*Delilah*A cold wind blew across my body, and my eyes flew open. I was alone, laying on the bed of moss, still naked.I sat up, looking everywhere for Andrew, but he was gone. I shivered and hugged myself, trying not to cry. I grabbed my discarded clothes and put them on quickly, finding my shoes and water not far away. My book had somehow managed to stay in the back pocket of my jeans.I stood, my legs shaking a bit. My entire body was sore from last night. I reached up, rubbing the mark that was now on my shoulder. It had healed fast, but it was there.My hands shook and tears fell down my face no matter how I tried to keep them back. Where was he? Did he really just leave me here without even saying goodbye? I looked up, seeing the moon high in the sky. Grabbing my phone from my pocket, I clicked on the screen. I noticed I had one text from my dad at midnight.“Where are you?”There was nothing after that, and it was 3:00 a.m. now. I was sure he was asleep, not re
*Andrew*My eyes shot open. I looked around, shocked to find I was awake. The dream I’d just had was so intense. I knew it instantly for what it was.Delilah was laying on my chest still, sleeping soundly. I breathed deeply, inhaling her scent. She smelled like lavender and mint, and something that had to just be her. She smelled divine, and she looked even better.I looked down at her, unsure how I’d missed how beautiful she was before this.I slowly rolled her over, holding her for just a bit longer. “Delilah, wake up.”She stirred, and I thought I saw her eyes open. “I’m going to head home. Do you want me to walk you home?”“No, just go,” she said sleepily.“Okay,” I said, and I kissed her cheek softly before slipping away and grabbing my clothes silently. I walked a short distance away and threw them on before making my way back to the path. Just as I emerged I smelled her–Kendra.“Andrew, what are you doing out here?” she said as she approached.“I was w
*Delilah*Pregnant.My hands started shaking, the pregnancy test bouncing wildly in the air with the movement. The words screamed at me in all caps on the small screen. I dropped it like it might sting me.How could this be happening to me? I brought my knees to my chest and hid my face in my knees trying to slow my breathing. I couldn’t be pregnant. I was a lone wolf with no family or friends. I worked at a gas station and lived in a motel. What could I possibly offer a child?My thoughts raced as I tried to come to terms with what I’d just discovered. I lifted my head, looking around the park. There were couples with children everywhere. It was a beautiful day, after all.Leaning my head back, I closed my eyes and let the sun warm me as I breathed in deeply through my nose before exhaling through my mouth. Once the fear and insecurity of the situation began to fade, the anger rose up. I’d been a virgin before mating with Andrew. How was I so unlucky to get pregnant th
*Delilah*I woke up feeling rested for the first time since I’d left. My hands instinctively went to my stomach and I thought about the children again.Triplets. I was going to have triplets.I didn’t know why I felt so certain my dreams were going to happen, but I did. I tried not to think too much about the nightmares that had to be real too. I couldn’t imagine something happening to the kids I hadn’t even met yet.My phone rang, bringing me out of my thoughts, and I answered the unknown number quickly, hoping it was the job I’d applied for.“Hello?”“Hi, this is Derrick with Schmidt Law. Is this Delilah?”I smiled from ear to ear. “Yes, this is she. Hi, it’s so great to hear from you.”The man on the other end proceeded to offer me the job as front desk secretary with the possibility of moving up.I was over the moon and thanked the Goddess with every other thought. If possible, they wanted me to start next week, but they understood if I couldn’t leave my current j
*Delilah*I’d just walked into the office and set my purse and water bottle on my desk. I sat down and felt like I’d just sat on a water balloon. I looked down and started at the puddle on the floor. What had happened?Then it hit me like a brick wall–my water had broken.“My water just broke,” I muttered out loud. Monica happened to be walking by and almost spit out her coffee. “Did I hear you right?” she said, stopping at my desk. I nodded, numb and terrified. I was about to have three babies. The pain I knew was coming was nothing compared to the absolute terror of taking care of them. I was just one person, and there were three of them.She set her mug on my desk, fleeing to her office to grab her purse. She ran back to me and lifted me gently by my elbows. “Grab your purse,” she said softly, and I picked it up along with my water. She led me down the hall and back toward the parking lot.The lawyer I was an assistant to was walking in and looked at us confuse
*Delilah**Five Years Later*“Cody, stop chasing your sister!” I yelled from the kitchen as I heard Flora squeal and Cody laugh. They sounded like a herd of buffalos running through the house.I stirred the noodles as they boiled on the stove. It had been a long week at work, and I wasn’t in the mood for anything fancy. They were having spaghetti whether they liked it or not. Thankfully, they all really liked spaghetti. Kyle sat on the floor, locked into a video game. I limited their screen time, so he was intense when he had the time to play. The games I chose for them were good for his brain too, so I didn’t mind too much. I heard Flora running down the hall, screaming as she came, “No, Cody! Momma said no!”Cody came after her, grinning from ear to ear. He was the kindest and most caring kid, but he needed to learn boundaries.I shot out from behind the corner and snatched him up as Flora ran by. She giggled, he giggled, and I giggled as I held him to my chest.
*Delilah*My chest moved up and down quickly to match my breaths. It had been five years since I’d last seen Andrew, and he was wearing no clothes at that time.That night was almost like a fever dream when I thought about it. If it weren’t for my children, and the mark on my shoulder that never faded, I would’ve thought I’d dreamt it. I’d stopped feeling anything for him once I’d gotten a certain distance away, but now I could feel his longing, his guilt. And I didn’t care about any of it. I hoped he could feel the anger that roiled in my body. From the look on his face, it seemed like he could.But he did his best to hide it, tilting his chin up some and puffing his chest out a little.I scoffed at this, and he sighed. “Delilah.” He locked eyes with me then, and the desire was still evident there. “No,” I said in a whisper-yell. “You don’t get to just show up on my doorstep after five years. I left for many reasons, and you were one of them. I never wanted to see
*Delilah*“What do you mean they’re in danger?” I drank the rest of my soda and tried not to let myself get worked up. I knew he may not even be telling the truth.“Can I sit beside you?” Andrew said, still holding my hand in his.I nodded and scooted over on the porch swing to make room for him.He stood gracefully and sat beside me, his arm touching mine. Despite myself, I felt a sudden bolt of electricity move through my body at his touch. I scooted away, and he moved his arm to rest behind me, but not touching my back. “How much do you know about your past, Delilah?”I turned to look at him, suspicion in my gaze. “Why is my past any of your business?”He sighed and looked back at me. “Look, I don’t expect you to believe everything I say, but can you humor me? Can you just pretend that what I’m telling you is true and that I didn’t reject you? Just pretend I have your best interest at heart, okay?”I clenched my jaw but nodded. “Fine. I don’t know much. My father le