Two Weeks (The Baxter Family #5)(35)

Peace came over her. “Cole.” She turned to him. Her nausea was barely noticeable. The room wasn’t spinning. “I know what I want to do.”

Confusion colored Cole’s face. “About the baby?”

The words came then, words she never thought she’d say. “I want an abortion.” She lifted her eyes to Cole’s. “As soon as possible.”

Cole shook his head. “No.” His voice wasn’t loud, but his response couldn’t have been more direct. “Elise, you can’t.”

“It’s my choice.” She was on her feet. Her cheeks felt hot, her tone grew bolder. “And it’s not a baby yet. It’s tissue. So this is the best thing for everyone, Cole. I need to do this!”

For a long few seconds Cole didn’t say anything. He only looked at her, his eyes locked on hers. She didn’t see anger or condemnation or judgment. She saw something she didn’t expect at all.

Compassion.

“Do me one favor first.” Cole reached for her hand. “Please, Elise.”

She didn’t want to make any promises, but she trusted Cole. He truly cared for her. She exhaled. “What?”

He didn’t hesitate. “Talk to my mom.” He waited a few seconds. “Remember how I told you she studied art in Paris? Well, maybe now’s a good time for you to hear the rest of her story.”

Talk to Cole’s mom? Elise’s heart began to race again. It was the last thing she expected him to say. The last thing she wanted to do. Her reality stood like a mountain before her. She was pregnant. It wasn’t a dream or a lie, the test results weren’t wrong. No matter how things had been between Randy and her, she was carrying his baby.

And the worst part was she hadn’t told her mom about any of this. Every week they talked, but Elise had said nothing. Not about her sickness or her fears, and of course nothing about the positive tests from Walgreens.

Deep, dark panic worked its way through her veins and made her start to shake. Maybe Cole was onto something. Elise could talk to his mom and it would be practice for the day she finally told her own mama.

The truth was, she had no real choice now. Cole was her only friend in the world. If he wanted her to meet with his mother, if he thought somehow that would help, then she had just one choice.

She would do it.





10




Up until the minute Cole pulled into his driveway with Elise, he hadn’t felt nervous about the two of them talking with his mom.

His mother was the most kindhearted, deeply compassionate person he knew. Her early days had broken her. God had redeemed her. She saw hope for every person she met. “If God can love someone like me, then He must certainly love everyone,” she often said.

But between parking and opening Elise’s passenger door, Cole felt clammy and light-headed. He wasn’t sure where today’s conversation was going. He had just one prayer. Lord, please let her keep the baby. Please, God. His mother was expecting them. Today Elise would learn the truth. That abortion was murder. That tissue she referred to made up a life.

Cole took a deep breath. Of course he wanted Elise to talk to his mom. Her story was personal to him. It was the reason he was alive today.

On the way to the door, Elise stopped to watch Amy and Devin building a snowman in the front yard. Cole tried to smile. “That’s my brother and my cousin Amy.” He paused and looked at Elise. “She lives with us. Long story.” He waved at the two. “I think they’re trying to make the tallest snowman ever. Guinness Book of World Records stuff. Something like that.”

“Wish I were doing that today.” Elise sounded defeated. Like she’d given up before the meeting had even begun.

There was no time to think about all that might go wrong in the next hour. His mom opened the door before they reached it. As soon as he saw her eyes, her smile and gentle expression, Cole felt himself relax. His mom wouldn’t do anything to push Elise away. Today was going to be just what he’d prayed:

A turning point for the girl he cared about.

They walked inside and once they reached the kitchen, Cole peered into the living room. It was empty. “Hey, Mom.” He looked around. “Where’s Dad?”

“At the store.” His mom chuckled. “You know us. Always out of something.”

“Okay.” Cole didn’t laugh. As serious as today was, it didn’t feel right that his dad wasn’t there. “Mom, this is Elise.”

“Hello.” His mother turned to Elise and smiled. Like she’d known Cole’s friend for years. “Nice to meet you.” She went to take Elise’s hand, but then seemed to change her mind and instead she hugged her. “I’ve looked forward to this.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Elise sounded sullen, like she hadn’t even heard his mother.

Panic grabbed at Cole’s throat. What was Elise doing? She could at least be nice. Please, God, don’t let this be awkward. He looked down at his shoes and then back at Elise. “Um, yeah. I’ll get you some water.”

His mom hesitated, but her expression remained genuine. “I’ll get it.” She poured water for each of them and turned to Elise. “Can I get you anything else? A sandwich or fruit?”

“No, ma’am. No thank you.” Again she sounded different. Stiff, beyond scared. Which made no sense. Cole had already told Elise that if anyone would understand her situation, his mother would. So why was Elise doing this? Her eyes looked hard. Completely closed off. When they had their water, Cole led the way to the living room. He sat next to Elise on the sofa, and his mom took the chair across from them.