A Promised Fate Read Online Free PDF

winding a path of unsettling
energy until I was sweaty and light headed.
    ****
    “Does it matter?” I stewed and hid in the office and
then, after a search, I found her alone in the empty nursery. “Will
you stop loving me?”
    “No.” She turned and blinked her sad eyes, “no, of
course not. I love you no matter what. I didn’t know how upset you
would get. I’m sorry, Ari. I am really sorry. Don’t be angry with
me.”
    I hated that she just apologized to me. I hated that
I made her feel that she was the one who was wrong. But it was what
I had to do to keep us happy. It was what I had to do to keep her
from asking me and from finding out my secret.
    “I forgive you. Who I am does not matter, Ava. Do not
dwell on this. All that matters is, I love you.”
    “I love you.” She looked away from me and back to the
empty space and the white walls and cold, hardwood floors.
    “When are we going to get started on decorating the
baby’s room?”
    “I was waiting on you to decide.”
    Somehow, I managed to suppress an overwhelming
feeling relief and I beamed up at her. “Well, I was waiting on you
to decide. We can get started in here whenever you would like. Do
you have an idea of what you would like to do in the room? It would
probably be easier if we knew what we were having. Pink or
blue.”
    “I don’t want either color. I bought this today.” Ava
had an unsure look on her face and I slanted my head to the side in
curious wonder at her little voice and pink blushing cheeks.
    She held up a cream-colored baby blanket. The blanket
was soft and sweet.
    She bit and chewed at her bottom lip. “Your mom
dragged me to that new baby boutique in town and I couldn’t resist
this little blanket. I can’t believe she talked me into buying it,
the silly thing cost a fortune.” She added the last part shyly and
I threw my head back and laughed. Ava is the last of all people to
worry about price tags and money.
    “This is very pretty, I am sure it is worth the…” I
glanced down at the tag, “two hundred dollars? Two hundred dollars
for a tiny rectangle of fabric? Baio is right to jump on the
baby wagon, we are going to make a killing with baio
babe .”
    “Don’t talk baio with me,” she warned,
obviously still angry from my broken promise about not working.
    “You’re right, I won’t. Forgive me. Let’s talk about
us. Our baby is going to love this blanket, Ava. We still need to
crib shop. Maybe next weekend will work. What colors do you want
for the room?”
    Ava is a smart woman. She would figure me out and she
would return with her questions with force and at some point, I
would lose to her. She would find me out and doubt our love. But
for now, I would keep her busy and the baby always keeps Ava
busy.
    “I want to keep the nursery simple with soft greys
and creams. Can you have the decorator draw some ideas up for
us?”
    “I’ll call her after the holiday.”
    “Thanks.” She smiled her first real smile at me.
    “Are you getting excited about our baby now?”
    “I have always been excited about our unexpected
news. I am elated that we get to raise a biological child together.
My apprehension has never been about having a baby. My anxiety lies
with having a baby who is a deity and born to honor a life he
didn’t choose. It’s not fair. I want our child’s destiny to be
undecided. I want our baby to be free to be whomever he or she
chooses to be.”
    I agreed with her completely but there was no sense
in dwelling over something that was out of our control.
    “There are worse things in life than being born like
you and me. Our child will never know what it is like to go without
love. Our child will never be hungry or cold. Our child with have
two parents who will love each other forever, and together we will
love her forever. That is more than a lot of people in this world
can say.”
    Ava nodded her head slowly in thought.
    “Here. This blanket officially marks this room as
Baby