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I’m such an idiot. I can’t believe I forgot about the scar. I was just so caught up in the moment, I wasn’t thinking straight.
Sterling doesn’t move for so long, I start to get worried. He’s practically shell-shocked, eyes filled with confusion. Finally, he shifts slowly, sitting down on the bed. He looks at me, expression blank. I hate it when he hides his emotions like that. But I know I deserve it in this moment.
“You…” He falters. “You had a baby.”
I swallow softly, absolutely frightened as I nod.
“She was… she came earlier than expected. There were some complications so I had to have surgery. But she’s safe now. She’s healthy and so beautiful,” I tell him.
“A girl,” Sterling breathes, disbelief in his eyes. “You had a baby girl. My baby girl?”
His calmness is even more terrifying than if he was shouting at me. I want him to give me some emotion, anything to let me know what he’s thinking.
“Sterling,” I say, reaching for him arm.
He rips it away, though, getting to his feet.
“This doesn’t make any sense,” he murmurs, pacing the room.
I don’t say a word, letting him work through it all on his own. He’s smart enough to understand. The room is so silent, you could hear a pin drop. He halts in his pacing to look at me again.
“That’s why you moved to Greenville, isn’t it? To keep people from knowing? Because you didn’t want me finding out, right? You were pregnant with my child and you didn’t tell me.”
“Sterling, how could I tell you? You were dealing with so much. I just wanted to give you time,” I say tearfully.
“No, that’s a fucking bullshit excuse. Do you even realize what you’re saying right now? You hid a baby from me!” he yells.
I wince at his tone. He’s never spoken to me like this before. I tell myself that I have to take it. That he has every right to react this way. I knew he would be angry. He should be angry.
“I’m so sorry,” I say softly.
His eyes narrow. He huffs out a breath before grabbing his jacket on the bed.
“Where are you going?” I ask.
“This isn’t a fucking joke, Emilia,” he states, betrayal in his tone. “I need… I need to get out of here.”
There isn’t a thing I can say to stop him as he heads for the door. My heart breaks as he slams it behind him, effectively shutting me out. I just sit there and cry for a couple of minutes.
That went so fucking horribly.
After throwing myself a pity party, I know I have to get into action. I get to my feet, fixing my clothes before leaving the room as well. I call a taxi that takes me straight to Carson’s apartment. He’s in the middle of feeding my baby when I burst through the door.
“Carson, I need your help,” I state. “I need you to help me find Sterling.”
He frowns, slowly taking in my appearance. My tear-stained cheeks, my frazzled hair.
“Okay,” he says slowly. “Just sit down first. Take a deep breath and tell me what happened.”
“He knows,” I state. “He found out I was pregnant.”
Carson takes that in with a blank expression.
“And how did he react to that information?” he asks calmly.
“He just left,” I mutter. “He barely gave me a chance to explain.”
A muscle ticks in Carson’s jaw. “I see. Here, take her,” he says, handing the baby to me.