Chapter 78

Piper

It was my last day managing Euphoria, and my emotions were all over the place. While there was no denying I wanted a change of career, I was also sad. This had been my big break. Not too long ago, I’d been proud of what I was doing at Euphoria, and with good reason. I’d helped launch a successful club. It was an impressive accomplishment. My new job also didn’t pay as well, but I’d still be able to pay all my bills, and it allowed me to keep my medical insurance. That had been a big consideration with the pregnancy.

“How are you feeling?” Andy asked as he came out from the back office to find me working on paperwork at a table near the bar.

“Starving,” I admitted.

“I guess it’s a good thing you’re almost done here. How does it feel to be leaving me again?” he asked as he took a seat across from me.

I laughed at his question. “Leaving you? You don’t work at Euphoria. Besides, I’ll be working with you now that I’m handling the bookkeeping for both clubs.”

“Good point,” he said with a grin.

“There’s also the fact that I still live with you. I wonder if Austin would still be pursuing me if he realized you and Cerise may never move out of my house.”

“You make it sound like we’re squatters,” he complained. “Need I remind you that we pay rent, and I cook for you on a regular basis?”

“True. I’m glad you’ll be around to help me with midnight feedings and diaper changes. Andy had been calling himself Uncle Andy since he’d found out about the baby, but he hadn’t warmed up to the idea of changing diapers.

“I didn’t knock you up,” he argued. “That’s a job for your little drummer boy.”

“Little drummer boy?” I asked with a laugh. “Only someone your size would consider Austin little.”

Andy was about to say something more when his eyes widened. “Holy shit!”

I turned to see what had him so surprised and blinked twice. The bouncer had just let Austin into the club. My eyes remained locked on Austin as he approached. He looked good—no better than good. I wanted to run my hands over every inch of his body. I’d missed him.

When he was standing in front of me, I simply said, “You’re here.” I was blaming my inability to do more than state the obvious on my shock at his presence. I hadn’t spoken to him in two days. We’d texted, but he’d made no mention of any trips home.

“It sounded like something was bothering you when we talked,” he explained. “We have a week before our next show, so I decided to come back to see you. I was also missing you like crazy.”

“I’ll leave you two alone so you can talk.” On those words, Andy walked away.

“Are you mad about me coming here?” Austin asked.

I shook my head, fighting back tears. Stupid pregnancy hormones. “No, I’m just surprised and happy. This isn’t how I pictured seeing you again. My plan was to pick you up at the airport and then talk to you about why I changed jobs.”

“I already know why you quit your job,” he told me. “I understand your reasoning, even if I am worried you’ll regret it.”

“No, you really don’t know my reasoning,” I insisted. “After the robbery, I considered quitting. My therapist convinced me to give it more thought, and I realized I didn’t want to give up a fantastic job just because I was afraid. I decided I should work through things.”

“Then why are you quitting?” he asked, looking genuinely baffled.

“Technically, I’m not quitting,” I clarified. “This is simply a different job. It’s for the best.”

“You’ve lost me here, Button,” he admitted.

“This isn’t how I planned to tell you,” I muttered. “I guess, I don’t have a plan yet, but that’s because I thought I had more time. Now, I feel like I should have told you on the phone. This seemed like the sort of thing I should tell you in person, but if I’d told you over the phone, you’d already know. I was afraid I’d mess up your tour if I told you. Club management was never something I expected to do forever. It’s good for someone without a family, but the hours suck if you’re trying to raise kids.” Great! Now, I was babbling.

Austin’s eyes widened. “Are you trying to tell me you’re pregnant?”

I nodded.

He grinned. “We’re going to have a baby?”

“It would seem so,” I replied.

Austin’s face sobered, and he sat beside me, taking my hand in his. “How do you feel about all of this?”

“A little scared,” I admitted. “Mostly, I’m tired and excited. It definitely came as a shock.”

“I know what you mean. I wouldn’t have been surprised if you’d gotten pregnant with that broken condom, but this is a surprise. How far along are you?”

“It happened with the broken condom,” I replied. “What I thought was a light cycle around Valentine’s Day wasn’t my period.”

Austin was still grinning, and it seemed to be contagious because I soon found myself smiling.

“Are you upset that I didn’t tell you over the phone?” I asked.

He shook he head and leaned in to brush his lips against mine. “Of course not. It’s probably a good thing you didn’t tell me. If you had, I would have left the tour early. I can handle going back next week because I’ll only be gone a couple more weeks. I’m really sorry about my many fuck ups. I want to promise it won’t happen again.”

“But it probably will,” I finished for him.

“I’m going to do my best to not overreact, but you mean the world to me, Piper,” he admitted. “I love you, and I’m probably going to act like an ass at times because I’m afraid of losing you.”

“Lately, I’ve thought a lot about all of this,” I began “I love you. This is something you need to work on, but I’m not willing to lose you over it. You’re not perfect and neither am I. Just try to avoid making any more drunk calls.”

“I’ll do my best,” he assured me. “How much longer do you have to be here?”

“Far too long,” I said with a sigh. “I’ve got at least another hour of paperwork, and I’m starving.”

“How about if I get you some food while you finish up here?” he suggested. “After that, I want to take you home and show you how much I love you.”

“That sounds perfect,” I agreed.