揥hat??she demands.
揗y dad isn抰 the father. But匫liver might be.?
Silence. I wonder if she managed to fall back asleep in the thirty seconds it took me to answer her question. Then, I hear it. Muffled at first, until it becomes unmistakable.
Laughter. She抯 laughing. Harder and less reserved than I抳e heard her. And maybe people are right about it being contagious梑ecause I start laughing too.
A few minutes ago, when I climbed into bed, I was tense and uncertain and sad. Cynical about how little of privilege feels real. It抯 zeroes in a bank account梟othing tangible. Complimenting people you can抰 stand. Pretending you抮e happy when you抮e not.
Nothing about laughing with Scarlett feels fake. Not the sound of our amusement or the way I suddenly feel loose and light.
My father married Candace. Oliver slept with Candace. Candace made morally gray decisions. The only one I pity is the innocent child who will be affected by those choices.
揜emember when you told me your family wasn抰 messy??
I smile in the dark. 揑 didn抰 see this coming.?
揌ow do you know your dad isn抰 the father??
揂ccording to him, he got a vasectomy. Years ago, after my mom died.?
揧ou believe him??
揑 don抰 see why he would lie.?
揂nd he never told Candace??
揇oesn抰 sound like it. I didn抰 ask. I think he assumed it would only become an issue厰
揑f she cheated,?Scarlett finishes.
揜ight.?
揂nd how do you know Oliver might be the father??
I sigh at the reminder. 揌e told me there抯 a chance. I talked to him before dinner. He抯 freaked out by Candace抯 announcement卼o say the least.?
Scarlett scoffs. 揧eah, I guess he would be.?
揑 told my dad you抮e pregnant,?I blurt. 揃efore we talked about everything else.?That seems like an important distinction to make, given what everything else entails.
揇id he tell you to get a paternity test??It抯 not what I抦 expecting her response to be, and the surprise shocks me silent, giving her the correct answer. 揥ow.?
I stumble through my thoughts, trying to figure out how to respond. I抳e been careful when it comes to Scarlett and feelings. Not to accumulate them, because I抳e stacked up plenty. But to express them. I think about her constantly: when I eat, when I抦 at work, when I jerk off. I don抰 pay attention to other women. My mood revolves around hers. I know what all that adds up to. But I love you and paternity test aren抰 two phrases that belong in the same conversation.
揑 don抰 need a paternity test.?
揇o you want one??she counters.
揘o. No,?I repeat. I reach over and tug her toward me, so her back is to my front. I rest my palm on her stomach, cradling the slight swell.
揑 trust you, Red.?Short of the l-word, it抯 the strongest declaration I can make. The list of people I trust梪nequivocally梚s a short one. It starts and ends with her. 揥ith everything. About everything.?
For an agonizing moment, she抯 silent and still. Then she shifts away. I roll onto my back, accepting the distance she clearly wants. But the sheets keep moving. I feel them yank and loosen as I squint over at her side of the bed, trying to figure out what she抯 doing.
I get my answer when her body presses against mine. Heat radiates from her skin as she twists so she抯 lying more on me than the mattress. My arm curls around her involuntarily, and I realize she抯 now naked.
She reaches into my boxers and pulls out my cock. I groan. 揝carlett厰
揑 can抰 fall asleep without this now,?she informs me. 揥ithout you. It抯 fucking annoying.?
My lips turn up into a grin I doubt she can see. 揑t抯 fucking something.?
Then I抦 swallowing her moans with my mouth and spreading her legs with my hips and pushing inside her with a groan. We both come in minutes, using each other in an unfamiliar yet familiar way. There aren抰 any dirty words or daring positions. It抯 sweet without nothings. Tender without lingering touches. Quick without rushing.
Scarlett stays tangled on my side of the bed after we抳e both come. I run my fingers through the long, silky strands of her hair, matching my breathing to hers. It抯 deep and even. I think she抯 fallen back asleep梪ntil she speaks. 揑 trust you too.?
I keep combing through her hair, feeling those four words expand in my chest. I know that she does. She抯 told me so before. More importantly, she抯 shown it梬hen she trusted me about Hannah. But I抣l never get sick of hearing it.
My limbs grow heavy as I relax into the mattress. I抦 close to sleep, maybe already asleep, when the sharp screech of an alarm jerks me alert.
Scarlett tenses. 揥hat is that??
揑 think it抯 the fire alarm.?I climb out of bed, trying to stay calm when I抦 anything but. There are fireplaces in every room of the chalet. One stray spark can ignite fast. Visions of scorched walls and raging flames fill my head. I shove worst-case scenarios away as I climb out of bed and get dressed in a pair of joggers and a sweatshirt.