“You were going to let her think you rejected your own child because of her condition? Just to protect your pride?”
“To protect her from me.”
“That’s the same thing, Ryan.”
He put his face in his hands, and I sat across from my brother.
“I knew I could use it.”
I hated him. I loved him. But I didn’t know which was louder.
“All those appointments,” I said. “You were on your phone. Checking, checking. I thought you were nervous.”
“I was applying for jobs in the waiting room.”
“Good God, Ryan.”
“I know.”
Hope made a small sound in the bassinet, that soft newborn noise that isn’t quite crying yet. Neither of us moved.
“You were on your phone.”
“You used a baby as an exit,” I said.
“Yes.”
“Say it.”
“I used my daughter as an exit because I was drowning and I couldn’t tell my wife.”
