Page 55 of Bronx

“Yes.”

“Is this the first time you’ve left him, or is this a dance the two of you do all the time?”

I pop my eyes back up and stare daggers into him.

“This is not a dance!”

“You’re right, this is your fucking life, and you better act like you give a shit about it. Your brother ain’t always going to be around to save you, just like he ain’t right now.”

“I’ve never depended on Lev, and I’d say I’ve managed just fine on my own.”

“See, that’s what I’m trying to get you to understand. You aren’t managing just fine on your own and I need you to face some realities. You say your brother has never done this before?”

“No, he hasn’t.”

“And you feel in your gut that something’s wrong?”

“Yes.”

“Then what if something is wrong and he can’t help you? Are you going to back to that douchebag?”

“Why are you so invested in whether I get back together with Ray?”

“Because I just kicked his ass up and down Ruby’s damn block.”

“Which nobody told you to do. Whatever you did wasn’t for me. You don’t even know me. All of that is on you.”

“Doesn’t make sense for me to find your brother and he won’t have a sister to come back to.”

“Ray wouldn’t hurt me in that way.”

Bronx slides himself to the edge of his seat, spreading his legs, and leaning more into the conversation.

“You’re supposed to be his woman, the one person he should protect over all others and look at what he does to you. If you think he’s incapable of doing more than he has, you’re fooling yourself. It’s just a matter of time.”

“That’s my problem.”

“Yeah, it is,” he says, while staring overtly at my chest. As a matter of fact, he hasn’t been able to keep his eyes above my chest for most of this conversation.

“What are you staring at?” I ask.

“Nothing.”

“I thought we weren’t lying to each other.”

A small smirk spreads on his face.

“True.”

“So, why are you staring at me?”

“Just wondering when you were going to tell me about the baby.”

My jaw drops.

“I’m sorry, but did you just ask me if I was pregnant?”

Do I look that damn fat in this robe?