling.

As we reach the parking garage, I lead them towards Victoria’s car.

Cupping Victoria’s cheek, I press my forehead to hers. “Do you want to ride with Sage or me?”

She takes a deep breath and closes her eyes momentarily. “I’ll go with Sage.”

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