Chapter 7

Ashton finally brought up the main topic of the night.

The child, suddenly exposed, but never seen.

He sounded annoyed, his tone much deeper than before.

"Why didn't you tell me you were pregnant back then?"

Because I didn't know at first.

By the time I knew, we had already broken up.

"I didn't want to affect you and Ms. Camilla because of the child."

Ashton scoffed. "You kept it a secret for six years, and it still got out, didn't it? Did it make any less of an impact?"

"I'm sorry."

I didn’t know what else to say besides those three words.

When Ashton and I first started dating, someone warned me that he liked obedient girls.

But I couldn't pretend to be obedient.

I was young then, thinking one relationship would last a lifetime.

Who could pretend for a lifetime?

So, in front of Ashton, I would throw little tantrums and act petty.

He wasn't great at coaxing, but he never held it against me.

I usually felt better after I'd vented my frustrations.

The Skylar from back then was vibrant, passionate.

Not like the Skylar Ashton saw now: poised, reserved, stripped of my true self.

He asked again, "Where's the child?"

"There is no child."

From the moment I found out, I never considered keeping the baby.

A man who didn't love me wouldn't love a child I bore for him.

And I never wanted to be a single mother.

So I had an abortion.

A light exploded in Ashton's eyes, tearing through the dark, heavy ocean I’d come to associate with his gaze, finally letting me see the surge of his emotions.

He actually cared about the unborn child.

That was something I hadn't expected.

Did he care about his own flesh and blood?

Or had he, perhaps, truly loved me, even just a little, back then?