Chapter 12
Nolan walked out of Jessica’s office waffling between a smile and a scowl. Screwing her in her office had to be the most memorable sexual experience of his life. Only he wanted to think of it as making-love to her. Could one fuck like there was no tomorrow and it be the same as love-making?
This struggle over how to qualify the romp on her desk tugged at his heart. He thought he had no room left in there for a woman, and yet there was Jessica. He found himself wanting to find ways to combine his home life with a love life, hence the invitation to dinner, which both his daughter and his mother constantly asked him to do.
But all that brought a smile to his face.
The scowl came from the fact the condom had broken. Brand new pack and the damn thing broke. It wouldn’t have been that big a deal since he trusted her to be honest about being clean and he knew he was. Abstinence had all but guaranteed that. But when he told her what had happened, she replied with, ‘fuck, I’m not on the pill’.
Ever since Heather had entered his life, he never allowed himself to believe he’d marry or have any more children, which honestly, hadn’t been high on his list of things to do. But now he found himself entertaining both concepts and that scared the shit out of him and mostly because of the way Jessica’s face contorted at the prospect of being pregnant.
Not to mention they’d only known of each other for a month and had been a couple, if one could call them that, for eight days.
He pulled into his parent’s driveway and immediately knew something was wrong when he saw his sister and Heather in the yard, waiting for him. Karen’s eyes were moist. Heather smiled and waved, but it wasn’t her usual happy self.
“What’s going on?” he asked as he stepped from the SUV.
Heather ran, as best she could run, arms flapping at her sides. “Daddy.”
He scooped Heather and squeezed her tight. She sniffled, burying her face in his neck. “Grandma is having a really bad day.”
Ambulance, his sister
The sound of tires churning up broken gravel stole his attention. Looking over his shoulder, he saw Jessica pull in. He pointed to the spot next to his SUV. “Heather. If Jessica is willing, how would you like to go get a burger and a shake?”
“Are you coming, daddy?”
“No. I think Auntie Karen and I need to stay and help papa.”
“She’s going to the hospital, isn’t she?”
He closed his eyes. He didn’t want the hospital to ever be a bad place for Heather, only a necessary evil in her journey to having a leg as good as it could be. While his mother had a do not order along with no heroic measures, she didn’t want to die at home. Her fear was that it would turn the family house into a constant reminder of pain and agony and she didn’t want her husband to feel as though he had to sell.
“She’ll be more comfortable at the hospital,” he whispered, stroking his daughter’s curly locks.
“It’s her time, isn’t it?”
“I don’t know baby, but for now, I think it’s best if you let me and grandpa worry about grandma and you go have some fun with Jessica.”
“What kind of fun?” Jessica placed her hand his shoulder. “Oh, Heather, what’s wrong?”
“It’s grandma.” Heather shifted, her arms lunging toward Jessica.
“Whoa,” Jessica said as she grabbed the little girl who had flung herself.
Nolan scratched the back of his head. Heather had always been an outgoing little girl, but in times of need, she tended to cling to him. The doctor had said it was because she’d lost her mother so young and was forced to rely on him, a stranger at the time, through her first surgery and that they formed a parent/child relationship that in many ways was stronger than if he’d always been in her life.
“Daddy doesn’t want me here when the amblewence comes.”
It was impossible not to crack a slight smile over the way his daughter said some words. “I thought you two ladies might like a night out on the town alone.”
Jessica nodded.
“Take my car.” He pried Heather from Jessica’s arms and eased her into the car-seat. “You be a good girl for Jessica, okay?”
“Yes, Daddy.” She puckered her little lips for a kiss and he didn’t hesitate.
“I love you.” He closed the door handing Jessica the keys. “Are you sure you don’ t mind?”
“We’ll be fine.” She squeezed his biceps. “Take care of your mom.”
“The keys to the house on are on the ring, or take her back to your place. I don’t know how long I’m going to be, but I promise if it gets to be past ten, I’ll come get her.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
He leaned in and kissed Jessica’s cheek. “Thank you,” he whispered.
Sirens blipped in the background.
Nolan tapped his chest as he watched Jessica pull out of the driveway with his daughter safely tucked in the backseat.
His sister patted his shoulder. “Little brother, you are head over heels in love that woman.”
The next couple of hours went by in a blur. Doctors and nurses came and went as his mother faded in and out of consciousness. His sister’s husband had managed to skype from his deployment in the middle east to say his good-byes. Nolan understood why he didn’t rush home, saving his time so he could make it back in time for the birth of his first child.
Something that had been robbed of Nolan by Gina. He was no longer bitter, but there’d always be a pang of anger over the stolen moment.
The hardest part of the evening had been when the priest had come by to read his mother her last rights. Shortly after, she’d drifted off into a deep sleep. Thirty minutes later, his mother was dead.
He sat in the waiting room, face in his hands, tears burning his cheeks. No matter how prepared one was for death, when it came, you realized you can never prepare. He’d called Jessica and told her the tragic news, asking her not to say anything to Heather. He needed to be the one to tell her.
It had been a difficult decision to move into his parents’ house with Heather, not wanting to fill her little life with doom and gloom, but she’d brought such joy to his mother that he couldn’t deny a dying woman’s wish.
So, what was he supposed to do with his mother’s engagement ring? He dug into his pocket, pulling out the large diamond. Before the paramedics had loaded her into the ambulance, she’d handed it to him, telling him that she knew without a doubt, that he loved Jessica.
Eight days, and he’d lost his heart.
His mother was right. He loved her. But was he ready to make a commitment to her and more importantly, was Heather?
He leaned back in the chair, glancing down the hallway where he saw a woman standing sideways, hand on her pregnant belly. His chest swelled with a mix of love and fear. Like his daughter, he couldn’t imagine spending a single day of his life without Jessica in it. He shook his head. If he declared his love for her she’d think he was nuts. Not only that, she’d probably think it was because of the broken condom.
Which scared him on a different level because part of him hoped he’d gotten her pregnant, which was beyond nuts, bordering on bat-shit crazy.
The pregnant woman, wearing a white coat, spoke to a man and pointed toward the waiting room. Eight other people sat in the space, most likely waiting on some kind of news about a loved one.
Nolan rested his head on the back of the chair. He’d told Jessica he’d meet her at his parents’ house, though she was free to leave when his sister arrived since she’d Uber’d home over a half hour ago. Nearing the seventh month of her pregnancy, her exhaustion level was in high gear. His father still sat with his wife and Nolan couldn’t bring himself to force his father to leave.
They had the kind of love that great stories were written about.
He put the ring back in his pocket. He and Jessica had some time to figure things out. He certainly didn’t want to scare her away.
“Mr. Nolan Greer?”
“Yes?” Nolan sat up, then stood as he faced a man who looked vaguely familiar. “Care to comment on the news about your girlfriend having been arrested for drug possession?”
“What?” Nolan rubbed his temples.
“Jessica Roads and the news she’d been arrested for possession?”
Nolan looked up at the man, still trying to decipher the meaning of the words and what it had to do with him, or Jessica. He looked vaguely familiar with his dark hair, notebook in hand… the press conference. The same reporter that asked him about his relationship with Jessica.
“What the fuck do you want?” Nolan barked.
“A statement about the latest report on Jessica Roads and her drug bust back in college.”
The pounding between his ears echoed in unison with his aching heart. “I have no idea what you are talking about so I’d appreciate it if you—”
“It’s all right here.” The man held up his tablet. A mug shot of Jessica, obviously taken a few years back graced the screen. Headline read:
Jessica Roads, Social Media Director the Miami Thunder has a Drug Record.
“You fucking bastard!” Nolan cocked his arm, making a tight fist and landing it right on the reporter’s nose. Blood squirted, hitting Nolan’s shirt.
The reporter fell backward, landing on his ass.
Nolan leaned over. “Don’t you have anything better to do besides digging up old dirt that doesn’t mean jack shit.”
The pregnant woman raced to the reporter’s side, helping to a standing positon. Had it not been for her, Nolan would have hit the asshole again.
Then it registered. “You!” He pointed to the pregnant woman. “You’re married to Robert; the man Jessica was having an affair with. You’re behind all this bull-shit, aren’t you?”
“I don’t know what you are talking about.” She stepped two steps backward.
Nolan waggled his finger. “I bet you’re the person digging up all this crap, trying to make Jessica look bad because your husband cheated on you with her.” He heard the words flying from his mouth, knowing he should shut the fuck up. “But I bet you had no idea that she didn’t know he was married until it was too late. That he played her for a fool just like he did you.” Painfully aware he stood next to a pregnant woman who dwarfed in his size, he stepped away from her, but got closer to the prick asking the questions. “Tell my why you have it in for Jessica?”
The reporter looked between him and the pregnant woman, that he knew for sure was Maggs, married to Robert. “Did she hire you to dig up gossip?”
A tall, slender man stomped down the hallway. “Back the hell away from my wife.”
Robert. Fucking great.
“Back the fuck away from my girlfriend.” Nolan took two strides before someone grabbed his biceps.
“Stop it right now,” Jessica yelled.
“Your boyfriend is out of control,” Robert said.
“You’re hired asshat isn’t very good.” Jessica poked Robert in the chest. “I saw him following me and I also had my IT guys trace his IP address to a fake account that has been up my crotch all day.”
Robert tossed his hands wide. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Maybe not. But your wife does, doesn’t she?” Jessica said.
Nolan rubbed his face, retreating even farther away from the conflict. By the waiting room doors, he saw two men. One taking snap shots. The other with a video camera.
Fuck.
“You assholes deserve each other.” Nolan waved his hand between the reporter and Robert and his wife. He glanced toward Jessica. “I don’t have time right now for this shit.” Without looking back, he took off down the hallway, looking for his father.