Nathan
What.
The.
Fuck.
Jessica moved her lips against mine, not realizing I wasn’t kissing her back. It wasn’t that I hadn’t kissed her before—I had, way before I came to New York. It never felt right. It was only been once, and even with the drinks I had that night, I knew it would never feel right.
She was a beautiful woman, just not the woman I wanted.
I remained frozen for a few seconds, too stunned to react. When I did, I saw her blue eyes ablaze, as if she’d done something she’d wanted to do for a long time. I cut her happiness short with my reaction.
“What the hell are you thinking?”
“I-I’m sorry, Nate. I didn’t think—” Jessica blinked as she crashed back to reality.
A reality in which I was engaged to Evelyn. A reality in which she knew I’d never given her the idea that we would ever be together.
I had little time to react any further, because when I looked up, I saw Evie standing in place, her eyes glued to Jessica and me. Her clenched jaw showed her anger. My parents were there along with Carter, but I couldn’t look away from Evie. It wasn’t the lack of surprise in her expression that had me also frozen; it was the offense she’d taken.
She was furious and heartbroken.
Damian nudged me with his elbow. “If I were you, I’d go to your fiancé before she murders you. We’re right outside the jail. They’ll apprehend her pretty quick.”
Was this dude fucking joking?
He shrugged, as if saying it was all friendly advice.
I realized I should have followed it when Evelyn walked determinedly towards us with her fists balled to her sides. We should have all seen it coming. I should have seen it coming.
Evelyn’s fist landed on Jessica’s face in a blink of an eye. A startled gasp left her lips, but Evie wasn’t done. Her other hand landed on Jessica’s cheek, the sound so loud I was sure that the security at the entrance of the building could hear. The red hand print on Jessica’s face and the busted lip were evidence of her fury.
“You bitch,” Evelyn hissed, her voice breaking. “I told you to use your mouth to talk to him, not to kiss him.”
“Baby, stop,” I said, wrapping my arm around her waist and pulling her back. Jessica’s eyes were wide with surprise, but she seemed like she was about to lunge if Evelyn didn’t listen to her.
“Evelyn, I—”
“I don’t have time to listen to your bullshit,” Evie spat. “Get the fuck out of here. You had your chance, and you fucking ruined it.”
I knew Evelyn well enough to know that though she was a calm person, she was not to be messed with. In that moment, she had no control over her emotions; she was upset and overwhelmed with everything that happened. I couldn’t risk her getting hurt if Jessica decided to do something.
“I don’t know what happened, Evelyn. I’m—” Jessica looked like she was about to cry. As much as I cared for her—because I did—I couldn’t talk to her then. I glanced back at Tom, who was just as shocked as the rest of us. “Nate, I need to talk to you, I—”
“Screw you, Jessica,” Evie hissed. “I went out of my way so that you could get your shit together. I even felt bad.” Evelyn attempted to take another step forward, hit Jessica again. “You fucking saw us arrive. I waved at you. I may be too nice at times, but I am not stupid.”
Jessica’s face reddened, her reaction confirming Evie’s words.
“We should leave,” Tom said, taking hold of Jessica’s arm.
“No, Nathan, please listen to me,” she pleaded.
I stared at her in disbelief. “Just leave.”
Evelyn turned around in my arms, hugging me after hours of being apart. In those few seconds, I forgot about what just happened with Jessica and hugged Evie back, her small body trembling against mine as another wave of emotions hit her. As angry as I was about the situation and as frustrated as I was with what just happened, holding her like this was all that mattered. I’d be damned if someone else tried to separate us, be it the police or another person.
Including Jessica.
I raised Evelyn’s face, the need to see her too strong to deny. I cupped her face, thankful I could hold her once again. That I would be able to sleep with her in my arms like it was supposed to be.
“I was so scared,” she whispered, unable to keep it together. “I’m so scared…I don’t want them to take you away again.”
“They’re not,” I assured her.
I wouldn’t allow it.
***
To my surprise, when we arrived at the condo, the place was clean. Evie looked over at Carter when she noticed, and immediately, I knew who we had to thank. She remained quite the whole drive home and didn’t speak when we arrived either. I couldn’t say I blamed her, but her silence was deafening.
I told my parents to make themselves welcome, which, knowing them, meant they were going to prepare a meal for us to eat while I showered.
“I’m so tired,” Evie sighed, pulling the dress over her head.
At first, I thought she was going to join me in the shower until I saw her grab sweatpants and a tank top. There was no hiding her pregnant belly anymore. “You should go to bed, rest a bit,” I said, removing the filthy clothes I still wore.
I’d made up my mind to throw it all away.
“I’ll wait for you in bed. I’m just going to close my eyes a little while.”
I nodded, sighing when she closed the door behind her without a further word. Despite feeling the need to stay under the shower head for hours, I hurried, wanting to be with Evelyn and my parents. We went through long hours of uncertainty; Jessica’s actions hadn’t helped at all. That was something I could deal with later.
When I walked back into the bedroom, Evelyn sat on the bed with my phone in her hands. She had a raised eyebrow and chewed on her lip, a nervous habit she had.
“She keeps texting you,” she said softly. I knew what that tone meant, though; she was pissed, and all hell was going to break lose. “Even after I told her to fuck off.”
I suppressed a chuckle. “You did what?”
“I asked her to fuck off. I added the please to be polite, but she doesn’t get it.”
“What exactly did you tell her?” I asked. Evie handed me the phone as she stood, running her hands through her hair.
There were several text messages from Jessica, and then I came across Evelyn’s.
Evelyn: Jessica, I’m going to ask nicely…Please fuck off. Thanks, Evelyn.
Again, more apologies from Jessica but Evie’s only reply was a middle finger emoji.
I dropped the phone on the bed, approaching her and cupping her face in my hands. Her breathing hitched as I leaned down, finally capturing her lips with mine. She sighed, pressing her body against me, hands settling on my bare chest.
“I love you.”
“I love you too,” I murmured. “But I’m worried about you.”
She shook her head, biting her lip, eyes meeting mine. “I’m just overwhelmed with everything. I know we need to talk about Derek and Jessica and all the hell we’re going through, but can we not? Not tonight?” Her voice broke at the end again. She did her best to hold herself together, tried to remain strong. It couldn’t have been easy being pregnant and going through all this all at once.
“I need a break from all of this, too,” I replied, pecking her lips once again.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
She waited quietly while I put on my jeans and shirt, her eyes fixed on me as if she couldn’t believe that I was with her. I couldn’t, either.
Heaven.
Being with Evelyn was heaven. Whether we argued or messed around, being with her was the one thing I wanted in this life. It was a blessing having her by my side and my parents alive.
My mom cooked for us, and though I knew Evie hadn’t eaten much before, she still had no appetite.
There are things you don’t appreciate until you’re deprived from them. I’d always valued my family, always cherished Evie. But having been so close to not seeing them in my own home made this moment that much more significant.
I stared at my phone when it rang once again. Jessica was the elephant in the room, and she wasn’t even physically there. I didn’t want to turn off my phone in case Damian called pertaining the case, or any other emergency, but Evelyn wasn’t having it anymore. She took my phone suddenly, shutting it off. My parents both stared at her in shock, and Carter tried not to laugh.
My sweet Evelyn was long gone.
“I think we’ve all had enough of Jessica today, haven’t we?”
Oh shit.
I knew she directed the question to me. I pressed a kiss on her temple, and she seemed to relax, still our family sensed the tension surrounding us. It didn’t take much long after that awkward exchange for everyone to leave.
I was nervous.
A difficult night awaited us, and with the way Evie felt, I knew it was only a matter of time before she exploded.
I wish I knew what she thought and felt, but she’d closed herself off. That was until she curled up in bed next to me, placing her head on my chest, drawing gentle patterns over my skin.
I ran my fingers down her arm, content with having her next to me. Her eyes closed, and it was only a matter of minutes before she was fast asleep. My mind raced with thoughts of everything going on, but as I rested my hand over her belly and felt our baby move, I took a deep breath, forcing the thoughts out of my head.
They were all that mattered.