“I’ll still drive,” I said. “If that’s okay. I might stay there for a while.”
“Of course.” Scarlett smiled and backed away, rushing to her house, like if she didn’t hurry, I’d change my mind.
I got in my car and closed the door, instantly hitting the locks. Then I reversed out of the driveway, waiting along the sidewalk for Scarlett. Less than thirty seconds later, her garage door opened and Luke’s police truck backed out. They led the way to the best coffee shop on Central. Luke came inside with Scarlett and ordered a black coffee, then he kissed her and returned to his truck, leaving us alone to visit.
The instant we were settled at a table with four chairs, the door chimed open and an identical version of Scarlett rushed inside.
“Hi.” Presley hugged her sister and smiled at me as she took her seat. Her hair was short, cut in a style that I could never pull off. “Hey, Cassandra. Sorry I missed you yesterday.”
Yesterday. The barbeque. Of course she’d been there and heard everything. “Yeah. So . . . this is embarrassing.”
“Don’t be embarrassed.” Presley put her hand on mine. “Yesterday was on Leo. He acted like an ass.”
“To be fair, I delivered quite the piece of news.” Wait, why was I defending him? He had been acting like an ass.
“Let’s not talk about him,” Scarlett said. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m fine.” If fine meant nauseous, exhausted and stressed. “How are you? I should have told you yesterday, but congratulations. Mom and Dad told me you and Luke got married.”
Scarlett smiled and toyed with the diamond ring on her left hand. “It was a no-fuss ordeal but sort of perfect too.”
“It was perfect,” Presley said, just as a rumble sounded from outside.
Our faces turned to the glass. We all knew what machine made that sound.
No. Don’t let it be him. I wasn’t ready yet. I didn’t have my plan. Leaving the house had been a horrible idea. I should have let Mom make me spinach and artichoke dip, even if the idea made my stomach roll.
The rumble turned to thunder right before a streak of red and orange and black pulled into the open space in front of Luke’s truck and came to an abrupt stop.
“Oh, no.” Scarlett turned to me, then looked at Presley. “Did you . . .”
Presley shook her head. “No. I didn’t call him.”
My eyes tracked Leo as he swung off the bike and strode toward the door, shoving a pair of mirrored sunglasses into his messy dark-blond hair.
The front door chimed and there he was, handsome and totally oblivious to the three of us sitting at the corner table, watching him stride to the counter.
“It’s not even ten.” Presley checked the time on her phone. “Usually he’s in bed until after noon.”
I stared, speechless, as he walked to the counter. The swagger that had lured me into the parking lot of The Betsy was working on the barista.
She was practically drooling with hearts in her eyes as he approached. She toyed with the end of her ponytail as her cheeks flushed while he placed his order. She giggled at whatever he said before writing a note on the paper to-go cup. The coy smile on her face told me exactly what she’d written.
“I’m going to go.” I scrambled to collect my notebook, phone and keys.
“No.” Scarlett put her hand on my arm. “He can leave.”
“I don’t want to cause a scene.” The barbeque had been more drama than I’d had in a year. Well, except for the kidnapping.
“Stay,” Presley said. “I know Leo was an asshole yesterday, but that’s not who he is. You terrified him. Pregnant is not a word he’d react well to. Give him a chance to show you that he’s a good guy.”
A good guy? I hoped he was a good guy. Really, truly hoped. My dad was the best man I knew, and I’d always imagined marrying a man like him. A man who’d love me and cherish our children. If Leo turned out to be cruel . . . I couldn’t fathom that at the moment. So I took Presley on her word.
“All right.”
We waited, the three of us holding our breaths, until bootsteps sounded on the shop’s wooden floor.
Leo spotted Presley first. His mouth turned up. Then he noticed me and whatever smile was there vanished.
Did good guys glare like that? Because wow. My heart was racing but I refused to cower as he came to our table, stopping by its edge.
He set the coffee cup in his hand down and there was the barista’s number doodled inside a heart. He smelled like wind and a masculine spice that was all Leo. A scent I’d washed from my skin weeks ago.
I had to tip my chin back to lock my gaze with a pair of angry gray-green irises. Since our night at The Betsy, he’d grown a goatee. Stubble dusted the sharp corners of his jaw. Leo crossed his arms over his chest, the black T-shirt he was wearing straining at his tattooed biceps.
He stared, his lips set in a firm line.
Did he really think I was going to speak first? I could barely breathe. And if he was truly a good guy, then he could prove it. An apology would be the right place to start.
“I want a paternity test.”
My nostrils flared. So much for my apology. “Fine.”
“No.” Presley sat straighter in her chair and the glare she sent Leo was hot enough to bring his coffee to a boil. “She’s telling the truth. Stop acting like this.”
“A lot of women would say shit—”
“Does Cass look like one of your typical women?” Presley cut him off. “Her clothes actually cover her body and the longest word in her vocabulary is more than four letters.”
“A paternity test.” His jaw ticked. “I want one.”
Presley opened her mouth, but I held up a hand. As much as I appreciated her standing up for me, this was my battle to fight.
“I’ll give you a paternity test. Anything else?”
He shook his head. “When I prove you’re a liar, you’ll be out of my life. And Pres, you know the reason she’s lying? Because I always wrap it up. Always.”
“Except when you can’t wait, right? That’s what you told me. I can’t wait. That I was so beautiful, you just wanted a few strokes bare, then you’d put on a condom before you came. I’m not exactly experienced and had to hit up Google to learn about the dangers of pre-cum.”
Leo’s bravado faltered and his arms dropped to his sides.
The other patrons in the coffee shop were staring. The barista leaned across the counter to hear. Maybe this would be a lesson for her, and I could save her some heartache.
“If you want a paternity test to prove that we’re both idiots, fine,” I said. “But it’s not going to change the fact that I’m pregnant. And you’re the father. Like it or not, your life is now tied to the one growing inside me.”
Fear flashed across his face. True, unabashed fear.
I’d been so angry that I’d missed it yesterday. But Presley was right. I saw it clear as the Montana summer sky.
Leo was terrified.
Didn’t he realize that I was too?
“What do you want from me?” he asked.
“Nothing.” This wasn’t a trap. I wasn’t out to steal his freedom or money or whatever it was he was so desperately trying to protect.