“Don’t look so shocked. I just don’t want to know ahead of time, that’s all. I think it would be fun to have the old-fashioned moment in the delivery room when right after the baby’s born, the doctor announces it’s a boy or it’s a girl. Doesn’t that sound like fun?” Maya asked.
“That doesn’t sound like fun. That sounds like months and months of waiting for something we don’t have to wait for. It’s considered old-fashioned for a reason. We have the technology, Maya. We can know.”
“What is the big deal about knowing ahead of time?”
“That way we can think about how to decorate the nursery and names. I just feel like if we know as soon as possible, we can start really connecting with the baby,” I said.
“I’m connected to the baby without knowing what it is,” Maya said. “And besides, doesn’t surprise sound wonderful? There are so few real surprises in life. Why would we want to throw one away?”
I did my best not to growl with exasperation and frustration. “I hate that excuse so much,” I told her. “Yes, finding out what the baby is when it’s born is a surprise. But so is finding out what it is before. You’re still just as surprised when you find out what the baby is through a blood test or an ultrasound. Aren’t you?”
She seemed to think about that for a few seconds. “You know, I never saw it that way.”
“Perfect,” I said. “Then we’ll find out as soon as we can.”
She shook her head and leaned over to give me a kiss. Across the hall, the sound of the shower went quiet, and a few minutes later we heard the door open and close.
“I’m going to go check on her,” Maya said. “I’ll be right back.”
I closed the door behind her and changed into my pajamas. It felt good to slip into my side of the bed and leave hers open knowing it would soon be filled. She wasn’t gone long before slipping back into the room with an armful of clothes.
“How is she doing?” I asked.
“About as well as she could be, I think,” she said. “We are having a pretty good giggle over being pregnant at the same time. But she’s exhausted, and I think she just needs to rest.”
“I’ll call Lindsey back in the morning, and we’ll get everything squared away,” I told her.
She changed into her pajamas and slid in beside me, resting her head on my chest like she always did.
“Thank you,” she said.
Within moments, she was asleep.
Like almost always, I woke up before Maya the next morning. I slid out of bed carefully and was almost to the door when I remembered Ashley was in the apartment. I couldn’t just wander out there in pajama pants and nothing else. I changed into my clothes for the day and went out into the living room. It was still quiet. Apparently, Ashley was still asleep as well.
The first call I made was to Gus.
“I was getting worried about you,” he said as soon as he answered.
“Everything’s fine,” I said. “Things just got kind of thrown up in the air really fast, and I had to get them all figured out before I could let you know.” I gave him a basic rundown of what happened, not wanting to get too far into detail because it would drag the conversation on long and I had other things I needed to do. I was sure we would talk again soon. “Can I take the day off today?”
“The team doesn’t have another race until next week, so as long as you’re ready for that, we’re good. You do what you need to do,” Gus said.
“I will be ready, I promise,” I said.
“I’m sure you will. I trust you. You know I have quite a few connections in this town, and in other places, too. If you need me in any way, don’t hesitate. You know where to find me. I will do anything I can for you.”
My heart felt warm, and I smiled even though he couldn’t see me. “Thank you. For everything. For always being there for me.”
“Of course. I always will be. We’re family,” Gus said.
When I got off the phone with Gus, I called Lindsey. She sounded just as worried and confused as Gus did. Possibly even more considering she told me Maya was convinced I was going to break up with her, so when I called the day before and said I had somebody to move into her apartment, she thought it was her.
“I was just about to kill you,” Lindsey said. “I mean, I would have done it nicely and swiftly considering your link to Vince and the rest of his family. But definitely killing you all the same. I thought you had a lot of damn nerve calling me to arrange for Maya to come live in my apartment because you wanted to get rid of her.”
“Well, that’s definitely not the case,” I said. “Did she tell you anything else?”
She paused briefly. “What do you mean?”
“Is there anything else that she told you? When she told you she thought I was going to break up with her, is there any other news she happened to share with you?” I asked.
“No,” she said. “She didn’t say anything but that you two were drifting apart and you were being weird, so she thought you were going to break up with her. Why? What else is going on?”
“A lot, actually.”
I gave her a more detailed explanation of everything that was happening than I gave Gus. Not just because Lindsey knew Maya better than Gus did, but also because she was a woman who had experience with pregnancy and struggling with an ex. It wasn’t exactly the same thing as Ashley was going through, but it was enough to give her more empathy and compassion.
Lindsey was also, just in general, one of the kindest and most giving people I had ever known. I was hoping she would be able to help Ashley out, in more ways than just renting her the apartment. Ashley needed as many friends as she could get right now, especially those who could identify with what she was going through.
She sat in what seemed like stunned silence for several seconds after I stopped talking.
“Lindsey?” I asked. “Are you there? Did you hear everything?”
“I definitely heard everything,” she said. “I’m trying really hard not to totally bubble over with reaction right now. I cannot believe Maya is pregnant, and I am so excited for the two of you I can’t even stand it. But we’re going to put that aside right now because we need to talk about Ashley. She sounds like the one who really needs help right now.”
“She really does. She’s a complete mess. And Maya is being absolutely incredible about her. I doubt I’ve met many people in my life who would be so open and willing to not only accept the woman their partner cheated with, but to go completely out of their way to help her.”
“That’s just the kind of woman Maya is,” Lindsey said. “You’ve got a good one.”
“Don’t I know it,” I said. “And I always have. Do you think you can help?”
“Absolutely,” she said. “No way I’m going to leave somebody out in the cold after going through that. She can definitely move into the apartment behind the bar. I’ll give her the first month with no rent so she can get on her feet. As for a job, I can help her out with that, too. If she’s interested, I just lost a server. I offered it to Maya, but she wasn’t into it. She’s really enjoying cooking. Ashley’s welcome to that.”
“Thank you so much, Lindsey. You are making a world of difference.”
Feeling like things were falling into place and everything was really going to be okay, I went to the kitchen to start making breakfast. I felt like I was hedging in on Maya’s territory a little, but I wanted to spoil her some. I was feeling guilty for all those days of missed lunches, but I also just wanted to make sure she was feeling taken care of.
By the time the ladies woke up, the table was full of food, and I had just finished brewing a fresh pot of decaf coffee. I welcomed them to sit down and filled their plates. Then sat down with them.
“Okay, Ashley, this is how it is. The first thing we are going to do is call the police,” I said.
Her eyes widened, and she shook her head. “No. I can’t do that. There’s no way I could go talk to the police and tell them everything. Marshall would b
e so angry, and I would be so embarrassed.”
“There is no reason for you to be embarrassed,” Maya said. “No reason at all. You didn’t do anything wrong. Marshall can’t get to you. It doesn’t matter if he’s angry. I will go with you to talk to the police. You don’t have to be alone.”
“No, you don’t,” I said. “I’m not going to let Marshall get away with this. And neither one of us, or any of our friends and family here in Charlotte, are going to let you fend for yourself. Coming here was the best thing you could have done. First of all, you have an apartment now. Lindsey is not only willing to let you stay in it, but she said she won’t even charge you rent for the first month so you can get on your feet.”
“And I’ve seen it,” Maya said. “It is absolutely adorable. You’ll love it. And I work at the bar, so I can easily come and check on you, and we can hang out.”
“Well, you can hang out at Ashley’s apartment,” I said. “Or you can hang out at work.”
“What do you mean?” Ashley asked.
“Lindsey has a job for you too. If you want it, she has a server position you can start immediately. Or whenever you’re ready,” I said.
Tears welled up in Ashley’s eyes. She hung her head and cried into her coffee, but after a few seconds she agreed. After breakfast, we called Nick Freeman.
“Hey,” I said. “Can you ask Gabe if his friend Clint is working today?”
“Sure,” Nick said. “Why? What’s going on?”
“Maya and I have a friend here who needs some assistance from the police,” I said. “And I thought it would make her feel better if she was talking to somebody we were familiar with.”
“Sure thing,” he said. “I’ll have Gabe call him. And if he’s available, should I send him over to your apartment?”
“Yes, please,” I said. “How is everything with you? Bryn doing okay?”
“Doing great,” he said.
“Good to hear. Hopefully I’ll see you guys sometime soon.”
“Absolutely,” Nick said. “We’ll be at the family barbeque Sunday.”
An hour later, Gabe’s police officer friend, Clint, showed up at my door. Maya and I sat with Ashley the whole time she talked to him, encouraging her to tell him everything and not hold back any details. He took the report and suggested she contact a lawyer just in case. After he left, I texted Darren to get the name of the company lawyer. We were going to make sure she had everything she needed.
35
Maya
Everything felt right in the world by falling asleep in Greg’s arms again. I felt comfortable and safe curled up in the nook of his arm and shoulder, my head rested on his chest so I could hear his heartbeat. I was so happy and finally feeling like life was smoothing out and settling into place.
But as soon as that thought went through my head, I went back to thinking about Ashley and what she was going through. I knew that situation was far from over. Gabe’s friend Clint was so kind coming over and talking to her about what happened. He was willing to take down the report and record all of the information and details she would give him.
He also made sure she understood that the assault had happened outside of his jurisdiction. Since the incident happened in Shelby and not in Charlotte, he couldn’t go and arrest Marshall. All he could do was make sure the information was on file here in Charlotte in case anything else happened while Ashley was here and encourage Ashely to report Marshall to the Shelby PD.
Before we could deal with any of that, though, we needed to help Ashley settle into this new phase of her life. She admitted she really didn’t have a plan when she left Shelby and ended up driving to Charlotte to see me.
I nestled closer to Greg and propped my chin on my hands to look into his face.
“Something on your mind?” he asked.
“I want to make sure she’s okay here,” I said. “And I know we’ve already made sure she has somewhere to live and gotten her a job, but that’s not everything. When I left, I at least got a chance to prepare. Marshall gave me a day to gather all my things and leave. She left in a total panic because it was an emergency. She didn’t get a chance to bring anything with her.”
“He can’t keep her belongings,” Greg said. “Just because she was living in his apartment doesn’t mean he now owns everything that’s hers. She absolutely has the right to go back and get her things. But I don’t like the idea of her going back there by herself.”
“I don’t like the idea of her going back there at all,” I said. “After what she went through, she shouldn’t have to face him. And I know I didn’t want to go anywhere near Shelby when I first came here. Did you want to go back after you left?”
“Not at all,” he said. “I don’t even want to go back now. But I’m going to.”
I lifted my head and looked at him. “You are?”
“Of course I am. Like you just said, she shouldn’t be going back there. Not right now, anyway. She shouldn’t have to face off against Marshall. It’s better if she’s just here and we can give her a chance to decompress.”
“What are you going to do?” I asked.
“Tomorrow, I’m going to call a couple of the guys, and we are going to go down to Shelby. He won’t start anything with a bunch of guys he doesn’t know and me. And if he does, he’s going to regret it quickly,” Greg said.
I settled down into his chest again, but for only a second before popping back up. “You’re not going to beat him up, are you?”
“Not if he doesn’t ask for it,” he said.
“Let’s make sure he doesn’t ask for it.”
He didn’t answer, and I decided to just accept that and settle in for sleep. The next morning, I woke up with him so I could make him breakfast before the guys came over. I fully intended on sleeping for another couple of hours before going to work, but I didn’t want to miss an opportunity to kiss him goodbye.
And to remind him not to cause any trouble.
Greg was still working his way through a towering platter of orange rolls and coffee when Darren and Colby showed up. They knocked on the door, and I let them in. As soon as they walked in, they were drawn to the smell of the rolls, and soon all three men were sitting around the table eating and conspiring for the day.
They were hunched over the table, their heads close together as they talked about how they were going to go into the apartment and how they would handle any number of different situations. It was almost like listening to little boys playing spy. If it wasn’t such a serious situation, it would almost be adorable.
When they were finished eating, Greg took the key from Ashley along with a list she had made of everything she really wanted from the apartment.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to go with you?” she asked. “You shouldn’t have to do this by yourself.”
“I am absolutely sure,” Greg said.
“So am I,” I said. “You need to stay here with me and just let them handle this. Marshall decided he wanted to play dirty, so now it’s time for you to play your hand.”
Greg came up to me and gathered me into a hug, then gave me a kiss.
“Don’t kill Marshall,” I said. “Okay? I kind of need you here to help raise this baby.”
He leaned down and gave me another kiss.
“I’ll do my best,” he said.
The guys waved at me as they headed out, and I looked out the front window to watch them climb into Darren and Greg’s trucks to head on their way. As much as I hated the idea of them going into a situation that could be uncomfortable or even dangerous, they seemed to relish it. It made me feel warm, and love bubbled up in my chest. He was a good man. I was so lucky to have him.
I started toward the bedroom to lie back down, promising myself I would do the dishes when I woke up.
“I’m going to grab a couple more hours of sleep,” I said to Ashley. “Make yourself at home. If you want to go down to the pool, I put my resident card on the side table for you.”
She thanked
me, and I headed into the bedroom to crawl under the sheets. They still smelled like Greg, and I smiled as my eyes closed and I sank into sleep.
When I woke up, I headed into the kitchen to get something to eat. I hadn’t eaten anything before the guys came because my stomach was feeling sensitive that morning. When I walked into the kitchen, Ashley was standing at the stove scrambling a couple of eggs.
“I hope you don’t mind,” she said. “Scrambled eggs are just about the only thing I’m able to eat in the morning without feeling sick.”
“Of course I don’t mind,” I said. “I told you to make yourself at home. I know all about having to eat what your stomach says you can.”
She gestured toward the frying pan with her spatula. “Do you want me to scramble you up some, too?” she asked. “They’re really gentle on your stomach because they have so much protein in them, and it helps you feel more stable throughout the day, if that makes sense.”
“That actually sounds really good, thanks,” I said. “I have to head into work in a couple of hours, and it would be really nice to have some energy and not worry about feeling sick.”
Just as I said that, my phone alerted me to a new message. I figured it might be Greg updating me on their mission, but instead, it was Lindsey.
“Is that the guys?” Ashley asked.
“No,” I said. “Actually, it’s my boss. Our boss. Apparently, I don’t have to go into work today.”
“Is everything okay?” she asked, tipping the fresh eggs onto a plate and setting them aside so she could start another batch.
“Everything’s fine,” I said. “She just got a last-minute booking to rent out the bar tonight. That happens sometimes. It started a couple of months ago, apparently. Somebody asked if they could have their anniversary party at the bar because that’s where they had their first date. She was kind of reluctant to do it at first, but then she did, and people really love it.”
“It’s surprising that she would close down the bar on a Saturday. Isn’t that her busiest day?” Ashley asked.
The Freeman Brothers: A Secret Baby Romance Collection Page 103
