“She doesn’t know what the sex is,” Cassidy added.

I shot her a glare.

She shrugged. “What? It’s true.”

“Why didn’t you find out about the sex?” he asked.

I opened my mouth and then clamped it shut. Once again, my eyes drifted to the papers sitting on the table, all filled out. I sucked in a breath. “I’m not sure I can answer that right now.”

He hadn’t noticed the papers so far. I wondered if I would be able to slide them away without his notice. I didn’t need him changing my mind on that. Or maybe it was the guilt that filled my torso and filled my mouth with a sour taste. Either way, what was done was done. Still, I would have rather avoided discussing it.

“And on that note, I’m going to run to the restroom and give you both some time to talk. I won’t be coming back. Enjoy the lunch, you two!” Cassidy stood from the table.

I silently begged her not to leave. But she ignored my silent pleas. Instead, she winked, gathered her stuff, and walked off. I watched her leave, all the while, Weylan kept his hands and gaze on my belly.

I blew a raspberry and settled my attention on Weylan once more. His eyes crinkled at the corners when he smiled bigger than normal. He stared at my belly with such adoration. Another heavy dose of guilt pulsed through me.

There had to be a way to get over that.

He finally pulled away and sighed, still staring at my belly. “Thank you.”

I nodded. “Sure. I guess you might as well take Cassidy’s seat.”

“Are you sure?” he asked.

“Might as well…” I said.

The baby settled the second he sat down. That’s when he looked down at the papers and his expression soured. It was too late to move them now. Adoption sat in big bold letters on the top. He frowned at them. A deep crease appeared between his eyebrows.

“You’re giving him up?” he asked. “For adoption?”

“Weylan, try to understand my position,” I started. “I don’t think I can take care of a baby right now. Especially with the state of things. A baby wasn’t part of my plan, to begin with.”

He nodded, remaining silent.

“Besides, we left things in such a way I wasn’t sure whether you even wanted him or not,” I added.

“You think the baby is a boy too?” he asked with a smirk.

I shrugged. “I don’t know. Seems like it.”

Was that really the only part of what I had said he hung onto?

He shook his head and stabbed the papers with his finger. “I understand why you want to go this route, but please, let me tell you from experience this is not the way.”

“I can’t raise a kid on my own. I don’t know the first thing about taking care of a baby, much less have anything for him,” I said. “It had taken me this long to make up my mind. I can’t go back on that now.”

He nodded. “Would you be able to take care of him if I helped out?”

“How do you plan to do that?” I asked.

“However, I need to,” he said. “In whatever way you will let me.”

Huh. Interesting.

“All right, I’ll bite,” I started and leaned forward. “How do you want things to play out? Hypothetically. Because I’m not saying yes. Not yet at least.”

“First off, by tearing up those papers. I was adopted. My parents were human. I grew up not knowing what I was and when the first change happened, it was in front of them, and they kicked me out of their house.”