by Ashley Munoz
“Why do you care where I go?”
Because for whatever fucked-up reason, my blood boils at the idea of you being hurt or not having somewhere safe to stay.
I shrugged. “You’re my best friend’s little sister…I care.”
Her lips twisted to the side as if she was considering what I’d said.
I sipped my coffee and toyed with my phone, swiping my thumb across the screen. Angela had tagged me in a post on Instagram again. It was the third time since the wedding, and the pictures she kept using were old, back from our very short time together two years prior. Inviting her as my plus-one had been a mistake, but at the time I was being reckless, and I didn’t want to face Taylor without a buffer.
“Okay, then I’ll stay. But you have to promise to tell me if I begin to cramp your style, and if you have an expectation of when you want me to be gone by.”
I nodded. “Done.”
“Do you have any rules for me?” She tied her hair up into a bun on her head. I swallowed thickly as I realized how difficult and likely stupid this whole idea was.
“No guys. Here’s the key code to get into the house—you don’t have to have a key with the way the lock is set up, just a code, and a thumbprint if you want to get that set up.” I tipped my cup back, keeping my eyes trained on hers. Her thin eyebrows rose, but she didn’t fight me.
“Okay, thank you.” She cradled the paper in her hand before looking up at me again. She wore a pair of jean shorts paired with a tight tank top again, showing her little baby bump.
I hated that she somehow looked even hotter with that bump. That saying about glowing wasn’t a lie…she was radiant, and all I could think about was how she had looked standing in front of me cupping herself.
“And you don’t have to worry about guys—I don’t plan on dating while I’m pregnant.”
I scoffed. “Just last night you had your fingers in your cunt, and then you offered to put them in my mouth…so forgive me if I don’t exactly believe you. Besides, what if Holden comes around and suddenly wants to play daddy?” Fuck, why did I sound so petulant?
“First of all, what happened to you being nice?” She quirked a brow, her hands going to her hips, making her look cute as fuck.
I suddenly had the urge to walk up, cup her face, and taste her lips again. I hadn’t allowed myself to really think about the kiss I had stolen from her the other day. How it felt to taste her, have her pressed against me…it was something I’d done just to shock her, piss her off, anger her, like she’d done to me. If I really wanted to be an asshole, all I had to do was tell her I was rebounding from Angela or something…but once I’d had her there, words hadn’t come, save for the warning I’d given and would keep if she kept trying to keep me out of her life.
“Fine.” I blinked, running my hand through my hair. “But I should still be allowed to be honest with you.”
“You can…and you’re right. The purpose of last night was to see how far I could push you. I didn’t expect…” She trailed off, her face and neck turning red.
“You didn’t expect what?” I moved around the kitchen so I wouldn’t think of the night before or how close we’d gotten to crossing a line. Part of me wondered if she’d only pushed me like that so she could turn around and turn me down.
“Well…uhh, this pregnancy has done some really weird things to my body. Anyway, once I started toying with you, it felt so good, and the hormones kind of kicked in then suddenly I wanted to do a lot of dirty things with you, regardless of how angry I was.” Well fuck, maybe she wouldn’t have stopped us. Maybe she would have gone all the way, or at least far enough, so I wouldn’t have had to deal with blue balls all night.
She shouldn’t have told me that. It was going to stick in my head like a guidebook on all things Taylor now. Every single thing would lead back to her being pregnant and horny and wanting dirty things done to her.
“Okay…” I tried to clear the need and lust out of my throat.
“So, no guys, and no more seeing each other naked.” She laughed, spinning on her heel.
I watched her head toward the front door, an objection on my tongue that I’d never once said we shouldn’t see each other naked…but she was right. We couldn’t and shouldn’t do anything more like that, because next time I wouldn’t be able to stop.
Taylor gave me a cute half-wave before turning, walking out the door, and starting her car. I realized she had never addressed my question regarding Holden coming around and playing daddy.
Chapter Nine
Dr. Phoss was so long-winded. How long did it take to explain the basic behaviors of humans in the first few centuries of time? I was going to pee my pants if he didn’t wrap this little discussion up soon. My legs jiggled under the desk as I watched the clock count down to two. It was my last class of the day, and I was so ready to be done. I was beyond exhausted. After my little routine the previous night, I had been so embarrassed and aroused that I didn’t end up getting to sleep until well after three in the morning. I had tried to fix the issue myself, but it was like nothing could take the edge off after seeing Juan Hernandez respond to seeing me naked and offering him a taste of myself.
God, how embarrassing. Regardless of what he’d said, there had been no hiding the bulge in his jeans, or the way his eyes turned to fire when they trailed down my body. I knew he wanted me. I could feel it, like a crackle of electricity in the air, or like the way the sky darkened before a storm.
Even still, the image of him watching me had been on replay in my head for hours, and nothing could relieve me. I had eyed the pool outside my window at least three times, curious if a lap or two would help…but I had chickened out because everything had happened so fast with moving in that I didn’t feel comfortable wandering.
It didn’t help that Juan was so insanely hot and cold with me. One second he was devouring me with his eyes, smoldering and clenching his molars to the point where that muscle in his jaw ticked, and the next he was saying such horrible things to me. I honestly had no delusions that this living situation would last long. I wasn’t kidding when I said I would rather be homeless than deal with his rude remarks.
“Okay, that’s it for today. Be sure to follow up with the notes I posted online and the assignment posted for next week.” Dr. Phoss finally ended the class, and since my books and laptop were already packed, I dashed up the steps and out the hall, heading straight for the bathroom.
“Excuse me,” I muttered, pushing past a few students. I was doing the pee-pee dance at this point, and if people didn’t move, I was going to make a scene.
“Tay…” Someone grabbed my elbow. I could see the bathroom sign; I was so close. Groaning, I turned toward the person who’d snagged me and sagged in place.
“I am literally going to pee my pants,” I practically cried, wishing I could take it back. Some things didn’t need to be said out loud.
“Sorry…” Holden let me go, wincing while he hefted his backpack higher on his shoulder. His dark hair was covered by a dark snapback, making him look broody and hot.
Looking around, I grabbed his hand and pulled him after me into the bathroom. There were a few girls milling around, but all of them exited quickly enough for us to lock the door and for me to snag an empty stall.
“What’s up, Holden?” My voice echoed, and maybe in a different life I would have cared that this was awkward, but not today.
He cleared his throat on the other side of the closed stall door. “Uh…you never called or came over yesterday.”
No, I hadn’t, and that was still on replay in my head too.
Finishing up, I flushed, opened the door, and washed my hands while watching him in the mirror. He stared at my protruding stomach as though it was something he had to fix. A problem.
“I was busy.”
“Well, what did you want to talk to me about?” His brows dipped in concentration.
I turned, crossing my arms over my chest. It pushed my cleavage up, but I didn’t c
are. I was running out of space for where I could put them.
“Did you not get my text a few months ago after we fucked like six times back to back without protection?”
The idiot blanched, glancing at my stomach again before dropping his gaze to the floor. He had gotten it; I knew it.
“My phone said you read it.”
“What do you want me to say?” He turned away from me, and my dumb heart deflated. What had I expected? For him to say he’d been out of the country and would do anything to be a part of the baby’s life?
“I just wanted you to know…I don’t want you to say or do anything.”
“It’s not like you need me—your dad is a millionaire, Tay.” He shrugged again, and I was getting really fucking tired of seeing those lousy excuses for shoulders rising toward his ears. Juan had taken me in without a second thought, not dating me or related to me…not even obligated because he’d knocked me up, and yet this guy couldn’t even reply to a text.
“I already said I don’t need anything from you, but some guys want to be involved with their kids’ lives…just wanted to give you that opportunity.”
He stared at the floor, unmoving.
Letting out a small sound of disbelief, I went to leave, but his hand darted out to stop me.
“Can I think about it, have time to wrap my brain around it?”
Why did he need time? I had texted him months ago…still, because I was weak and some small place existed inside me that wanted my baby to have their father in the picture, I nodded like an idiot. I let the man who’d knocked me up lean in and kiss the corner of my mouth.
“I miss you,” he whispered in my ear. “You know that I miss you…I tried calling you after, but you wouldn’t return my calls or texts. I know we aren’t together and I’m still figuring this out, but if you need me…in other ways, I’m here for you.”
He turned to leave before I could respond. My eyes watered as shallow breaths assaulted my pathetic lungs. He needed time to consider being a dad, but for a quick fuck, he’d come right over? It hurt, burned in ways I hadn’t felt before, but I figured this must be how it goes, right? You fuck it up and then try to mash all the painful pieces together to make it work. That’s how my mom and dad had worked, until she couldn’t take it anymore and got out.
Swiping at my face, I headed for the parking lot, ready to hide in my new safe haven.
I realized once I started my car that I had no idea where I was headed. So, I had to text Juan to get the address.
Me: I kind of forgot to ask you for the address today
Juan: 4589 S Terrace Court—key code for the gate should be on the paper, but if it’s not, it’s 901.
Me: Thank you
He didn’t respond, and I didn’t expect him to. He could stay on his side of whatever it was he did, and I would stay on mine.
Punching in the address, I began driving toward the nicer part of Rake Forge. Ten minutes later, I was in front of the same wrought iron gate I had seen the previous night. Pulling up close to the keypad, I entered the code Juan had given me and tried not to feel too giddy when it slowly slid open. Questions about how he’d gotten this house swirled in my head. The one and only time I had ever tagged along with Mallory to one of his movie nights, his apartment had been on the other side of town, and it was old, run down, and tiny. The only redeemable thing inside had been his couch.
The sun peeked in and out of the trees that acted like a canopy for the long driveway. Now that it was daylight, I could see how much land stretched along the white fence that bordered Juan’s house. A grove of trees was scattered along a large portion of his property, making me itch to walk under the branches to see what grew there.
I didn’t even fight the smile that broke out on my face. An accompanying flutter erupted in my stomach, and I knew it wasn’t a bout of nerves or butterflies. That was my baby.
“You as excited as me, little bean?”
I rolled down the windows and laughed as I felt a tiny kick prance along my abdomen.
“I wouldn’t mind living here either. There’s even a pool,” I muttered, loving the feeling of peace that began to unfurl inside my chest. This was the first time I’d felt at peace since finding out about being pregnant. I tried to fight the feeling trying to take root. I had to remind myself this was only temporary. A plant in a pot. I’d be leaving soon.
Cresting the top of the path, I pulled into the circular driveway and put my car in park. I was used to opulence from my time growing up with my father and then moving in with Charlie, but this house still made me feel small. Maybe because there was also a part of me accustomed to poverty, thanks to the fact that my mother had accepted her freedom from my father, but only on the condition that she ask for nothing.
That extended to me as well for all the time I spent with her. It felt like a punishment more often than not, living in tiny one-bedroom hovels where the carpet smelled so strongly of mold and cigarettes that learning to hold my breath for as long as I could became a form of survival. I had folded my small body into tiny corners to sleep more times than I could remember. I was a mess, my head and heart a tangled mess of trigger wires.
Blinking, I reached in, grabbed my phone and purse, and then slammed the door shut. As I wandered to the front, a tiny little pulse point jumped in my chest as I entered the pin code into the keypad at the door. Once it clicked open, I let out a sigh of relief.
For however long, this was where I belonged.
I had grown accustomed to settling and adjusting…but something told me this would be an entirely different situation. As I looked around the living room and took in the cozy comforts, it looked as though the entire house was staged. Nothing personal was added. No photos of Juan’s big family, none of his mother, whom I had seen but never met, none of his younger sister.
I moved into the kitchen and began digging through the options for food: Greek yogurt, oat milk, gouda cheese, fresh lettuce and tomatoes. None of it was mine, and regardless of how much I craved a snack in the form of a juicy apple and a few slices of cheese, I would wait until I bought my own groceries.
I didn’t feel right about eating his food, so I shut the fridge and decided to stick to the snacks I had brought with me. They would have to do until I had a chance to go shopping for something fresh.
Back up the stairs and in my room, I let out a relieved groan. I liked the room. I loved the brilliance of light that was welcomed in and the attached suite, loved the plush bed and how simply the white and grey contrasts were arranged. I mentally put together a color scheme that would look amazing with some added textures and lamps, along with fresh flowers. If I did stay and this worked out, there was even ample space for a crib.
Sobering to the reality of my life and where it was headed, I sat on the bed and rubbed my belly. There was no way Juan would want a single mother and her baby living here. He had a life, he had girlfriends…and the memory of the night before rumbled into my chest like a runaway semi-truck.
He’d stood there, consuming me with his eyes…told me to taste myself. Then he told me I was filthy.
That couldn’t happen again. Maybe Juan was just a player, used to fucking and flirting, and this would be no different. He was the male version of me, so I wouldn’t judge…but still, we had to set some boundaries. Maybe with them in place, he wouldn’t mind if I stayed for a while, even after I had the baby.
That was assuming my father or Markos didn’t find me first.
Heaving a sigh, I stood and stretched. There were so many things out of my control and too many questions I had. There was no way to address them all, and for now, I just needed to let it go. I knew from listening to my podcasts that stress wouldn’t be good for the baby. So, I walked to where my duffle sat and pulled out my bathing suit, ready to test out the massive pool in the backyard.
Right as I was about to slip into the restroom, my phone pinged, reminding me I had a doctor’s appointment. I sighed as I looked out the window, realizing the p
ool would have to wait.
Chapter Ten
I loved that Dr. Kline always managed to fit me in before he closed up. I didn’t get out of school until after two and he stopped seeing patients at three, so by the time I actually got over to the side of the city I needed to be on, he was usually the only one in the small office when I arrived.
Opening the glass door, I found him in his blue scrubs, glasses perched on his nose while he filled out paperwork on the counter. The receptionists were gone, leaving just the two of us, like usual…unless there were other people milling around somewhere. I assumed there were, likely, janitorial staff or something.
“Taylor, good to see you,” Dr. Kline said, smiling at me.
He was insanely hot, and each time I saw him, my face never failed to betray how his looks affected me. He was maybe thirty-something, no wedding ring, but I knew he had kids from the photos in his office. He was nice to me, super helpful and always encouraging me regarding my pregnancy.
“Let’s get to it, shall we.” He held his hand out, indicating I lead the way to the exam room. We always went to the same one all the way in the back with a small alcove outside so there was a little more privacy. It was closest to his office, so I assumed that was why he preferred to use it.
“How are you feeling?”
I led the way into the room, setting my purse down and toeing off my sandals. “Good. Really hot all the time and exhausted.”
“Hop up.” He patted the table. “Are you drinking plenty of fluids?”
I nodded, feeling a little flutter hit my chest. This part was always odd to me. Growing up, I’d never been to a public health practitioner. My father had always made sure I saw a private doctor, same with Charlie. They paid to have people see us, and we didn’t have to go into offices. So, I wasn’t sure how things were normally done, but I felt mostly at ease with Dr. Kline. It was just overcoming the nerves of having my body inspected like I was a lab rat. It didn’t help that occasionally it felt like my doctor looked at me in a nonprofessional way, but that was probably just in my head because I wasn’t used to it.
