Love's Suicide (Love's Suicide #1)(36)

I woke up in tears, imagining him never knowing she existed. It broke my heart, but I knew he was in another country, risking his life and wishing he’d never known me. The fact that I’d chose to leave him severed any chance of me getting another chance. The last thing that family wanted was to hear I was carrying a Valentine child. Then I feared that if they did find out, they’d try to take her from me and I couldn’t ever let that happen.





Chapter 16


May 2011


Due to my having to stand so much, I was ordered by my doctor to stop working at the restaurant. I was worried that my boss would flip out. Instead, she looked a bit relieved.

After the first week of being home with nothing to do, I decided to make a phone call, to let an old friend know that I was doing alright. Of course, I had no intention of telling her I was with child.

The number to Melissa rang five times before she answered it, and when she did she was giggling uncontrollably. “Hello?”

“Melissa, it’s me, Katy. How are you?”

Even through the phone I could sense that she was shocked to hear from me. “Katy, oh my God.” She put her hand over the phone so I couldn’t hear her asking whoever she was with to give her a second. “Sorry, I have company and didn’t want to be disturbed. So, how are you? Where are you? You told me you were going to call me once a month. What happened?”

I let out an air-filled sigh and looked down at my belly. I had so many reasons why I hadn’t kept in touch. “I’ve just been busy. Starting over can be a little overwhelming at times. So tell me, how are you? Did you finish school?”

She hesitated to answer. “School is over, finally. I’ve started job hunting, which isn’t going very well. I moved into a new apartment and happened to get a new boyfriend in the shuffle of it all.”

“That’s awesome.” I was so happy for her. “Anyone I know?”

“No!” she answered quickly. “You don’t know him at all.”

It was weird how defensive she was, but I wondered if it was because of my actions the day I left town. Maybe she thought I had a habit of sleeping with men that I wasn’t engaged to. “Wow, it’s been a long time coming. You did so good not settling down so you could keep your focus on school. Had I done that, I wouldn’t have had to give up everything.”

I could hear her moving around as she spoke. “So tell me, where exactly are you?”

Of all the questions she could be asking me, she wanted to know my exact location. I felt reluctant about it, like she was fishing. “Florida. I’m living in Florida now and I have a roommate. Her name is Sarah,” I kept going with the lies. “I work at a large manufacturer of oranges. It’s nothing fancy, but it pays the bills.”

“So, you’re doing okay for yourself?”

“Yeah. I am.” I rubbed my stomach and smiled. “I’m happier than I’ve been in a long time. I’ve got a lot to look forward to and good people around me that have helped me tremendously.”

“Good for you.”

The line got quiet and I didn’t understand why she didn’t want to chat about everything under the sun. “I’m sorry it took so long for me to call, Mel. I know you’re probably mad at me.”

Finally, she seemed to calm down. “It’s fine. I guess I just expected something. For all these months I didn’t even know if you were alive. It’s really good to hear your voice. Is this your number? Do you mind if I keep it?”

I got excited thinking that enough time had gone by that she could keep my number. “Yes, of course. Call me whenever you want.”

“Great. Listen, I’ve got to run out, but you take care of yourself and keep in touch.”

“I will. Talk to you again soon.”

“Okay, bye.”

When I hung up I napped for the rest of the afternoon. The windows were all open and a cool spring breeze was coming inside. South Carolina was such an amazing place to live and I was somehow glad that I’d lied to Melissa about where I’d settled down at. Something about that call made me feel very uneasy. I wondered if maybe she’s promised Branch to tell him if I was ever in contact with her again.

When I finally woke, feeling well rested, I found Sarah outside hanging up some clean clothes on the line. They smelled like fabric softener and bleach and I loved how it was the first thing that popped in my nose when I walked out my door.

“Hey there. Did you have a nice nap?”

I smiled, realizing she’d come in to check on me. “Yes. This weather feels amazing.”

“Just wait a couple of months when your belly is double in size and you feel like you’re goin’ to melt. Our summers are hot. I reckon one weekend we can all go to the beach. It’s not a far drive from here. Myrtle Beach has lots of families at it. The kids love it.”

I helped her hang a shirt and walked over wrapping my arms around her. “I love you, Sarah. You’ve given me hope when I thought I had nothing to live for. I don’t know where I’d be without you.”

She hugged me back and started patting my shoulder. “Don’t talk like that. You’d be fine. Besides, everything happens for a reason. I’ve always believed that. Helping you was the Christian thing to do. Us being friends was an added bonus.”