“You say that as if it’s no big thing,” I said incredulously. “I would walk away from all of this if Jeremy were just cheating on me. But to bring a baby into our lives.” I shook my head. “It’s. Not. Going. To. Happen.”

“Here’s your lunch,” the waitress said at the exact moment when I bounced up from my chair. I grabbed my purse, glared at the women, then stomped out of the restaurant.

It wasn’t until I was outside that I realized I hadn’t left money for my food. That was okay; I hadn’t eaten a thing. And after the way Sonya and Cecily had ambushed me, they could pay for that meal.

Once outside, I slowed my roll, though. A baby? Jeremy was about to have another child? With Sharonne? Was that why she was here in D.C.?

I let those thoughts play through my head a couple of times. No, something didn’t feel right to me. But I needed help to figure it out.

Pulling my cell phone from my purse, I tapped on the screen, then dialed. When the call was answered, all I said was, “Can you meet me? This is an emergency.”

*****

“A baby?” Dru leaned back on the bench at the edge of the wharf and stared out at the Potomac. “Jeremy is having a baby?”

Her tone was as shocked as mine had been. The truth was, I was still stunned. That was why I’d told Dru to meet me down here. The pedestrian traffic on the wharf was Tuesday afternoon light, which was a blessing. I couldn’t deal with any crowds. I couldn’t be closed in, not in anyway. I needed the air to breathe, I needed the space to think. I had to make sense out of what Sonya and Cecily were trying to get me to believe.

Dru twisted on the bench, facing me now. “Sonya and Cecily told you this?”

I nodded. “Yeah, can you believe it?”

“I can’t. What about you?” She paused as if she hesitated asking me the question. “Do you believe them?”

It took a few moments for all the thoughts I’d had since I’d left Georgia Brown’s and driven the three or four miles over here to go through my mind. Finally, I said, “I did believe them.” I nodded again. “I believed them at first, but once I had a chance to think about it, now I’m not so sure.”

She blew out a long breath as if she was a bit relieved by my words. “What made you change your mind?”

I wasn’t looking at Dru when I said, “The woman that Jeremy has allegedly gotten pregnant.” I paused. “I know her.”