Her face softens. “Gabe will be fine,” she tells me, matter-of-fact. “He’s still detained. But as soon as I’m finished here, he’ll be free to go. Weston will not be pressing charges.”
I just stare at her. I don’t understand. How?
I’m floored.
“Really?” I say, the word floating above us in the stuffy room.
“Really,” she says simply, and slides past me. Her two eager little puppies scurry and trail behind her.
I stand frozen, my hand still splayed on my chest.
Gwen makes me jerk when she grabs my arm. “What happened? What did she say? You look like you’ve just seen an alien.”
“I think I have.” It was so surreal.
I take a seat on one of the upholstered blue chairs and I try to figure this out. “I don’t understand.”
Gwen studies me with curious eyes. “What don’t you understand?”
I blow out a breath. “Bridget. She blew out the fire,” I tell her, not believing my own words. “She took care of everything. Weston won’t be pressing charges. Gabe will be fine.”
Gwen lights up. “That’s great. What are you so freaked out about?”
I don’t understand. I was sure she would bury Gabe. The man beat the crap out of her husband, her children’s father. And I’m sure she has the power to ensure he’s kept behind bars.
Maybe Bridget cares more about Gabe than I’ve ever thought. Maybe it’s not just about a good time. Maybe she has deep feelings for him. Perhaps she loves him? I can’t bear the thought. I’ve never thought about Gabe and Bridget. I’ve always preferred to think of the two of them as not quite real, like characters from a reality show. Could there be more than I thought between them? Gabe has told me he doesn’t love her, has no feelings for her beyond the physical. Could he have been lying?
“Can I get you anything?” the woman from the desk asks. “Would you like a cup of coffee while you wait?”
I look up at her, stunned by her kindness. I’m sure she’s seen me crying and is trying to help out. I will take anyone’s kindness right now. “Yes, I would like that. Thank you.”
Gwen and I wait for what seems like eternity. I call Caroline’s parents, explain there’s been an emergency and ask them to keep the girls for the night — it’s already past their bedtime. Her parents are on board but seem concerned. I tell them everything is fine. I can’t exactly tell them the whole story. I can’t tell them Gabe is in custody because he beat the shit out of some guy for impregnating me, all in the context of a naughty sex swap scenario. After all, our neighborhood is nice and classy.
Finally, Bridget, Gabe and a police officer make their way to the front desk. I jump up and practically throw myself at Gabe. He pushes me away softly, with nothing in his eyes but contempt. I take a step back and watch them as they sign some papers.
“I won’t be coming home,” he tells me, his words hard as steel. “Ever.”
I watch him follow Bridget out.
And I know we’re done.
CHAPTER NINE
This was his crime, not yours.
When I get home in the middle of the night, I bury myself under the covers of my bed. But it seems so cold and empty without Gabe. He’s so large and usually splayed across our king-sized bed. There’s always a limb, a hand or a foot touching me and I love that — that small bit of physical contact. I miss it now. What I wouldn’t give to have just the tip of his pinkie toe touching mine.
I slip on some sweats and a t-shirt and rush to go get the girls at Caroline’s. My heart is beating, like I’m half expecting them not to be there. But Gabe would never do that. He would never take them from me.
As soon as they see me in the front hall, they both jump up on me.
“We had so much fun, Mommy,” Claire tells me. And I’m so glad they have no clue what’s going on. They have no idea our family is completely unraveled. And I vow to keep them in the dark a little longer. I don’t want to tell them their lives are about to change, not just yet.
Chloe pipes in, as giddy as her sister. “We watched a movie and had popcorn, and we played Barbies this morning.”
“Is everything okay?” Caroline’s mom, Danielle, asks with a cocked brow. “You said there was an