After she had calmed down a little, Cassidy pulled away from Zeke's embrace. Her face was red, her eyes still wet with tears. She looked away, embarrassed that he had seen her so broken. It felt like he had seen too much of her today, too many of her weaknesses, too much of the side she tried so hard to hide. Slowly, she shifted to the side, putting a little space between them on the sofa.
Then, in a quiet voice, she said, "I'm sorry… for hiding my pregnancy from you. I'm sorry for keeping Claire a secret. I know it was wrong. I don't have an excuse. There's nothing I can say to defend what I did."
She looked down, regret clouding her eyes.
Zeke let out a long breath. He leaned back and stared up at the ceiling for a moment before speaking, his voice low and calm.
"You know, when I first found out Claire was my daughter, when I heard it over the phone, I was furious. I wanted to scream at you. I wanted to yell. I was so damn angry."
He paused, then looked at her.
