Red (A Brett MacLean Duet)

by J. M. Walker

  “Brett.” A deep voice slid into the room, followed by Baxter.

  “Ah, Baxter.” He wasn’t Evvie but he would do. I was going stir-crazy seeing the same people every day.

  “I’ll leave you be.” The nurse quickly left the room but not before giving him a longing stare. She shook herself and closed the door behind her.

  I laughed. “Always affecting the ladies.”

  He shrugged, a knowing smirk spread on his face. “I already have one lady to worry about. I don’t need anymore.”

  I grunted in agreement. “What brings you by?”

  “Listen.” He pulled up a chair, spun it around and sat. Leaning his arms on the back of it, he rubbed his nape. “Do you remember speaking with me the night of your accident?”

  “I…” I frowned, remembering bits and pieces as they slid into my mind. “Most of it.”

  “Well I came by to apologize. If you wouldn’t have been upset, then you wouldn’t have gotten in the accident.”

  “You don’t know that. I was upset before you called, Baxter. I was on my way to fight for my wife when you called.”

  He sat on the edge of my bed, running his hands up and down his thighs. “How do you do it? How do you love someone as hard as you do only for them to push you away? Yet you still go back to them.”

  “It wasn’t her fault.” I picked up my phone, pressed the home button and brushed my finger down the screen. A picture of Evvie stared up at me. Her smile was huge, the love in her eyes for me even bigger. “I’m not an easy man to get along with. I should have fought harder for her in the beginning but I hate not having answers. The accident, as surprising as it is, was a blessing in disguise.”

  “Really?” Baxter turned toward me. “How?”

  “I remember that night. It was so long ago, I completely forgot about it until Claire’s mom tried throwing a child into it. I don’t know if Storm is mine. I don’t know if maybe Claire didn’t actually lose the baby the first time. I don’t know any of that shit. But I do know that after I started dating my wife, I did not sleep with Claire. That’s all I care about it. If Storm is in fact mine, I will own it and be the best father to her she could ever have.”

  “What if she’s not yours?”

  “I’ll still be there for her.” It was all I could do. I didn’t know Storm. It wasn’t for lack of trying either.

  “Well then that brings me to another reason why I’m here.” Baxter stood and went to his briefcase resting on the chair beside the bed.

  “What?” I laughed. “Got more bad news for me?”

  Baxter met my gaze, his deep brown eyes darkening even more.

  “Seriously?” A cold shiver raced down my spine.

  “Rumors are that Claire is out. But I haven’t been able to confirm that.” He pulled some papers from the briefcase and handed them to me.

  “What is all this?” I asked, skimming over the words. “A restraining order?” I read some more. “Against me?” I yelled, crumpling the papers in my hand. “Why the fuck would a restraining order be put on me? I’ve been here for a week.”

  “Apparently the restraining order was put on you after you went to try and have another visit with Storm. Roxane told Claire and she didn’t like that.” Baxter waited for me to blow up but when I didn’t, even though I wanted to, he continued. “I don’t know what their deal is. It’s like they’re throwing Storm in your face only to take her away from you.”

  “They’re using her, a fucking child, as leverage. They want money, don’t they?” They always wanted money. Well little did they know that most of our money went into building better lives for our children. We didn’t have extravagant toys or go to parties that only celebrities could get into. It wasn’t our thing. My favorite pastime was tying my wife up and making her beg.

  “I don’t know what they want.” Baxter took the papers back from me before I ripped them up and put them in his briefcase. “I’ve faxed a copy of the restraining order to you and also emailed it over.”

  “What do they want?” I asked him, determined more than ever to take that child away from those monsters.

  “I don’t—”

  “Tell me, Baxter. You’ve been my lawyer since you graduated law school. I took you in when no one else would. I’ve earned this right.” I slammed my fist on the bedside table. “Tell me.”

  Baxter stared me straight on. “Five million dollars. Each. And they’ll give you Storm.”

  “What the ever-loving fuck? How the hell could they even think I would consider something like that?”

  These women were willing to sell a child.

  My stomach dropped to my feet.

  And I knew right then that it would be a long time before I got the answers I was looking for.

  ***

  (Evvie)

  “How’s Brett doing?” Anna asked me while I packed him some new clothes.

  “He’s going stir-crazy. Snapping at the nurses and telling the doctors off.” My husband was too much sometimes.

  “So, he’s feeling like himself then,” Anna teased.

  I laughed. “Yeah. I wish I could bring him home but they need to make sure his arm is okay. He’s going to have months of physiotherapy.”

  “How bad are the scars?”

  “Bad.” I sighed and closed up the overnight bag. “But he’ll get through it. We all will. I know he’s missing the kids but both of us agreed that a hospital is no place for them. I don’t want to force them to live a sheltered life but if I can protect them from darkness as much as I can for as long as I can, I will.”

  “I get it.” Anna sat on the edge of the bed. “Listen, there’s something I need to tell you but I don’t know if this is the right time so I’m just going to tell you anyway.”

  “Oh?” I sat beside her. “What’s up?”

  “I’m pregnant,” she murmured, looking down at her folded hands in her lap. “But I’m nervous. I’m almost forty.”

  “You and Evan have been trying for a while.” I took her hand in mine. “It’s okay to be nervous but health care has come so far over the years, you’ll be fine.”

  “You think so?” she asked, chewing her bottom lip.

  “Of course.” I squeezed her hand. “I’m happy for you both. I know Evan has wanted to give you a baby for years.”

  “Yeah. He has.” Her eyes shone. “I’m excited but nervous. I’ll be sixty when the baby is twenty.”

  “Don’t think about that.” I turned toward her. “Listen to me. Lots of women are having babies later in life. Sometimes it doesn’t work out the way we want it to. Look at what Brett and I have been through. We almost lost Miracle before we even knew about her. And then I almost died giving birth to Patrick. Trust me. Brett would have me barefoot and pregnant for the rest of our lives if he was certain I could make it through the pregnancy.”

  Anna laughed, wiping a lonely tear that had fallen down her cheek. “That’s true. I know Evan wanted a whole football team but now, we just want one. Just one healthy baby. We don’t care what the gender is either.”

  “That’s good.” I wrapped my arm around her shoulders. “You will be wonderful parents. And this baby will be healthy. You’re active. Hell, girl, you just ran a marathon two months ago.”

  Anna’s laugh hardened. “I wanted to die.”

  “I bet.” I giggled, pulling her against me. “I love you. I’m happy Evan found you and that everything has worked out the way it has.”

  “Can you believe that we used to hate each other?”

  “No.” I shook my head. “I can’t.” It was so long ago. Anna used to work with Brett and was in love with him. When she realized that I wasn’t going anywhere, she backed off and we have been best friends ever since. She was the sister I never had.

  “We’ve come a long way,” she said softly, placing a hand on her lower belly. “I’m scared.”

  “I wish I could tell you that everything will be fine and that you have nothing to worry about. But even after Miracle,
having Eddie scared the crap out of me. It didn’t get easier. Each pregnancy is different. And with Patrick…” My voice trailed off as I remembered lying in the hospital bed, wondering if I would ever see my family again. “It’s hard. Your body is going through changes. Changes that seem almost humanly impossible. It’s amazing. It truly is. But it’s so damn scary all at the same time.”

  “Thank you. That actually makes me feel better.”

  “Really?” I asked, taken aback. “How?”

  “Because you’re being honest with me. I don’t want to be told that being pregnant is the best thing ever because I think that’s a matter of opinion. Sure, there are some women who have amazing pregnancies. No morning sickness and all that shit, but I’m not lucky like that.”

  “Girl, welcome to the club.” I laughed. “But remember, if it gets to be too much, please go see your doctor. You have to be able to keep things down so you and your baby both get the nutrients you need.”

  “Right.” Anna stood from the bed, pulling me with her and giving me a hug. “Thank you. Thank you for everything.”

  “No.” I squeezed her back. “Thank you and thank you for watching my kids.”

  “Of course.” She leaned back, holding me at arm’s length. “I love them like they’re my own.”

  “They are going to be so excited to find out they’ll have a cousin.”

  She grinned. “Now we just need your other brothers to settle down so we can give them even more cousins.”

  “Oh yeah.” I scoffed. My brother, Everett, was traveling the world. I would get postcards from him every now and again but I hadn’t actually seen him in months. It broke my heart but I understood. After our father died a few years ago, we all handled it differently.

  Everett traveled. Ethan closed up and threw himself into his body shop. At least it was legal.

  And Evan…he finally married Anna. Our dad loved her like another daughter.

  “What are you thinking about?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

  “Oh.” My cheeks heated, not realizing I was staring off into space. “Sorry.” I laughed. “I was thinking about my brothers.”

  “They’ll come around.” She checked her phone. “Oh shit. I was supposed to meet Evan for lunch.”

  “Have fun. I’m heading to the hospital.”

  We hugged again.

  I grabbed Brett’s bag and left the house, giving Anna a wave as she pulled out of the driveway.

  A week ago, I was ready to leave my husband. Now we were working on how to move forward. Maybe he was right. Maybe his accident was a blessing in disguise.

  Either way, I was ready.

  Evvie

  WHEN I STOPPED in front of the door leading to Brett’s room, I paused. Deep muffled voices sounded behind the closed door. I wasn’t sure what was going on but they didn’t sound too happy.

  I slowly opened the door, careful not to interrupt the discussion Brett was having.

  “This can’t be happening,” he said. “I know I’m an asshole but it wasn’t like I led her on. Why the hell is she doing this to us?”

  I frowned, stepping farther into the room. I rounded the corner and found Brett talking to Baxter. “Hey.”

  “Evvie.” Brett’s eyes darkened. He reached out to me. “Come here.”

  My heart skipped a beat. I closed the distance between us and took his hand, wrapping my fingers in his and kissing his palm.

  “My sweet girl,” he whispered, cupping my face.

  I wasn’t sure how but since his accident, the love I had felt for him before had grown into something I couldn’t control.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked, his voice coming out husky.

  I cleared my throat and sat beside him. “Nothing.” I glanced at Baxter. “What’s going on?”

  “Roxane and Claire are making things a little difficult,” he told me, pacing back and forth.

  “That’s an understatement,” Brett mumbled, brushing my hair off the back of my neck. “Are you sure nothing’s wrong?” he asked, his voice low enough for only me to hear.

  All I could do was nod. I didn’t know what was wrong with me. This love I felt for him was like a living thing. I almost lost him. Our kids almost lost their father. It took everything I had to keep my hands to myself. I wanted to kiss him. I wanted him to breathe new life into my lungs. I wanted him to prove to me that this wasn’t it. That we would move on and make it past this shit.

  “What’s going on with Claire and her mom?” I asked, needing a distraction from the thoughts in my head.

  “They put a restraining order on me.” Brett shifted beside me. “Apparently Roxane didn’t like that I wanted to visit Storm even though she told me I could take her whenever I wanted to.”

  “Is that even possible?” I demanded. “How the hell can someone put a restraining order on someone else when they didn’t do anything wrong?”

  “It’s possible.” Baxter stopped pacing. “That’s not it.”

  “There’s more?” My gaze snapped between his and my husband’s. “Tell me.”

  “Tell her.” Brett ran his fingers down my arm, an electric charge following the trail of his touch.

  I shivered. What the hell was wrong with me? We were in a hospital and Brett was in no way ready to have sex.

  “Hmmm…interesting,” Brett murmured.

  “Alright, before you two jump each other, I’ll give you the shitty news.” Baxter rolled his eyes. “Roxane and Claire want five million dollars. Each.”

  “What?” I cried. “Why?”

  “They want to give us Storm,” Brett explained. “But they want the money first.”

  “So, they’re going to sell her to us?” My eyes widened. “Who does that?”

  “Them apparently.” Brett rubbed the back of his neck, his bicep flexing at the movement.

  A breath escaped me. God, get it together, Evvie. Had it been that long since we made love without being mad at each other? I swallowed hard, looking away. Yes. Yes, it had been a very long time.

  “Baxter, would you give me a moment alone with my wife?” Brett asked his lawyer.

  “Of course. I have to make some calls anyway.” He left the room, leaving us alone.

  “We have about a half hour before the nurse comes to check on my vitals,” Brett told me, wrapping his arm around my shoulders. He kissed my temple. “Tell me what’s going on in that beautiful head of yours.”

  “Nothing I should be thinking about right now.” We had more important stuff to worry about. Like who the hell Claire and her mom thought they were. That poor girl. Storm was a victim and I hoped to God, she didn’t know what was going on.

  “Tell me,” Brett demanded, brushing his fingers down the length of my jaw before cupping my chin in a rough move. “Evvie. Tell me.”

  I whimpered, gripping the blanket tight in my hands. “I shouldn’t be thinking about this. How much I want you. How much I miss you. How much I need you. But I can’t stop myself.”

  “You want me to make love to you?” he asked, turning my face toward him.

  “No.” I licked my lips. “I want you to fuck me.”

  ***

  (Brett)

  Something switched. Something grew. And it wasn’t my cock.

  Evvie’s eyes were dilated, her pupils so damn wide and filled with lust, it took everything in me to not throw her down on the bed and fuck the shit out of her. But I didn’t. I couldn’t. It wasn’t because I was in pain either. Although I had some pretty good pain meds. We weren’t alone. The nurse would be by any moment and Evvie’s screams were for my ears only. I didn’t care if the nurse was a female or not. I was a possessive fucker no matter the gender.

  “Brett.” Evvie shook herself, pulling away from me and stood from the bed. “We have more important things to worry about but I can’t help but want you. It’s been so long since we’ve made love without it being angry and violent. I want you. Everything about you. But I don’t want the hatred we’ve been sharing the past f
ew months.”

  “I could never hate you,” I told her, pushing my palm against my raging erection.

  She caught the movement, her nostrils flaring. “I know and I could never hate you either. Even though I said it. I’m sorry for that.”

  “You were upset.”

  “Doesn’t matter but…do you still love me?”

  “What the fuck?” I frowned. “Why would you ask me that? Of course, I still love you.”

  “I just…I accused you of cheating when you didn’t. I doubted you when I shouldn’t have. I’m sorry for that. I’m so damn sorry. Please forgive me.” She fell to my side, cupping my hands, and sobbed.

  “Evvie,” I said gently. “Baby, get up.” I pulled her against me, wrapping my arms around her. “There’s nothing to forgive.”

  “But I almost left you,” she said, her body racking with bone-crushing sobs. “I took your kids from you.”

  “Hey.” I cupped her face, forcing her to look at me, and placed a soft peck on her mouth. “I understand. I get it. If it was the other way around, I would have done the same thing.”

  “I shouldn’t have doubted you,” she muttered.

  I sighed, brushing her tears away. “As much as I enjoy your tears, I don’t like when you cry over me.”

  “How can I not?” she asked, her cheeks reddening at what I was implying.

  I smirked. “The only time I want you crying is when the pleasure is so fucking good, you can’t help but sob. Other than that, I don’t like when you cry. You understand me?”

  She nodded. “Can we move on from this? From all the hateful words we said to each other?”

  “Yes. Because we love each other.”

  Evvie leaned back, scrubbing a hand down her face. “You think our love is strong enough?”

  My chest tightened. I swallowed hard. Not quite sure how to answer that question.