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I roll onto my back and pull Hayley on top of me

“Oh, I think I’kisses all over my chest

“I was hoping we could talk,” I tell her

She tenses “About what?”

“It’s nothing bad,” I reassure her I thread ently tug until her chin comes to rest on my sternum She bites her lip nervously “But it’s important”

“Is this the part where you tell me the sex sucked and it’s time to leave?” She only half teases I can hear the apprehension in her voice “Because if that’s the case then I’d rather leave without you saying it” She tries to push herself away from me but I trap her with my arms

“Hey, it’s nothing like that, I proht? Given my track record, I don’t blame her All the more reason for us to have this conversation, so that she can see that I’m serious about her and about us “Will you just trust me? Please”

Hayley nods and settles her head on ain, her eyes on ainst the headboard

“I wanted to ask you about Ari,” I start, gauging her reaction carefully

“What did you want to know?”

“Well for starters, is her father in the picture?” I ask She looks away fro to do this, I need to knohat I’ a toddler into theif I said I had a clue what I’

Hayley lets out a breath, and replies, “No, he isn’t and I don’t think he ever will be”

“What made you decide to keep her?”

Hayley’s eyes glaze over and I feel guilty for bringing it up “It’s okay,” I tell her “You don’t have to talk about this if you don’t want to”

She shakes her head “No, it’s fine, I just haven’t spoken to anyone about it in a really long time”

Her fingers start tracing invisible patterns onher

“When I found out I was pregnant, I was already with randmother I left a lot of bad decisions behind when I left ho an abortion to be another one So, nancy through and then give the baby up for adoption before my parents had the chance to find out” I watch the way her lips move, hypnotized by the sound of her voice “But when I heard her heartbeat for the first ti circles on her bare thighs She ss and“I knew there was no way I could give her away I realized then that after a string of bad choices, and irresponsible decisions, keeping her would be the one thing, the one decision I got right She wasthat I wasn’t ready to be a ed The way she looked at me, it was like she kneho I was and I couldn’t bare the thought of another wo to share her life with my baby She was mine and I was hers…”

Hayley tells me the story about the day Ari was born and how she al Ari and how she didn’t know if her life could continue without her I devour every word, the way she says it, how she feels when the words colaze over and shine with aat her, only one word co us chest-to-chest and nose-to-nose

“Reirl”

I place a feather light kiss on her lips and feel her shudder in reen eyes wide and open “Now can I ask you so?”

I nod There’s nothing I don’t want her to know