by Jenna Reed
“Greta,” Rhett said, “after my grandmother.”
“Marie or Lila,” I added, making my mom smile when she heard her two favorite aunts’ names. They had helped raise her, and were as much mothers to her as her own mother was.
“I also like Katie or Elizabeth,” Rhett added. “Erica prefers Katie as a nickname for Katherine, though, and thinks Elizabeth sounds too old fashioned.”
I scoffed. “And Greta isn’t? I know it’s a family name, but it’s not common and I’m afraid she’ll be teased.”
“She won’t be teased,” Rhett argued. “It’s a pretty name.” He turned to my mother for confirmation.
She smiled. “It is a pretty name. A little old fashioned, but many of those names are becoming popular again. Nancy’s new grandbaby is named Beatrice.”
“Nancy’s daughter had her baby?” I asked.
My mom nodded. “Last week. Beautiful baby girl. She’s over the moon and spoiling her like crazy.”
Just as my mom was hoping to do soon. I smiled at her enthusiasm. I still thought she was wrong about Greta, though. I turned back to Rhett to argue my point, and saw Jackson and Carson come barreling through the front door looking keyed up for a fight.
I rushed forward and blocked their access to Rhett with my very pregnant belly. “Be nice,” I warned.
Carson sneered while Jackson postured up, crossing his arms over his chest. “Banks,” Jackson growled, “nice of you to finally show you face.”
“Took long enough,” Carson muttered.
“The timing was my choice,” I snapped, glaring at both of them. “Back off, or next time you won’t be invited.”
My mom stepped over to my brothers and gave them a look they knew all too well. “Boys, Rhett is a guest in our home. Behave.”
Neither brother appreciated the reprimand, but they curbed their attitudes temporarily. I knew it wouldn’t last. Judging by the expression on Rhett’s face, so did he. I was going to have to stick close to him all night. Carson, at least, excused himself to go help my dad at the barbecue. That took the tension down a small notch. Jackson’s presence kept everyone from relaxing.
“So, Banks,” my brother began, “what exactly do you do when you’re not knocking up women?”
Rhett cleared his throat, looking unusually nervous. “I’m a software engineer, mainly for phone apps right now.”
Jackson scoffed. “Phone apps? Helping people waste their lives away with stupid games, huh?”
“Actually,” Rhett said, “I mainly work with commercial clients to develop apps for their stores or businesses.”
Making a noncommittal noise in response, since he couldn’t come up with a derogatory comment about that, Jackson moved on. “Any other kids out there we all need to know about? Or is my future niece going to be a guinea pig for you to test out whether or not this dad thing is actually something you’re into?”
The muscles in Rhett’s neck tightened, but his tone was reasonably calm when he spoke. “No other children, and my daughter won’t be a guinea pig. I may not have that much experience with kids, but I have plenty with taking responsibility.”
Jackson scoffed. “You have zero experience with kids. And responsibility? Don’t make me laugh.”
“I actually help coach a youth baseball team,” Rhett said, his tone taking on an edge. “I know that’s not the same as being a parent, but it’s a start. And I’ve never had a problem accepting responsibility, whether at work or in my personal life. Erica and the baby aren’t an exception, or something I felt like trying out. They’re the two most important people in my life now.”
Apparently done with the conversation, Rhett turned to face my mother and asked if she needed help with anything. She accepted his offer gratefully, despite everything being pretty much taken care of by then. It was easy to recognize that Rhett wanted out of the tense conversation and she was happy to provide him with an out. I, on the other hand, glared at my brother.
He answered in kind. “I’m looking out for you and the baby,” he grumbled. “Don’t give me shit about not trusting him.”
“My word isn’t good enough?” I snapped.
He rolled his eyes. “You’re not exactly objective.”
“And you are?”
Jackson’s jaw clenched. “I’m trying to be. Haven’t had much of a chance, though.”
“Whose fault is that?” I asked. He knew damn good and well that his hostility was a big reason I hadn’t brought Rhett around sooner.
“Next weekend,” Jackson said, ignoring my question, “he better clear his schedule. I’m not letting this drop until I know for sure he’s going to treat the two of you right.”
Instantly worried, but also intrigued, I asked, “What are you planning?”
“Drinks.” He shrugged. “Get him in his natural element and see what happens.”
That sounded like a disaster in the making, but I had to admit I was curious enough that I didn’t immediately object. I couldn’t force Rhett to go. Jackson would extend the invitation, whether I wanted him to or not. Rhett would have to decide. I could only wait and see what happened.
20
Rhett
I couldn’t remember the last time I was so nervous to go out. I wasn’t even meeting a woman, for God’s sake. Maybe that was the problem. Women didn’t make me nervous. Women liked me. I knew how to talk to and charm women. I didn’t know the first fucking thing about how to make Erica’s brothers give me a chance. Liking me wasn’t even on the table yet.
“They’re on their way up,” Erica said as she walked into my bedroom. Her expression mirrored how I felt. Clearly, she didn’t have much confidence in my chance at winning her brothers over.
“Any last minute advice?” I asked.
She bit her bottom lip. “Don’t take the bait. Whatever they throw at you, don’t react. They’re going to try to get you to confirm all their worst fears.”
That was fucking fantastic. I should have dragged Cody along on this field trip from hell. He’d played wingman for me countless times before he met Sophia. Sure, he’d never had to do it with two guys who wanted to beat the shit out of me for knocking up their sister, but a buffer sounded like a great idea at this point.
“What if they still hate me after tonight?” I shook my head as soon as the words left my mouth. I sounded like an insecure twelve-year-old. I hadn’t had to worry about people liking me or making friends since grade school.
Erica gave me a reassuring, though small smile. “They’ll come around eventually.”
Heavy knuckles wrapped loudly on the door. Erica tensed, sighed, and then moved to let her brothers in. I followed after buttoning the last button on my dress shirt. When Erica opened the door, they barely gave her a moment to get out of the way before barreling in. Both brothers scanned the room, searching for anything to harass me about. They must not have found anything, because their critical gazes landed on me without a word.
Jackson was the first to break the silence. “You two sure look cozy here. Except there’s no baby stuff anywhere in sight.”
“The majority of what we’ll need is at Erica’s,” I said, “because that’s where we plan to spend the first few weeks while she’s recovering. After that, we’ll figure it out.”
Erica gave her brothers an annoyed look. “All the baby stuff we won’t need at my place right away in is Rhett’s guest bedroom.”
Jackson looked like he was about to go investigate this claim. A warning look from Erica stopped him. His attention returned to me. “You ready?”
“Sure,” I said casually while stuffing my hands in my pockets. “Where are we going?”
Carson’s eyes glinted. “Eden’s.”
Erica rolled her eyes while I felt my stomach knot up. Fuck. They didn’t want to get to know me. They wanted to test me. Eden’s was one of the hottest clubs in the city. I’d never left there alone, and I doubted either of them had either. It was popular for exactly that reason. Goddamn them.
&n
bsp; Turning to Erica, I gave her a look that tried to convey I would have preferred to go about anywhere else that night. She sighed, no doubt having realized exactly what her brothers were after just as I had. She threw her brothers a dirty look before walking over to me and surprising me by wrapping her arms around me.
“Just remember what I said earlier, okay?”
I nodded. “Don’t worry. I can handle myself.”
She hugged me a little tighter before pulling back. “All right, well you two idiots better bring him back safe and sound.”
“Back?” Carson asked. “Are you planning to stick around to inspect his condition when we’re done with him?”
Erica’s glare settled on him. “You bet your ass I am.”
Jackson’s eyes narrowed. “How often do you stay over?”
I watched, curious, as Erica’s mouth slid into a sly smile. “As often as I feel like it.”
She had stayed over several times when she was too tired to drive home. We’d only had sex that once since she’d gotten pregnant, though, so I wasn’t sure why she was making it sound otherwise. Jackson clearly didn’t appreciate the insinuation that we had casual sex. He turned away from his sister and glared at me.
“Let’s go.”
“Okay.” I glanced back at Erica, trying to understand what was going on, but she was too busy glaring at the back of her brother’s head to notice my questioning gaze. When Jackson grabbed my arm and started shoving me toward the door, I decided it was better not to resist. I was being shuffled toward a black SUV moments later, and I started to get the feeling I might not make it home tonight.
It was no surprise when Jackson shoved me toward the back passenger’s door. He wasn’t about to make his brother take the backseat in favor of me. I climbed in wordlessly and buckled up. My hope that they would ignore me until we got to the club was dashed before Jackson even pulled out of his parking space. I spent the ride to the club being grilled on every detail of my life. By the time we finally arrived, I was exhausted.
I got out of the car before one of them could drag me out, and waited on the sidewalk as Jackson handed over his keys to the valet. He shook hands with the bouncer and we were walking in a few seconds later. I was impressed. Prior to finding out about the baby, I’d spent a fair amount of time at this club. Not enough time to be on a first name basis with the bouncer. Erica hadn’t been kidding when she said her brothers were as bad as I had been.
Following the brothers to a high table toward the back of the club, I scanned the scene. Normally, walking into a place like this would get my blood going. This time, it felt strange. I hadn’t been to a club in months. I’d barely even been out to a bar for drinks with friends. Erica and preparing for the baby had consumed my life. It was strange to realize I hadn’t really missed anything.
As soon as we were seated, a waitress stepped up to the table. It was immediately clear that she recognized the brothers and went into full flirty mode. Jackson and Carson soaked it up, even though they knew as well as I did that she wasn’t going home with either of them. The club not only had a pretty strict policy about that, flirting was part of the job, not anything serious. Especially not with frequent flyers like Jackson and Carson.
She took our orders and disappeared with a walk that made it nearly impossible not to watch. Her ass wasn’t nearly as nice to look at as Erica’s, so I turned back to focus on the brothers. Their next barrage of questions was no doubt on its way. It only took a few seconds for the waitress to get lost in the crowd and their attention to come back to me.
“From what I’ve heard, you’ve been a ghost lately,” Jackson said. “Is that because you’re still fucking my sister?”
I couldn’t help scoffing. Leaning back into my chair, I crossed my arms and stared him down. “Hardly.”
Carson put his elbows on the table and leaned forward. “That’s not what it sounded like, Banks. Erica said you two are friends, planning to co-parent. Not dating. She’s insisted you two aren’t dating. What the fuck’s the truth?”
Holding my gaze steady, I said, “We’re not dating.”
“Are you sleeping with her still?” Jackson demanded.
I saw no point in lying to them. “Once. That’s it. Erica said it didn’t mean anything and she wasn’t interested in a relationship. The baby coming is enough to deal with on its own. I agree, so we’re just friends.”
Jackson’s gaze intensified. “For now? Or for good?”
A spark of irritation, and a little bit of fear, poked at me. “I don’t know.”
Crossing his arms, Carson considered me. “Which would you prefer?”
Again, I knew lying wouldn’t help me any. “Honestly, Erica’s the most amazing woman I’ve ever met. She’s sexy as hell, and if she gave me the green light, I wouldn’t give it a second thought before asking her out on a real date. I respect her too much to push it, though. I’m there, doing everything I can to help get ready for the baby, but I know I don’t understand half of what she’s going through right now. If she never wants me as more than a friend and the father of our baby, I’ll respect that, too. Her happiness and the baby’s happiness are all that matter.”
I didn’t think either of them believed a word I’d said. Not that I blamed them. I knew very well what they’d heard about me. My reputation wasn’t exactly a secret. If I were in their shoes, I wouldn’t trust that someone could abandon all of that just because of an unplanned pregnancy either. It wasn’t just the baby, though. Getting to know Erica had done something to me. I wasn’t totally sure what yet, but I didn’t want my old life back anymore.
“Fuck,” Jackson muttered, “you’re in love with my sister, aren’t you?”
I pulled back, stunned by what he’d said. Was I in love with Erica?
21
Rhett
My shoulders automatically tensed when I heard the knock on my office door. I took a deep breath before looking up to see who had disturbed my work, knowing full well it would be my boss. Nobody else ever barged in unannounced to criticize me and ask why I wasn’t working faster.
“You got a minute?” he asked. His tone suggested that even if I was in the middle of something, he couldn’t have cared less.
“Sure. What’s up?” I asked. The effort it took to not let my irritation slip through with monumental.
“The east side office has an opening for a senior developer.” He paused and stared at me with open hostility.
“Okay,” I said, dragging out the word because I had no idea why he was telling me this.
His mouth twisted into a frown. “Apparently, they’ve seen your work and are interested in you.”
“Really?” I couldn’t contain my surprise at this announcement. I’d attended meetings one or two times at the east side office. Nothing substantial enough to leave an impression.
“Clients mentioned you to them, I guess. They want to offer you the position,” he bit out. He tossed a slip of paper on my desk. “You’re supposed to call them. Today. Set up an interview.”
I stared at the piece of paper. Was this a joke? Joseph had zero sense of humor, so I doubted it, but I couldn’t figure out why the east side office would offer me a promotion without ever having talked to me. Which client had mentioned me? Why would the listen to them? Developing basic apps wasn’t exactly something that made me stand out. Most of what I did was routine, something I’d done a hundred times before.
“Are you going to leave?” Joseph demanded. He treated me like shit most days, but he seemed visibly upset by the thought of me leaving.
“I…don’t know,” I said.
The east side office was an hour commute when you factored in traffic. What if Erica went into labor and I couldn’t get there in time? How would that complicate sharing custody? The idea of being in my car an extra two hours a day made me cringe, made me want to move closer to the east side office. That would take me further from Erica. Could I really do that?
“Think it over,” Joseph said b
efore turning around and stalking out of my office.
My general perception of my boss was that he despised me, and most of the people under him. Why would he care if I left? I wasn’t doing revolutionary work here. The clients we had didn’t exactly give me the opportunity to push my abilities as a software developer. I was confident he could find someone to replace me with little effort.
As much as Cody pushed me to venture out on my own and make a real difference, I’d always brushed him off. My job had always allowed me to have a comfortable life. I made good money, but I could leave it at the office when I left and enjoy my nights and weekends with zero guilt. That had always worked for me before. Now…I wasn’t sure.
Picking up the paper, I scanned the message and phone number I was supposed to call. It was a promotion I’d been itching for just a few months ago. The easy side office had been around longer, and had bigger clients. It would be a chance to do something more than set up online ordering. It was what I’d been working toward for years. I hadn’t had a baby on the way back then. Now, I worried about how this would affect my relationship with Erica and my ability to be there for my daughter.
Nudging my conflicted feelings aside, I knew I had to call, regardless. So, I picked up the phone and tapped out the numbers. A young male voice answered on the second ring, asking if he could help me and did I know who I was trying to get in contact with. I regurgitated the name written on the paper and waited. Mind-numbing elevator music played for several minutes before a strong female voice answered.
“Miriam Stein speaking.”
“Ms. Stein, this is Rhett Banks. I was just given a message asking me to call you about a job opportunity.”
She chuckled lightly. “Mr. Banks, yes, thank you for calling me back. We’re quite interested in having you join our team. Please, tell me a little about yourself.”
I spent the next half hour discussing my education, experience, and plans for my future. Ms. Stein listened attentively. She asked all the right questions, encouraged me to elaborate on areas that would enhance my appeal, and dug into the work I had done over the last few years and why my clients were always so pleased to work with me. By the end of the conversation, my head felt like it was floating, both from the praise and the opportunity to do something more fulfilling.
