“She’s too far along. I saw the ultrasound picture. She’s almost ten weeks. She didn’t even know Antonio then!”
“You’re an idiot.” Aiden sighed and I chanced a glance over my shoulder. I could see him standing at the open door but couldn’t see outside. I hoped Dalton didn’t come into the house, because he would surely see me if he did. “She could be lying to you. She called off your wedding for this guy. You think she hasn’t known him longer than two and a half months?”
Dalton didn’t respond. He was either mulling over the possibility or getting ready to throw a punch at Aiden for basically calling the mother of his child a slut.
“Why would she lie about it if it could be his? She broke up with him because she’s having my baby.”
“Why would she lie to you?” Aiden repeated incredulously. “Because you’re safe. You have a good job, money, a home. Are you so dense that you can’t see that?”
“Gianna has her own money. She doesn’t need mine,” Aiden countered.
“She has her parents’ money. There’s a big difference.”
“What does it matter? It’s still not a good enough reason to lie.”
“Mark my words, James. There’s something fishy about this and you’re going to end up getting fucked over.”
“Look,” he began, his voice heavy with exasperation, “I came here to talk to Taylor. Where is she?”
“She’s not here.”
“Bullshit. Her car is in the driveway.”
“How do you know somebody didn’t pick her up?” Aiden asked. It almost sounded like a taunt. “She could be out on a date right now. It’s not like you two are seeing each other.” Yep, definitely a taunt.
“Please, just let me talk to her,” Dalton pleaded. “I have too much respect for you to enter your house against your will.”
“But not too much respect to fuck with my sister and break her heart?”
There was a whoosh and suddenly the door slammed shut. I heard the lock click into place, followed by a loud crash. Aiden walked back into the room rubbing his knuckles.
“I’m so sorry,” I said, tears dampening my cheeks again.
“What do you possibly have to be sorry for?”
“For coming between you two. You guys have been best friends for almost twenty years and I ruined it.”
“No you didn’t.” He reached over and put his arm around my shoulders, giving them a squeeze. “Dalton is the one who screwed up. If he doesn’t fix it, then the downfall of our friendship will be on his hands.”
Dalton
What was I going to do? My best friend hated me, the woman I wanted to be with thought I was a lying, cheating piece of shit just like her ex, and I was going to be a father in roughly seven months, give or take. I had royally screwed up. My life took a nosedive in Seattle. I knew I should’ve just stayed on that island with Taylor. We’d be sipping Mai Tais on the beach right now, watching the tide come in. Instead, I was trying to figure out where I was going to put a crib and changing table.
Gianna and I needed to have a talk. Now that the shock had worn off, we needed to figure out where to go from here. I wasn’t in love with her anymore and didn’t want to lead her on. I wanted to be there for her and the baby, but she needed to know we’d never be a couple again.
She wanted to move in with me and pick up where we left off. I’d been fielding her advances since she ambushed me at my hotel. She was practically throwing herself at me, but I wouldn’t do it. She thought I was just worried about the baby and tried to assure me it was perfectly safe to have sex while pregnant. I knew that. I just didn’t want to. Not with her, at least. The only woman I wanted was sitting across town thinking I tossed her aside for a woman who’d already done me dirty once.
I cringed when Gianna walked into my house, tossing her keys onto the counter. They clinked loudly on the granite, followed by the grating sound of her voice calling my name.
“In here,” I responded from the guest bedroom.
“There you are!” she cooed a few seconds later as she entered the room. She moved in for a kiss and I turned my head, her lips landing on my cheek. She played it off like that was what she’d been aiming for, but I saw the hurt flash in her eyes.
It made me feel like the world’s biggest prick. She was trying to reconcile with me for the sake of our unborn child and I couldn’t even bring myself to kiss her. Maybe I was being petty, punishing her for cheating, but she no longer held the allure she once did. Yeah, she was still technically sexy with her feminine curves, still-slender waist, and long, dark hair, but I knew what lay underneath and it wasn’t all that pretty.
“Is this where we’re putting the nursery?”
Not we, I wanted to tell her. I. This was where I was putting the nursery. This was where he or she would sleep while staying with me. “Yeah,” I answered instead. That talk would come soon enough. No need to get her all upset right now.
“Mom and Dad want us to come over for dinner,” she began, a hopeful gleam in her eye.
I’d agreed to a few meals and outings with her parents since they were going to be in my life forever now. Might as well get along with them. Besides, I’d always liked them. They were good to me. They’d spoiled Gianna and were mostly responsible for her being self-absorbed and financially dependent on others, but they were good people.
“Okay,” I agreed easily. “What time do we need to be there?”
“Not until seven. That gives us plenty of time,” she said suggestively, her eyes falling to my lips as she leaned her body into mine. I moved away from her, steadying her with my hands at her elbows so she wouldn’t fall.
“I’ve got to get a little work done before we go. I’ll pick you up at your place.”
Her face fell and she took a step back. “Oh.”
She looked dejected, but I couldn’t let her reel me back in. If I went there again there would be no turning back. I’d never get another chance with Taylor, and that was what I was waiting for. I was biding my time until this whole mess got sorted out and I could beg her forgiveness. I just hoped it wasn’t too late by the time I got my chance.
I sat through dinner with Jillian and Frank Venetti, Gianna’s parents. He was a robust Italian man in his fifties with a thick, black mustache and hair generously peppered with grey. She was a waif of a woman with the same blue eyes as Gianna and strawberry blonde hair. Those baby blues were the only thing Gianna got from her mother. The rest of her was all Venetti.
“Have you guys thought about names yet?” Jillian asked, placing her napkin on the table next to her plate. We finished our desserts and were ready for coffee. I was glad I hadn’t taken a drink of mine already, or I would have spit it out all over their nice table. I had barely come to terms with being a father. Baby names weren’t even on the radar yet. “I know it’s still early, but that’s one of the most exciting things about having a baby,” she gushed.
“Not yet,” I offered with a tight smile. My fingers curled into my thighs as nerves overtook me. Gianna took that as her cue to offer me comfort. She wrapped her fingers around mine and I fought the urge to shake her off. I didn’t need her touch, didn’t want it. But I had to play nice. Not just for her parents, but for our child.