Page 59 of Please, Forgive Me

I looked at Arthur again, and for a split second, I imagined what it would be like if there were another child—another small life depending on me, looking at me the way Arthur did now.

The idea terrified me. It left me torn in two.

I tried to shove the thoughts aside, forcing myself to focus on my son, on the little things he was saying, his innocent questions about the cartoons.

But the image of my secretary, alone in her office, broken by my words, wouldn’t leave my mind.

In my own way, I was lost.

CHAPTER 24

“In our darkest moments, we discover the strength we never knew we had…”

MARIA GABRIELA

“Tell me what happened, girl, you’re driving me crazy!”

I was at Carol’s place, straight from work.

I let out a deep sigh, trying to organize my thoughts before I spoke. Carol sat beside me on the couch, wide-eyed with worry, a cup of tea in her hand that she gently offered me.

“It went exactly the way I expected,” I finally said, my voice faint. I stared down at my hands, still trembling the way they had when I faced Diego in that office. “He didn’t believe me.”

Carol’s eyes narrowed. She didn’t say anything right away, waiting for me to continue—which was exactly what I needed.

It was hard to put the pain, the frustration, into words.

“He laughed, Carol.” My voice cracked as the memory replayed in my head. “He laughed in my face when I told him the baby was his.”

Carol shook her head, her lips pressed into a thin, angry line.

“What a bastard,” she muttered, her eyes blazing with the anger I wished I could feel—but I was too drained, too numb.

“I knew it would be like this,” I admitted, feeling tears well up again, though I refused to let them fall. “I knew that if something like this ever happened, he’d react exactly this way. But that doesn’t make it hurt any less, you know?”

“Of course it hurts, Gabi. He may be complicated, but that doesn’t mean you have to carry this weight alone.”

I took a deep breath, trying to take in her words, but the truth was, I still felt completely lost. I had the baby now, and that changed everything.

I needed to be strong—for me and for him.

“I’ll be okay,” I said with a weak but honest smile. “It’ll take time, but I’ll be okay. With you, and with the baby… I’ll find my way.”

Carol smiled, that warm, reassuring smile that always made me believe everything would somehow be alright, even when the world felt like it was falling apart.

“And how exactly are you planning to do that?” she asked with a lighter tone, trying to lift the tension in the room.

I let out a short laugh—for the first time that day—feeling the weight on my chest ease just a little.

“Well,” I began, resting a hand on my still-flat stomach, “I’m going to do the only thing I can do right now.”

Carol raised an eyebrow.

“Drink until you pass out?”

“No,” I said, breaking into genuine laughter for the first time in hours. “I’m going to adopt a dog.”

She blinked a few times before bursting into laughter.