Chapter Twenty-One

Hadley

Our trip to Hunter’s took longer than expected, therefore I didn’t have an opportunity to shop for new pants. Blake walked me to my door, and after several intensely hot kisses and sweet words about how much he was going to miss me this evening, he left me to scramble into the same damn polyester pants as the day before.

Let’s just hope Wayne doesn’t see me and let’s really hope I don’t run into Ashe, I thought as I passed through Sazerac’s entrance and into the noisy bar.

I was halfway to my destination when I heard Wayne screech, “Ooooh, here she is now! Woman! Get your behind over to this bar right this minute!”

“I have to do food prep!” I shouted back at him as I picked up my speed.

“Girl, if you don’t get over here right this minute and tell me what happened last night, I’m going to scream this house down!” His words stopped me dead in my tracks. Panic and embarrassment engulfed me as I frantically searched the bar area for Ashe. I was going to wring that man’s neck. “And please tell me you aren’t wearing those pants again!” he added. Panic quickly turned to anger when I spotted Ashe sitting at the end of the bar. The horse’s ass was staring straight at me.

“You...unbelievable jerk!” I shouted as I barreled across the floor in his direction. Seething with anger, I stormed right up to the bar, causing both men to rear back in surprise. That in itself should have warned me, but I was too immersed in fury to pay attention. “It wasn’t enough that you pulled that stupid stunt but now you have to tell everyone about it? Let me guess, you get off on lurking outside closed doors and listening to people having sex. Was it good for you, Ashe? Because, as you well know, it was great for me!” I shouted. Wayne let out a gasp of surprise before slapping his hands over his mouth and breaking into hysterical giggles.

“You didn’t tell me that part!” he squealed at Ashe through his laughter.

My eyes collided with Ashe’s and bugged. Oh, God. God. God! Just shoot me now.

Turning back to Wayne, I calmly asked, “I’m sorry, what was your question?”

Clucking his tongue, he slowly shook his head back and forth. “Uh-uh, missy. That cat is out of the bag and is now running rampant through the building. Were you and Ponce De Leon doing the tubular tango in the office last night?”

“Try the kitchen floor,” Ashe muttered.

“Shut it!” I growled pointing a finger at him.

Wayne scrunched his face in disgust. “Just thinking about knocking nuggets on that nasty-ass floor makes me...” he made a gagging noise, and Ashe busted out laughing.

“If you’re done making fun of me, I have things to do,” I informed them.

“Oh, Blake, you’re the best!” Ashe teased through his laughter.

“Take me on this...filthy floor!” Wayne added, and they both hee-hawed like two idiots.

I glared daggers through them both. “Funny, I thought I couldn’t like you any less, but guess what? I do!” I shouted. Then, with a wave of my middle finger, I turned and marched back toward the kitchen.

“Wait!” Wayne called after me. “I want to hear about my boyfriend, Hunter!”

“Well, that’s just too bad!” I replied. Bypassing the kitchen, I stormed into the office and slammed the door. Then I broke into tears of humiliation. When was I going to learn to keep my mouth shut? Slumping down onto one of the chairs, I let the tears flow. Once I’d opened the flood gates, I couldn’t seem to stop.

A good fifteen minutes passed before I was able to pull myself together and get on with the food prep.

As usual, we were extremely busy that night. After my earlier outburst, I managed to keep my head down and my mouth shut. Both Ashe and Wayne stopped by the kitchen to apologize, but I was too busy to pay them much attention. That, and I was still angry.

On the way home, all I could think about was Blake and how much I missed him. It felt strange to be going back to my apartment without him. Just the thought that we would be living together before the week was out wasn’t as scary as much as it was...comforting. I couldn’t wait to move in with him. That’s when it hit me. I was falling in love. Hell, who was I kidding? I was already in love. As I tried to recall the exact moment Blake had captured my heart, my stomach lurched. At first, I thought it was nerves. Right as I turned into Riverbend and pulled into an empty parking place, it happened a second time—this time, making me gasp. Placing my hand over my belly, I held my breath and waited. When I felt a tiny thump under my hand, I smiled and let out my breath.

“Hello, baby,” I whispered. In a huge rush of excitement, I thought, I have to tell Blake! Wondering if he’d made it to Hunter’s yet, I snagged my phone from the cup holder and texted:

I’m home from work. Is everything okay with Hunter?

When he didn’t immediately respond, I grabbed my things and headed inside. My phone pinged with a text right as I’d made it into my apartment.

I just got here. I’m beat. Once we’ve talked, I’m heading back to my place. I’ll call you in the morning.

I thought about texting back and telling him to call me, but quickly changed my mind. This was something I needed to do in person. He said he was going back to his place. I stared at his house key, dangling from my keyring, and smiled. If I woke up extra early, I could surprise him with the news and make him breakfast. Which reminded me, I also needed to tell him about my doctor’s appointment later this week.

That night, I went to sleep with a huge smile on my face. For the first time since moving to Charlotte, I felt like things were going to be okay.

When the alarm went off the next morning, I jumped from the bed and hauled it to the bathroom. After a quick shower, I threw on a T-shirt and one of the two pair of stretchy leggings I could still fit into before twisting my still-wet hair up on top of my head and fastening it with a clip. Once I’d dusted my face with a little sparkly powder and glossed my lips, I slipped on a pair of flip-flops and headed out the door. On the way to Blake’s, I stopped by the grocery store and grabbed some breakfast provisions.

“You’re going to have to move for your daddy, my butter bean,” I said to my currently inactive belly, as I turned onto Blake’s street. My pulse spiked when I spotted his car and pulled in beside it. With the bags in hand and a smile on my face I headed up the stairs and inserted my key into the lock. A click sounded, the lock disengaged, and I was inside. I couldn’t wait to pounce on Blake! Adrenaline flowed through my veins as I scurried around the living area and into the kitchen.

As I was putting away the groceries, I noticed a half-full coffee pot and several empty sugar packets discarded on the countertop. That’s strange. Blake drinks his coffee black. Right as I pressed my hand against the coffee pot to see if it was warm, I heard it. Laughter. My eyes jerked from the coffee pot to the screened in porch. Someone was out there. More than someone...someone’s, to be exact. Suddenly, I had a bad feeling. I glanced across the expansive room at the front door and contemplated leaving. What I don’t know, won’t hurt me...but then I’d always wonder. God! What do I do? The laughter came again. This time, I distinctly heard the sound of Blake’s voice. He wasn’t alone. Please be Hunter, I thought as I slowly approached the door.

The first thing I saw, as I peered onto the porch through the glass door, was their bare feet. They were sitting on the sofa. Blake had his back turned towards me, but I could see that he was wearing a cotton tee and workout shorts. The woman had on a similar outfit. I recognized her from the day Cat and I stopped by. The image of Blake and her kissing popped into my head, and I immediately felt sick. Apparently, my screaming I was pregnant at the top of my lungs didn’t mean much to her. Like a glutton for punishment, I stood there and watched them laugh and carry on together, and wondered if this was before or after Blake had taken her to bed? When she leaned forward and...stroked his arm, pain like I’d never known blasted through me, and I took a step back. Then another. I was so lost in thought that I didn’t see the chair until I’d already knocked it over. With a loud crash, it hit the floor and I took off running. I didn’t even stop to retrieve my purse. I just ran.

“Hadley!” I heard Blake shout as I neared the front door. My lungs fought for air as I frantically fumbled with the handle, cursing myself for being so damn stupid. Right as I got the door open, his big hand appeared out of nowhere.

“No!” I shouted as his palm hit the door and it slammed shut before I could escape. Feeling like a trapped animal, I spun around and growled, “Let me go, Blake.”

His eyes flashed in anger as he stared down at me with an expression of shock on his face. “What the hell is wrong with you?” he asked in a low, exasperated tone.

“Are you kidding me?” I shrieked. “Look at you two—all cozied up on the sofa. Tell me, Blake, was this foreplay or did you already fuck her?” My voice cracked and I could no longer hold back the tears.

“What?” he asked, his brow knitting in confusion.

“Oh, come on! I’m not stupid!” I shouted.

“You sure about that?” he snapped. Before I could reply, he snarled, “You’ve just got it all figured out in that fucked up head of yours, don’t you?”

“Put yourself in my shoes! What would you think if it was me on that sofa, all half-dressed and cozied up with...” I scrambled for a name. “Ashe?” I finished on a shout. “You wouldn’t like it, would you?”

He flinched. Then, leaning in, as if he was going to kiss me, he murmured in the lightest of voices, “You need to leave.”

“What?” I asked, thinking I’d misheard him.

“Goodbye, Hadley,” he growled more firmly.

The minute he said those two words, I knew I’d messed up. I also knew that I should go, but I didn’t want to leave him there, especially not with her. I didn’t want to leave him at all.

But leave I did...and I cried all the way home.

***

Blake and I didn’t speak for seven days. It was one of the longest, most miserable weeks of my entire life. I knew I’d messed up but so had he. I couldn’t help that I was jealous of his past. I didn’t want to change him. I loved the man he was, but I refused to live with a man I couldn’t trust. So what if he didn’t sleep with her that time—her being Courtney, as Cat was so kind to point out. What did that matter? He’d slept with her several times before. So what if she just happened to turn up on his doorstep that morning? Out of respect for me and the relationship we were trying to build, he should have sent her packing.

But he didn’t. And because of it, my head was a mess and my heart...well, it just hurt.

Two days after the incident, Ashe appeared at work with a busted lip and a black eye. He wouldn’t admit it was Blake, but I knew by the look on his face and the way that he went out of his way to avoid me, that it was.

Four days after the incident, I had my eighteen-week check-up with my obstetrician. I drove myself there, smiled like I was the happiest pregnant lady on the planet, learned that I was having a little girl, made my next appointment, waved goodbye, and barely made it back to the car before breaking apart at the seams. I was having a girl. Not we. Just me. How could something that was so monumentally life-changing feel so epically heartbreaking?

On the fifth day after the incident, I took Wayne up on his offer to take me shopping. He picked me up in a candy-apple red PT Cruiser and took me to three different maternity stores, where we shopped until I was hungry enough to eat a horse. Over lunch we talked about everything from his crush on Hunter, who I’d discovered was back at work, and Patrice, who I learned had left her fiancé and was now gunning for Ashe, to the proper ways to manscape. What we didn’t discuss, was Blake.

On the seventh day after the incident, Cat and Zane threw their resident pool party. I hadn’t told anyone about the doctor’s appointment and that I’d learned the sex of the baby. It didn’t seem right to share the news with the world before telling Blake. There was just one problem, Blake and I still weren’t speaking. I kept hoping that he would call or text...or maybe even show up at work. As the days drug on, however, I found myself losing hope. According to Cat, Zane and Blake talked, but never about us. She said Blake had spent the week actively avoiding her. Why? Did I not matter to him? I felt like I was dying inside and he was what? Just the thought of Blake with Courtney, or Belinda, or the million other women he’d been with...of him touching them like he’d touched me...made me feel all sorts of violent.

“I knew that suit would look gorge on you,” I heard Wayne say from behind me. On our shopping spree, I asked him to be my date to the pool party and he talked me into buying a low cut, very sexy one-piece maternity swimsuit. I had to admit, it showed off my baby curves in the best possible way.

“You came!” I said through a mouthful of food. For once, my emotions weren’t dictating my appetite. I was literally hungry from sunup to sundown. If I didn’t get a grip, my little princess was going to be the size of a linebacker.

He glanced around the crowd with wide-eyed wonder, before quietly murmuring, “This is quite the crew you’ve got here.” I followed his gaze over to where Miss Weston was standing. In a show of solidarity towards her new man, she’d traded in her kimono for... “Is that a corset?” Wayne asked.

“She’s a peasant,” I offered, as if that explained everything. A perplexed look appeared on his face and I pointed to the other side of the pool. “That’s her boyfriend.” His eyes shifted to Mr. Tudwell, who was wearing a blousy peasant shirt tucked inside a pair of tartan-plaid shorts. He’d accessorized the ensemble with black suspenders, black knee-high socks, and a pair of glossy, black, square-tipped shoes. When Wayne’s eyes lit with humor, I couldn’t help but smile. It really was quite funny.

“A fetish?’ he asked.

“Close, try renaissance fair enthusiast.” He shook his head and I laughed.

“It’s good to see you smiling,” he noted, which, of course, made me frown. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to call attention to it. Just know that I’m here if you want to talk.” My eyes smarted when he grasped my hand in his, and added, “I promise not to tease, okay?”

“The partaaaaay has arrived!” Someone sounding very much like Hunter suddenly shouted. Jerking my eyes from Wayne, I searched the yard where all of the noise was coming from until I spotted him. Standing back from the ruckus with his hands in his pockets and his golden-eyed gaze directed right at me, was Blake.

My heart soared to the heavens. Blake was here! Then it came crashing to the Earth when he turned and disappeared behind the flowering plants and trees. Wait! He was leaving?

Wayne nudged me. “Go,” he urged. “If you don’t, then I will, and if that happens, you’re gonna lose that man forever.” He was right. Not about losing Blake to Wayne, but about figuring this...us...our future out, once and for all.

Instead of chasing him through the trees, I decided to take a shortcut through the building. Right as I opened the door, there he was...standing before me. I noticed that he was sporting a full beard. His eyes looked tired and his expression weary. God, how I’d missed this man!