Avery:
The morning light hadn’t even fully broken through the curtains when I woke.
Cruz’s arm was still heavy over my hip, his body warm behind me, breath steady and deep against my neck. He was out cold—safe for once. Untroubled. And I didn’t want to move. Didn’t want to ruin that fragile stillness that only ever seemed to exist in these early morning hours.
But my heart was pounding.
I lay there, staring at the sliver of light between the curtains, every nerve pulled taut beneath my skin. I’d barely slept. Tossed and turned, thoughts swirling like smoke, the weight of that double pink line pressing down on me until I felt like I couldn’t breathe.
Maybe it was wrong. Maybe it was a fluke. Maybe I’d imagined it. Or maybe—I just needed to see it again. Clearer this time. Undeniable.
