Page 112 of When Sky Breaks
“Thank you,” she murmurs against my lips. “I just—I really need to know why my mom—Dannie left me. I don’t even know why I still call her Mom.”
I press my forehead to hers and hold her tightly. “You don’t have to explain it to me, I get it. You’ll never have to face any of this alone. Not anymore. No matter what, I’m not going anywhere. Even if what you find makes you hate me or my family, I’m not leaving you to deal with that by yourself.”
She breathes out, her warm sigh skating across my lips. “I could never hate you. Not anymore. I’m tired of the hate and the blame. But if there’s a chance I can find my mom and talk to her, I have to do it. As long as you’re there, I’ll—I’ll be okay.”
“Always, Shortcake.”
And it’s true. Despite the mountains of guilt I’m still climbing over, I cling to Sky’s strength and convictions. I’ll be by her side and hold her up if she needs it. But she’s always been the strongest of us both, her tragedies weighing heavily on the scales against mine. I’ve been spineless, running from my past instead of facing it head on like a man.
“Oh, and I have some other news,” she says, her voice sounding amused.
I relax, thankful for the change in topic.
“Yeah?” I run my nose up her neck and sneak kisses along her jaw. Now that we’ve talked about our next step, I’m ready to fulfill her other requests. Starting with?—
“Trek got one of our old teachers pregnant.”
The imaginary record in the room screeches to a halt, and I pull back, meeting her gaze. “What?”
Her eyes glitter. “Yep. He said I could tell you since he hasn’t told Foster yet.”
“Holy shit. Wait. Which teacher?”
“Ms. Thorne.”
I raise a brow. “Go Trekky. She was hot when we were in school. Probably hasn’t changed.”
Sky whacks me on the shoulder. “She’s older than him. By like ten years.”
I shrug, grinning at her cute little scowl. “So. Older women are hot. Hell, Ginger is still sexy at her age.”
Sky glares, and I pull her close. “Is my girl…jealous?”
She rolls her eyes, fighting a smile. “Not a chance.”
“Good. You shouldn’t be. I’d pick you. I’ll always pick you.”
Her face turns serious. “I know that now. I trust you. I trust you with this.” She takes my hand and places it on her bare chest, right above her heart.
I slide her shirt off her shoulders and gently lay her back on the bed. “And I’ll take care of it forever.”
CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE
sky
Desperation snares me like a sharp hook deep in my gut. I pace my bedroom completely unhinged and shake out my arms, letting the nervous energy trickle from the tips of my fingers.
Opening my mom’s file on my own instead of with August may be a decision I’ll regret, but it’s something I need to do on my own. Trek is home and finishing some work this evening, and Foster’s already asleep, so I can’t turn to them for support.
But this is all for me—something I need to see through so I can move on.
My inhale is heavy as I settle into my chair and palm the file on my desk.
Just do it and get it over with.
I pick it up and let it drift open. The only thing inside is a piece of lined paper with words in Foster’s handwriting. My body sags as I read. His scrawling script does nothing except provide me with more questions. I should’ve known Foster wouldn’t keep anything from me.
All it contains is Dannie’s name, her last address—our old house—and other personal details I already know. There’s a number for a private investigator, but Foster was waiting on me to pull the trigger on that ever since I came to live with him.