Page 20 of Afterglow

Her shoulders slump in relief as she watches me remove my boots, but the wariness in her countenance is still there.

I’ve been around enough injured animals on the ranch to recognize the signs, and humans aren’t that different, so I move carefully toward her, making no attempt to touch her again. No matter how much I’m called to do so.

“Can I get you something to drink?” she asks, and I can’t help but smile at the politeness of the offer. Leanne being polite with me is new.

“I’m okay, blondie,” I say.

She scoffs and rolls her eyes—which only makes me smile wider.

“Can I get you something?” I ask, holding back the impulse to brush my thumb across the brightening color on her cheek.

Her eyes trail toward the bag on the counter, giving me permission to move toward it. I pull each item out, placing them in a line.

She goes to the opposite side of the counter, eyes catching mine. “The ginger ale and crackers I get, but what’s with the peanut butter?”

It’s an innocent question, one that should come with a simple answer, but it’s far from simple.

I clear my throat. “Healthy fat, high calorie, and…” I pause before continuing, not sure how much to divulge about my past right now. “I knew someone who ate it by the spoonful when she was pregnant.” Intense discomfort twinges behind my ribcage and I avoid rubbing at the spot there, willing the pain to dissipate. Yeah, that’s definitely a conversation for another day.

Her head tilts and she assesses the bounty in front of her before reaching for a can of ginger ale.

“I’d be careful opening that. They fell off the seat of my truck.”

She raises an eyebrow in my direction and taps the top of the can before gently popping it open with a satisfying hiss.

“Thank you—for this,” she says, lifting the can and taking a sip. She sighs softly when it hits her stomach. I grab the rest of the cans and open her fridge. I’m shocked to find it nearly empty. She shrugs when I turn a questioning look on her. “I haven’t felt well enough to go out.”

“Your sisters or mom haven’t offered to bring you anything?” Despite Leanne’s cool demeanor with me at the wedding, she seemed to have a good relationship with her family. I would’ve thought they’d mobilize for something like this.

“I haven’t told them,” she says, averting her gaze and taking another sip of her ginger ale. “You’re the only person who knows.”

I nod, mulling that over. “When did you find out?”

“Yesterday. I’ve been sick since Monday, and when I wasn’t getting better…” She lets that sentence hang.

She’s been sick since Monday? It’s Saturday… “No wonder you look like you’ve lost weight. Have you been able to keep anything down?”

She shakes her head and sips her soda again. “Not really.”

“And you’ve just been suffering here alone?” The protective instincts I thought were long gone—ones I felt stir that night when she was arguing with her ex—move to the forefront. I hate to think of her being so sick for a week by herself.

Her answer is yet another shrug.

“Jesus, Leanne. What about the doctor? Have you been to the doctor?”

“I called one, but they won’t see me until I’m ten weeks along.”

I vaguely remember that information, but the sickness thing is new to me. Sarah never got sick. “But you’re sick…” I say with barely veiled indignation.

“It’s just morning sickness. It gets better in the afternoons… sort of.” She grimaces, which tells me that isn’t exactly true. “It’ll pass. Or so they say.”

I swear if she shrugs again, I’m going to lose it. She may think she’s playing off how bad she really feels, but I’m not buying it. I’ve seen behind her mask of indifference and nonchalance before, and I can see through it now.

“But you have to be able to eat—” I push.

“Okay listen, I said you could stay. I didn’t say you could berate me like a child who doesn’t know anything,” she snaps. “I’m not stupid. And I called you, didn’t I?”

Yeah, I guess she did. Even if she pretended she didn’t when I called her back. Infuriating woman. And what if I hadn’t? Would she be lying on the floor in her bathroom getting more and more dehydrated by the minute?