by Sandi Lynn
The diner wasn’t crowded at all. In fact, there were only four people, including me, in the place. The door opened and a rugged-looking man who appeared to be in his mid to late twenties walked in.
“Hey, Henry.” Krista smiled as she walked over and kissed him.
“Hey, baby.”
He took a seat at the booth in front of me, sitting directly in my view. I studied him. He wasn’t bad-looking, but nothing great either. Obviously, he and Krista were still getting it on. Douchebag. Krista walked over to him, set down a cup of coffee, and then whispered in his ear. He looked up at me.
“Hey, Krista says you were asking about Kinsley.”
“I was. Do you know her?”
“I sure do know her. How do you?” he asked with an attitude. “You’re not from around here.”
“No. I’m not, thank God, but I was looking for her to say hi.”
“Like I asked, how do you know her?”
“I’m an acquaintance of hers. We met a while back. Actually, it was in this diner when I was passing through town. She was my waitress and I found her to be really nice. She told me to stop and say hi if I ever passed through here again.”
“Well, she’s not here. She left town,” he spoke.
“That’s what your girlfriend said. I guess I’ll be on my way.”
He glared at me as I threw some money down on the table. When I got up, I walked over to him, grabbed him by his shirt, and punched him in the face.
“That was for Kinsley, you douchebag,” I spoke as I walked out, got in my car, and sped off.
I pulled into the driveway of the rundown house she called home. It was small and couldn’t be any more than a thousand square feet. When I knocked on the door, an older woman answered it in a red silk robe with her hair up in a high ponytail, holding a drink in her hand.
“Hello, there. I’m looking for Kinsley.”
“Well, hello there, handsome.” She seductively smiled. “I’m afraid my daughter isn’t here.”
“Damn. I was really hoping to see her. May I come in and wait?”
“You can come in.” She opened the door wider. “But you’ll be waiting an awful long time. She left town a couple of months ago. I haven’t heard from or seen her since.”
I stepped inside the messy house and looked around.
“Can I offer you a drink?’ she asked.
“Do you by any chance have scotch?” I arched my brow.
“Of course I do.” She grinned as she went into the kitchen. “How do you know Kinsley?”
“We met one day when I was passing through town. I wanted to say hi and see how she was doing.”
She poured some scotch in a red Solo cup and I was appalled.
“Sorry, all my glasses are dirty. But scotch is scotch, right?”
“Right.” I hesitantly took the cup from her.
“Kinsley was the one who always kept the house clean. Since she left, I haven’t been really keeping it up.”
“I can see that. Where did she go?” I asked.
“I don’t know. I woke up one day to a note saying that she couldn’t stay here anymore and that she was leaving. I thought she meant she was going to live with her boyfriend Henry, but when I called him, he told me that they had a huge fight and he hadn’t seen her since.”
“Weren’t you worried about her?”
“Nah. Kinsley is a smart girl. She can take care of herself. In fact, she was the one who always took care of me. Life was hard for us.”
“I’m sure it was,” I spoke as I once again looked around. “Is that normal for a child to take care of a parent? I could have sworn it was supposed to be the other way around.”
“Excuse me?”
“Kinsley told me a little about you and your lifestyle. How you were always passed out drunk and never paid any attention to her.”
“Like I said, life was hard for us. I may not have been the best mother, but I tried.”
“And how exactly did you try? She had to get herself ready for school, make her own breakfast and lunch, come home to a mother passed out on the couch. For fuck sakes, you missed your own daughter’s graduation. You made her feel like she didn’t matter.”
“It sounds to me like you and my daughter were more than just acquaintances. Who the fuck do you think you are coming into my home, dressed in your fancy expensive clothes, and talking to me like that?”
“I happen to care about your daughter. More than I can say for you.”
“I love my daughter. I may not have always shown it, but I do. Kinsley is a strong girl and she got out of this dump. She left to make a life for herself instead of sticking around here ending up like me.”
“Do you even miss her?” I glared at her.
“Of course I miss her. She’s my little girl. But I can’t begrudge her for wanting her own life. I get the feeling you know where she is.”
“I do and I’m not going to tell you. Kinsley wants nothing to do with you. I had to come see all of this for myself.”
“She doesn’t know you’re here, does she?”
“No. She doesn’t.”
“Is she okay?”
“She’s fine and living the life she always wanted.”
“Are you her boyfriend or something?”
“I’m a friend.”
“Do me a favor. Tell her that I love her, I’m sorry for everything, and I miss her.”
“You could have told her that yourself the day she left. She tried waking you, but you dismissed her, just like you’ve done her whole life.”
“You need to leave now. You can see yourself out.” She walked away with her drink in her hand and went into the bathroom, closing the door behind her.
Before I left, I wanted to see Kinsley’s room. So, I walked down the hallway and looked into the first room on the left. That was when I saw Beatrice lying on her bed, the floppy-eared pink bunny Kinsley found in the street one day when she was eight years old. I remembered her telling me about it one night while we were lying in bed. She said that when she found her, she was covered in dirt and mud, so she brought her home, threw her in the washer, and when she pulled her out, she looked brand new. She told me that her biggest regret was forgetting to pack her when she left, so I grabbed her and left the house.
I was going to stay one more night, but I couldn’t wait to get out of this town. Plus, there was no reason for me to stay here any longer, so I drove straight to the airport.
“Hi there, how can I help you?” the cute bubbly girl behind the counter asked.
“When is your next flight out to LAX?”
“Let me see.” She smiled as she started typing away at her computer. “We have a flight that leaves in three hours. Would you like me to book you a seat?”
“Yes. First class, please.”
“I’ll need to see your driver’s license, please.”
I pulled my license out of my wallet and handed it to her. She took it from me, looked at it, and then up at me.
“Chase Calloway. Nice name,” she flirted.
“Thank you.”
“You’re all set at Gate 22.” She smiled as she handed me my ticket and my license back. “Have a safe flight, Mr. Calloway.”
“Thanks. I intend to.” I winked.
I was hungry, so I decided to sit down in a restaurant and grab something to eat since that breakfast I ate wasn’t very appetizing. How could one fuck up scrambled eggs? I ended up at a place called The Brewhouse, which was right up my alley. As I was sitting in the booth deciding what I was going to order, I noticed a man, woman, and their baby sitting at the table next to me. The child was crying, and the mother couldn’t seem to quiet him down, so the father took him, and instantly, he stopped. I stared at them and watched how he handled his child. I could see the love pouring out of him as he made his child laugh.
Chapter 36
Chase
Even though I got in late last night from the airport, I was up as the sun was rising and out on the water.
I sat there, on my board, staring at the sunrise over the crystal blue ocean water. I needed to talk to Kinsley and I needed to do it today. It was time, and as scared as fuck as I was, I knew I had no choice. I waited until around one o’clock and then I headed over to her apartment. I grabbed the gift bag and the envelope containing the documents off the seat and walked up the stairs.
“Kinsley, it’s me.” I knocked on the door.
“Chase, what are you doing here?” she asked as she opened it.
“I need to talk to you. May I come in?”
“Yeah. I guess.”
I set the bag down in the corner and handed her the envelope.
“I brought the papers back.”
“Thanks.” She took the envelope from me and took the documents out. “You didn’t sign them?” She looked up at me.
“No. I didn’t and I’m not going to.”
“What?” she asked in confusion.
“Sit down, Kinsley. Please.”
“Chase, what is going on?”
“I’ll explain everything if you sit down.”
I paced around the room for a moment, trying to work up the courage to talk to her about the things I never talked about. My heart was beating at a rapid pace and I was sweating profusely.
“Chase?”
I took in a long, deep breath.
“My mother and I were very close when I was a child. She was my world and I loved her so much. My dad was constantly working, and she was the one that was always there for me. We did everything together. She always put me first no matter what. Then one night, when she was on her way home from shopping with her friends, she was in a car accident and broke her back. I’d never seen her in so much pain and it frightened me. The recovery was long and hard for her, so the way she dealt with it was taking more pain medication than she should have. Once she was fully recovered, she continued taking pain pills, which led to other drugs; bad drugs. Right before my very eyes, she became a drug addict.”
“How old were you?” Kinsley asked.
“I was eight years old at the time. My father put her in rehab for six months and we went and visited her once a week. She told me she was going to get better for me because she loved me so much and she hated me seeing her like that. She came home, and a couple of months later, she was back on drugs. At first, she hid it very well, but eventually, she spiraled downwards. She and my dad would argue every single day. Screaming and yelling at each other. I begged her to go back into rehab, and I asked her to do it for me because I loved her so much. I remember sitting on her bed one morning and her placing her hand on my face with tears in her eyes. She told me that she loved me so much and that she was checking herself back into rehab. She checked herself out after being there for a couple of weeks and I never saw her again. My father tried for a year to find her, gave up, and filed for divorce.”
“Chase,” she softly spoke. “I’m so sorry.”
“I isolated myself and that was when I started coding and working on programs. It was a distraction from thinking about her. I was so angry that she would do that to me and I couldn’t understand why. She said she loved me. You aren’t supposed to do that to the people you love, especially your own child. My dad ended up marrying Greta, one of my stepmothers. She was kind and accepted me as her very own. She was my substitute mom and I loved her. A couple years after they were married, she was diagnosed with stage four uterine cancer, which quickly spread to other parts of her body, and she died within three months. My father couldn’t stand to be alone, so he married three more times. Things never worked out and they would divorce. I would never get close to any of them, because if I did, I knew they’d leave.”
I walked over to the couch and sat down next to her, placing my elbows on my knees.
“You were right about me being a scared little boy and hiding behind my mommy issues. It seemed like everyone I loved left, so I made a promise to myself never to get close to someone, out of fear they’d eventually leave. I couldn’t take the heartbreak. That’s why I live the way I do. It’s easier for me that way.”
She reached over and placed her hand on mine.
“I’m sorry you had to go through that.”
“When you told me about the note you left your mom, it struck something inside me. That’s why I said the things I did to you. And the reason I got so angry was because you’re different from any other woman I’ve ever met. I can’t explain it, Kinsley, but you’ve brought out feelings in me that I never wanted to have.”
“Chase,” she softly spoke.
“Let me finish. I really like you, Kinsley, and I have since the day I met you. Like I said, you’re different from anyone I’ve ever met, and I want to be a part of your life and our baby’s life. I’m not going to abandon either one of you.” I lightly smiled.
“But what about your reputation? Your title of L.A.’s sexiest and most eligible bachelor?”
“That’s all it is; a title. And now it can be changed to L.A.’s sexiest daddy.” I grinned.
Kinsley let out the sweetest laugh.
“I wouldn’t blame you if you hated me after the things I’ve said to you,” I spoke.
“I don’t hate you, Chase. I’ve liked you too since the first day I met you. It’s just—”
“Kinsley, I know I have a lot to prove and I promise you that I will. I know you’ve been hurt by your mom, your dad, Henry, and Krista, but I can promise you that I’ll never hurt you. I want to be with you and only you and I want to raise our baby together.”
“Are you ready to be a father?” she asked.
“Are you really ready to be a mother?” I arched my brow.
“I don’t know.” She smiled.
“Exactly. I don’t think anybody’s ever really ready. I have something for you.” I smiled as I got up from the couch and grabbed the gift bag.
“What’s this?” She looked up at me as I handed it to her.
“Open it.”
She removed the tissue paper from the bag and pulled out her bunny. Her jaw dropped as she stared at it and she looked at me with widened eyes.
“Beatrice. Chase, how—”
I knelt down in front of her.
“I paid a little visit to your hometown. Dreadful place.”
“I told you it was. Why did you go there?”
“I wanted to see where you grew up.”
“You went to my house?”
“I did, and I met your mother. She’s—”
Kinsley put her hand up.
“You don’t have to say it. I can’t believe you went there. How is she? You didn’t tell her where I was, did you?”
“No. I didn’t tell her. I did tell her that you’re living the life you always wanted. She wanted me to tell you that she loves you and she misses you.”
Tears appeared in her eyes.
“She said you’re a strong woman and she’s happy you got out.”
“Sounds like you had quite a talk.”
I brought my finger up to her eyes and wiped away the tears that began to fall down her cheek.
“We had a brief chat and then she kicked me out.”
“What?” She laughed.
“I tried to be nice, but she hurt you and that hurt me, so I let her know what a lousy mother she is. And I quote, ‘Who the fuck do you think you are coming into my home, dressed in your fancy expensive clothes, and talking to me like that?’”
“Oh my God, Chase.” She continued laughing.
“Can you believe she served me scotch in a red plastic cup?”
“I’m sure all three glasses in the house were dirty,” Kinsley spoke.
“They were, but still. Does she have no respect for alcohol? I also paid a little visit to that greasy diner you worked at. Also, a dreadful place. By the way, the fat man behind the counter said you’re fired.”
“I can’t believe you went there.”
“That’s not all. Your ex best friend Krista was my waitress and your ex-boyfriend was sitting i
n the booth across from me. I walked over to him, grabbed him by his shirt, and punched him in the face. I told him it was from you.” I smiled.
Kinsley covered her mouth in shock.
“You really punched him?”
“I did. You’re welcome.” I winked.
She wrapped her arms around me and pulled me closer.
“Thank you,” she whispered in my ear.
“He hurt you and he wasn’t going to get away with it.”
Chapter 37
Kinsley
I broke our embrace and placed my hand on one side of his face.
“Are you sure you want this?”
“I’m definitely sure.” He smiled. “Are you?” His lips softly brushed against mine.
“Yeah. I’m definitely sure.” I brought my lips to his.
I lay in his arms, my head resting against his chest and my body snuggled tightly against his.
“We have to tell my dad,” Chase spoke as he stroked my hair.
“I know and I’m not sure how he’s going to react because I lied to him.”
“Don’t worry about that.”
“What if he fires me?”
“You’re carrying his grandchild. He isn’t going to fire you. I think the best place to tell him is at the office.”
“Why?” I lifted my head and looked at him. “You don’t think we should do it in private, like at his house?”
“I think we’d be safer at the office. We can tell him and everyone else tomorrow.”
“They’re all going to be mad we lied to them,” I spoke.
“They’ll get over it.” He kissed the top of my head.
The next morning, I got out of bed and ran to the bathroom.
“Are you okay?” Chase asked as he walked in and held my hair back.
“I’m fine. It’s just morning sickness.”
“Do you do this every day?” he asked with concern.
“Yes.” I vomited again.
“Gee. How long is this going to last?”
“Hopefully only a couple of more weeks,” I spoke.
He handed me some tissue to wipe my mouth, and as soon as I stood up, he wrapped his arms around me and held me tight.
“Are you nervous about telling my father?”
