Page 31 of Fallout

The bed had been slept in, the covers shoved back. But she wasn’t here.

He heard something.

“Destiny?”

She didn’t reply. What if she needed someone? So, he threaded through the bedroom, then a walk-through closet, and into the well-lit room beyond. He could hear the distinct sounds of throwing up in the bathroom.

He pushed the door open.

She sat back on the floor, wiping her face with the back of her hand.

“Hey.” He kept his voice soft and filled a cup at the sink. Crouching, he handed it to her. “Take slow sips.”

Her face had lost some color, her lips pale. Her hand trembled, so he helped her hold the glass. There was a bandage on her cheek from where his mom had scratched her. He traced the edge of it, then stopped. This wasn’t the time. “Sorry.”

She lowered the cup and handed it back. “Thanks for the drink.”

“Are you okay?”

What she said next was the last thing he expected.

Jasper toppled back in his crouch. His behind hit the floor, and the water cup spilled on the tile.

Tears rolled down her face.

“Pregnant?” He looked down, just a reflex. The oversized shirt. The dress that had bloused over her waist. The experience she’d had… “They raped you?”

She sobbed, burying her face in her hands.

Jasper’s heart broke in his chest. He slid over and touched her head, running his hand over her hair. She lowered her hands and wrapped them around his waist, moving closer at the same time that he pulled her in and held on to her.

This took a terrible situation to a whole new level. She’d been through one of the worst things a woman could go through. Now, she would bring a life into the world. One that would remind her every day of what happened and how beauty could come from ashes.

Wasn’t that the saying?

He kept his mouth shut. He’d come here to tell her… What would he even have said? How could he possibly explain? She didn’t need all his family issues on top of everything else she had going on.

At least her working at Vanguard made sense. And the constant bodyguards, ready to kill for her. He understood the Famous Ones a little more now—and respected them, too.

Blake and their sisters must be…

Jasper asked, “You haven’t told anyone, have you?”

Destiny pulled back, wiping her cheeks. “I need to clean up. Can we talk in the kitchen?”

He helped her to her feet and flushed the toilet for her. “Can I make you some tea? Or something to eat? I don’t know what is good.”

“Crackers sound good. And tea with milk? There’s decaf by the kettle.”

“Got it.” He leaned in and kissed her forehead. “Take your time.”

Jasper made sure she was steady on her feet. He walked out of that bathroom a different man than he had been when he walked in. Destiny would have a baby in a few months. In a way, that seemed like a lifetime. For her, it would probably go fast, and her life would never be the same.

Jasper stopped in the entryway to the kitchen.

Pregnant.

Destiny was going to have a baby. That realization was on repeat in his head. Walking through the door felt like moving down a path he could never retrace. Nothing would be the same.