Page 20 of Harmony Island Gazette
I closed my eyes, hating that there was a part of me that still wanted to say yes. Kevin had been my world for so long. I didn’t know who I was without him. But my situation had changed since I walked away from him. I was pregnant with his baby, even though he didn’t know that.
I wasn’t sure how I was going to tell him, but I knew the break room of Godwin’s Grocery wasn’t the place.
“Let’s get some dinner, first,” I finally managed out as I turned to face him.
He raised his eyebrows but didn’t pull back. “Dinner?”
I nodded. “Tonight.”
He smiled. “Sounds amazing.” His phone buzzed, forcing him to sit up straight. He pulled his phone from his back pocket and glanced at the screen before he tucked the phone away. “Gotta go, babe,” he said as he leaned forward and gave me a quick peck on the lips. It happened so fast that I didn’t have time to pull away. The last thing I wanted was to kiss him. “I’ll send you a text with the address and time of the reservation.” He shoved his chair back as he stood. “Dress nice.”
I nodded but kept my focus on the table in front of me. Kevin mumbled a quick goodbye and didn’t wait for my reply. He was gone before I looked up.
Now alone, I let out the breath that I’d been holding. I reached forward to grab my sandwich. My hands were shaking as I wrapped it back up. My stomach was too volatile to put anything else in it.
I kept glancing toward the doorway, waiting for Kevin to come back. It took five full minutes for my body to start to relax. With each ticking minute, Kevin was getting further and further away from the store, which meant I was safe. He wasn’t going to just appear again.
With my lunch packaged in the plastic bag I’d gotten from Boone, I leaned back in my seat, crossing my arms over my chest in an effort to feel more in control of myself. I closed my eyes and took in a few deep breaths.
This was not how I saw today going.
I’d secretly wished that Kevin had left Harmony, but he hadn’t. I’d secretly wished that Kevin would let me go, but he wouldn’t. And I’d stupidly deluded myself into thinking that our relationship was over, when it wasn’t.
Kevin hadn’t let me go even after I’d made it clear that I wasn’t interested in being together. He was going to have the final say. I would always be his. Which meant the baby was his as well. Even though he’d never wanted a child, he’d use it to control me.
I pressed my hand to my stomach, loving the baby growing there but hating the situation it was being born into.
I wanted to believe I could be strong, but after this interaction with Kevin, my confidence was crumbling. And the last thing I wanted to gamble with was our child’s safety.
I was determined to find the strength inside of me to walk away, and when I did, it needed to be for good.
8
BOONE
Juniper came back from lunch looking paler than when she’d left. I wanted to ask her if everything was okay, but she didn’t look like she was interested in talking and I didn’t want to overstep. I knew one of the reasons she pushed her parents out this morning was so she could have some privacy. I wasn’t about to pry and lose the small amount of trust she seemed willing to give me.
So when she appeared next to me to take over the register, I gave her a quick smile, gathered my things, and stepped out of the way.
I grabbed a sandwich from Sal and a soda. After Juniper rang me up, I ate quickly in the break room. I had a few more voicemails from Collin Baker, but I just deleted them without listening. I wasn’t ready to face my mother’s house just yet, and no pushy acquisitions guy was going to force me to.
Once my food was gone, I didn’t wait to finish my break. I grabbed my garbage and tossed it into the trash on my way out. The store was quiet when I pushed through the swinging doors.
I could see Juniper by the register. She was leaning against the counter, looking down at her phone. I glanced around to see if her mother’s chair was there, but I didn’t see it. So I spent the next five minutes hunting it down.
Juniper glanced up as I neared. Her gaze drifted from my face down to the chair I was carrying. Her expression was stoic as she left the register alcove so I could enter.
My heart sunk as I set the chair down. I don’t know why I thought she would break into a big smile. She just seemed so down, and all I wanted was to see her smile. It was gnawing at me that she was this unhappy.
“Thought you might need this,” I said, feeling stupid that I wanted to be her hero. I was bringing her a chair to sit on, not solving all of her life’s issues.
“Thanks,” she whispered.
I set the chair down and turned to face her. Her lips were more relaxed now, and the worry lines that had creased her forehead earlier were gone. I was going to take that as a win even though I wanted so much more.
“I’m going to finish stocking the cheese,” I announced as I straightened and stepped out of the alcove so she could step inside.
Juniper glanced toward the cheese refrigerator along the back wall. “Okay.”
