Page 32 of Wild Weekend
She tells me the address, and we leave the diner. Stella gets on her bike, and I follow at a safe distance. I’m not risking her running from me again. Not after I’ve finally found her, and especially now that she’s carrying my child.
She pulls up outside a small block of apartments. There’s graffiti on the wall and paint chips off thewindow frames. A rusty gate swings on its hinges surrounded by a lawn that hasn’t seen a mower in a long while.
My heart aches thinking about Stella staying here. She goes into an apartment on the second floor, and I wait across the road.
An hour later she comes out, and I pretend I just pulled up.
15
STELLA
Wind whips my hair as the road speeds underneath me. In front, Will takes a turn to the left following a sign to a local lake.
It’s been a long time since I went for a ride just for fun, and it feels good to be on the open road again. As we speed away from the city, I feel lighter. It was a shock to see Will and also a relief.
I’ve missed him, and I thought I was doing the right thing by not contacting him. But now that he’s here, I’m not so sure.
Instead of recoiling at the prospect of being a father, he seems at least curious about it. But could we be a happy family? It seems too good to be true.
We come to the lake and park the bikes in the parking lot.
There’s a boardwalk that skirts the lake, and we set off along it. Tall reeds are on either side, and nesting birds call to each other and scurry away as we come near.
A family of swans glides past, the mother at the front followed by three cygnets, and the daddy swan bringing up the rear.
Will takes my hand, and for a while we don’t talk about the situation. I ask about his work and the mountain, and I tell him about my job at the nursing home.
It’s not until we’ve circled the lake and are back near the little parking lot that he goes quiet. There’s a park bench overlooking the lake, and we take a seat.
Will wipes his hands on his jeans and takes a long breath, suddenly nervous. I wonder what he’s going to say, and I brace myself.
This is where he tells me he’s going back to the mountain and leaving me to be a single mom. That he’s not ready for a kid and he hopes I understand, but it’s for the best. He’ll probably send money, because he’s a guy that does the right thing.
I clutch my arms to my chest, bracing myself for the blow even though I know it’s for the best.
But he doesn’t say that. Instead, Will takes a small box out of his pocket and sinks to his knees.
“Stella…”
I gasp when I realize what he’s doing, the shock of it making my mouth drop open.
“I’ve searched all over for you, and I can’t believe I finally found you. I don’t run away from my responsibilities, and I will care for you and the baby as best I can. Will you marry me?”
He opens the box, and a diamond ring sparkles in thesun. It’s a simple gold band with a cluster of small diamonds at the center. It’s beautiful.
I reach for the ring, then hesitate.
He must have run out and bought this while I was getting changed. He doesn’t want me for me. He just wants to do the right thing.
“You don’t have to marry me because I’m knocked up.”
Will frowns. “It’s not like that.”
“I know this isn’t what you expected to find, and it’s good of you to offer. But I don’t want to marry someone just because they’re doing the right thing, Will. I’d rather do this on my own from the start than have a man who decides to leave in a few years because he can’t handle a baby and a woman he doesn’t love.”
“Is that what you think?”
He looks hurt, and a pang of doubt hits my stomach. “Isn’t it?”
