Pulled

by A. F. Crowell

  She adjusted the screen and wiggled the wand a little and there it was. My baby. She took a few measurements, then looked at me. “So you seem to be measuring about eight and a half weeks with a due date of April twenty-third.” She smiled. “Let’s get you some good pictures to share.” She stopped and pointed to a tiny fluttering. “There’s the heart. Do you want to listen?”

  Before I could answer, Jaxon did. “Hell yeah.”

  With a click of a button the room echoed with the whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh and big, fat happy tears streamed down my cheeks. Jaxon came over and looked down at me with the biggest smile I’d ever seen him wear.

  “That’s his tiny little heart beating? Wow, it’s so amazing.” He swiped his large thumb across my cheek catching the tears.

  The tech finished and removed the wand. “I’ll give y’all a minute and let you get dressed, I’ll meet y’all up front with the pictures. Did you want a video too?”

  “Yes,” I said with a smile. She closed the door quietly as I continued to weep like an idiot.

  “Don’t cry baby girl.” He cradled me against his chest. “I’m with you through this, here on out. I’m not lettin’ ya go through this alone, no matter what.” He kissed the top of my head. “Now get dressed so we can go get those pictures of your boy.”

  I let out a little laugh. “What makes you think it’s a boy? The gender hasn’t even been determined. It’s still little more than an embryo.”

  “Just a hunch. Get dressed, I’ll turn around.”

  “I have to pee again, so I’ll get dressed in the bathroom.” I gathered my clothes, happy for the excuse to be alone for a few minutes. I closed the bathroom door, then sank to my knees. The last ultrasound was quick; just to confirm I was pregnant. But today—once I heard the baby’s heartbeat, I lost it. Nothing could have prepared me for that. Then, seeing the tiny little fluttering heart was a miracle, and a balm. I forgot all of my heartache and pain. In a rush, my heart filled with joy and with an overwhelming need to protect this child with everything I had. Mixed in the emotional swill was fear; fear of the unknown and fear of failure, for starters. But above all else was an absolute feeling of love. I loved this child, even if Brody didn’t.

  After a taking a few minutes to compose myself, I used the bathroom, got dressed and walked with Jax back to the front. The tech was waiting with a CD and six 5x7 pictures. We thanked her, left the building and made plans to have dinner at my place later. Right now, I needed some more me time.

  I made it back to my place and called Barb. I blubbered and sobbed, telling her the nightmare that had been my weekend with Brody.

  “That fucking twatwaffle. Who does shit like that? I mean I know it was unexpected but Jesus fucking Christ, Lei. I can’t believe he threw a bottle past your head. I swear to God, if I ever see that ass clown out in public I’m totally junk-punching him.” She always knew what to do or say to make me laugh.

  “Okay,” she continued. “We need to do dinner tonight, you have to make sure you are eating. I know how you are when you’re upset, but honey, you have a baby to think about now.”

  “Actually, I have been eating Mom. Jaxon took me to breakfast and—”

  “Jaxon? As in the hot biker guys?” she shrieked.

  “Yes, the one and only. Anyway, he stopped over to check on me after I went to Brody’s—”

  “No, no, no we are now calling him the asshat chicken fucker.” Barb’s interruption caused me to burst out laughing.

  “Okay, after I went to asshat’s yesterday, Jaxon asked me to breakfast today. When we came back, we talked, then I went to my OB appointment. As I’m sitting there feeling sorry for myself and tryin’ to figure out exactly how long I could wait without peeing again, Jaxon appeared.” Barb gasped. “Yep. Catch this, he said he didn’t want me to be alone. Can you believe?” Barb grunted. “Right. So after that we agreed we’d have dinner here. You okay if I ask him to join us?”

  “Hells yeah, that’s fine. The least we could do seeing as he took such good care of you.”

  “Oh my God Barb, when we were at the doctor he said that he wants to be here to support and help me since Br—asshat won’t be. How freakin’ sweet is that?”

  “It is sweet, but how well do you know this guy? I mean, who just steps up to take care of someone else’s pregnant girlfriend?”

  “I mean, I don’t know him like I know your crazy ass, but he’s walked me home from work for a few weeks now and we were getting to know each other. Then, the New York thing…he seems like a good guy. Barb, give him a chance, ’kay?”

  After a deep sigh she said, “Yeah, okay. I mean he is gorgeous. At least you will have some red hot eye candy while you’re preggo. Okay, go call him and text me in a few and let me know what the deal is. Love ya chick.”

  “Okay, love ya too.”

  Just before I hung up she added, “Ya know, Lei, it’s all gonna be okay. I’d never let you go through this alone.”

  “Thanks Barb,” I said and sniffled.

  Just as I hung up with Barb there was a knock at the door.

  “Fuck, please don’t be Brody.” I looked through the peephole and sighed in relief. Opening the door, I said, “Hey there big brother, how’s it goin’? Jesus Drew, what happened to your hand?”

  “I can’t believe you didn’t call me.” He was pissed. Okay, maybe pissed was an understatement. “I had to hear it from fucking Brody this morning, which is why my hand is killin’ me and why he’s got a black eye and busted lip. What the hell, Lei?” He pulled me into a bear hug.

  “Air…can’t breathe…” He released me. “What did you do Drew?”

  “I had fuckin’ warned him not to screw you over.” He fisted his hand in his hair while waving the other hand up and down my body. “And he did this to you and, and…let’s just say, he got off easy.”

  “Aw, Drew. I was gonna tell you. That’s why I wanted you to come over, it’s not something I wanted to talk about over the phone.” Shaking my head, I spun around and walked to the hall closet, grabbing the first aid kit. “What do you want me to say Drew? You were right and I was wrong. You warned me he wasn’t relationship material. I have only myself to blame.” He growled. “Shut it and sit down. Let me clean this up.”

  “Shit Leila, is that why you didn’t call me? ’Cause you thought I’d gloat or say I told ya so?” He sat down with me as I opened an antiseptic wipe. “I’m sorry you’re going through this. Honestly, I thought Brody was different with you. From what I saw and what he said, he was…but this whole baby thing has him so fucked up in the head. Shit, that burns.”

  “Stop, I don’t want to hear about him or how he feels. Don’t talk about him to me anymore.” After a final wipe, I got up and walked to the kitchen. “You want a drink?”

  He came to the bar. “Yeah, Coke is fine. And we don’t have to talk about him if that’s what you want, Lei. And for what it’s worth, I am really sorry he hurt you and I’m sorry you thought you couldn’t lean on me. I’m here whenever you’re ready to talk or you just need to vent.” He picked up the sonogram pictures. “Is this my niece or nephew?” he asked as his eyes widened.

  “Yep, that’s my little peanut. Jax thinks it looks more like a lima bean though.”

  Drew looked at me with concern in his eyes. “Wait, Jax? As in the guy Brody swears is stalking you? These are dated today. How does he know what it looks like?”

  I turned and handed him the glass of soda, almost sloshing it on him. “Jax is a friend, he’s not some crazy stalker like Brody thinks. And he went with me to the appointment this morning. He didn’t want me to be by myself. Do you have a problem with that?” Ruger stood up in his bed, eyeing the situation, but quickly plopped back down.

  “Whoa, easier there killer. It was just a question.” He took the glass and went back to the couch, making the wise decision to leave the Jaxon subject alone for now. “So what are you gonna do? About Brody I mean.”

  “Nothing Drew.” I sighed and sat dow
n on the chaise, pulling a blanket over me. “There is nothing to do. He’s made his decision and I made mine. We aren’t together anymore and I rather not think about him ever again. Next question detective.”

  “Well, it’s his kid. He’s gonna be a part of its life, right?” He obviously didn’t ask Brody all of these questions.

  “No, he wants no part of my baby or me, and, frankly, I don’t want anything from him. Can you please drop it Drew?” I was getting annoyed. “Otherwise, maybe we should get a spotlight and handcuffs to finish this interrogation.”

  He scrubbed his hand over his face, then dragged it through his hair. A curious smile crept across his face. “So Jaxon, huh?”

  “Oh no you don’t. There is nothing to tell, we’re just friends. He’s been really good to me this weekend, when I needed someone. He should be coming over in a little while.” I looked at the clock on the wall. “I promised to make him dinner as a thank you for going to the ultrasound appointment with me but then I talked to Barb and she wants to go to dinner, so we might do that instead. Ooh, you wanna go with us?”

  “I don’t know. Brody’s said this Jaxon guy is like fuckin’ obsessed with you.” My brother was pushing my buttons.

  “This coming from the asshole who got me pregnant, then walked the fuck away. Real reliable source, don’t ya think?”

  “Sorry, but he is usually a good judge of character.”

  “Then why don’t you decide for yourself? Come to dinner with all of us.” I wasn’t above begging. “Please. It would make me feel a little bit better to be around friends and family. Ya know, since I just found out I was pregnant and got dumped all within a week of each other.” And I wasn’t above guilting him either.

  “Fine, what time and where?” he asked with a sigh.

  “I will text you in a little while, once I hear from Barb. I’m gonna take a nap, I’m sleepy.”

  Drew left and used his key to lock the door behind him, so I didn’t have to move. It wasn’t long before sleep took me over.

  Chapter Four

  ~Leila~

  Maroon 5’s Adam Levine woke me up a few hours later. My ringtone for Barb was “Moves Like Jagger.” I rolled off the chaise and grabbed my phone and answered, “Yeah?”

  “Uh, I’ve been waiting for you to call about dinner plans. Come on, aren’t all pregnant women driven by food?” She had jokes.

  “Ha-ha. No, sorry. I fell asleep. Drew will definitely be there. Is Santi’s good with you?”

  “Mmm, yeah, that sounds delicious.”

  “Let me call Jax and I’ll call you right back.” I yawned. “Bye.”

  I pulled up his contact listing and pressed the little phone icon next to his number.

  “Hello,” he answered on the third ring.

  “Hey Jax, its Leila.”

  He chuckled. “Lei, I have you programmed in, I knew it was you.”

  “Oh, right. Well, I know I said I’d cook dinner tonight, but Barb called and wants to go out for dinner. You wanna come with us? We’re gonna go to Santi’s. Oh, and my brother Drew is coming too.”

  He was panting heavily into the phone. “Yeah, what time do you want me to pick ya up?”

  “Are you okay? Did I”—gulp—“interrupt something?” I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear the answer.

  “Nah, just at the gym. Let me grab a shower and I’ll head over in a little bit.”

  “’Kay. I’ll have Barb and Drew meet us at the restaurant. See ya soon then.”

  “See ya baby girl,” he said and hung up.

  I called Barb back and told her we’d all meet her at the restaurant. Then I shot a text off to Drew telling him where and when. A split second later my phone buzzed with his response.

  I’ll meet y’all there

  I got up and took Ruger out to the Battery for some exercise. He loved to play fetch and it was a great day for it. The sun was peeking in and out of the clouds, so it wasn’t too hot. There was always a great breeze off of the bay. After about thirty minutes he was tired. His tongue just about dragged on the ground on the way home.

  When I got within sight of the house I could see a tall, handsome man leaning on my door. Ruger must have seen him too, because his tail started wagging. Jax was wearing a black button down shirt with light blue jeans and his trademark black Doc Martens. He really did look good. He gave me a nod in recognition.

  “Hey, sorry. I needed to let him run for a little. You haven’t been here long, have you?” I asked, unlocking the door and going inside.

  “Nope, just got here a minute ago.” He followed me inside.

  “I’m drivin’ tonight. Barb and Drew will both have a shit fit if I pull up on the bike with you.”

  “That’s fine. You ready?” he asked, like I was actually dressed for dinner.

  “Gimme a minute, and let me change, then I will be.” I ran up the stairs and changed into a faded blue, distressed jean miniskirt and a white embroidered, sleeveless top that had tie straps holding it up and a smocked waist. I dressed it down a little by throwing on my favorite brown cowboy boots.

  When I came back downstairs Jax stood up from the couch and turned to see me. “Whoa, you look amazing.”

  “Thanks. Thought maybe if I put on something sexy it would make me feel a little less like I just got dumped.”

  “Great, I’m gonna have to punch some unsuspecting guy in the face tonight, aren’t I?” he joked, laughing.

  “No, I’m sure that was a fluke,” I said, referring to the night at Jake’s. “Besides, with you and Drew around I doubt any man would approach me to ask me out.”

  “Good.” He handed me my bag. “Which way?”

  “My car’s out back,” I lead him to the back door.

  We went out to the small one-car garage and the look on Jax’s face was priceless. “Fuckin’ a Leila.”

  “Why are men always so damn shocked I drive a Challenger?” I rolled my eyes and muttered under my breath.

  “This isn’t just any car or any Challenger, for that matter. It’s a fuckin’ Hellcat—” he started.

  “Yes, I know what kind of car I drive, Remi.” I knew he didn’t like me calling him that, so I did. Just to bust his balls.

  “Jaxon or Jax or babe, not Remi.”

  “What’s the big deal? You told Barb to call you that and I’ve heard your biker friends call you that. Why can’t I call you that?”

  “My road name was given to me because I was a sniper and I used a Remington M40A5. Don’t want you thinkin’ about me with killing people. It’s meant to be intimidating and I never want you to be scared of me,” he said in an unfamiliar soft tone that made me melt.

  Oh God, I can’t deal with this right now. I’m sure if Brody hadn’t just happened to me, then I would be ready, willing and able to eat this man alive, but Brody had just destroyed me and I needed to protect myself so I just responded, “Oh, okay.”

  We got in the car and I drove to Meeting Street, to Santi’s, one of my favorite Mexican restaurants, Drew and Barb were already waiting at a table when we arrived. We ate too much, they drank while I watched and we laughed, a lot. Drew and Jax seem to get along effortlessly, much to my relief. Barb suggested we go over to the Wet Willie’s to get a drink and dance.

  We finished dinner and all went to the wall of adult slushies. I really wanted a strawberry daiquiri mixed with a pina colada, that’s my favorite here. Barb and I left Drew and Jaxon sitting at a high top and went to the dance floor. The music was loud EDM and compelled you to bounce with it. We danced together like we always did; she would dance behind me, really close with her hands on my hips. Then we would switch. I’m sure people who didn’t know us probably thought we were together, and that was fine with us.

  A few guys came over and danced near us. A few even trying to get between us. We just laughed and ignored them, but there were two guys that were just obnoxious and couldn’t figure out we just weren’t interested. I looked around to see if I could get the boys’ attention for a rescu
e, but I didn’t see them.

  Great, they were probably at the bar. Then I felt a strong set of arms snake around my waist and pull me back into a solid chest. The familiar and distinct smell of Jaxon permeated my nostrils. He was staking his claim, or so it appeared to the other men on the floor.

  “You lookin’ for me princess?” Jax whispered in my ear and held me as I danced against him.

  “I was,” I said low and seductively as I leaned my head back. He rolled his hips, grinding his impressively large bulge into my ass, as I swayed my hips back and forth temptingly. My arms were up and found their way to the back of his neck. I knew I shouldn’t be dancing with him like this, but it felt so good to be a normal person for a moment, enjoying a hot guy.

  His giant hands started to gradually climb my body, from my hips to my flank to my rib. My body was hypersensitive to his touch. It seemed to wake up a sleeping monster inside of me. I looked down at his wandering hands to see if I could actually look at the electricity that danced across my skin because it felt that real. Not tingles or chills, but white hot lightning gripping every fiber and cell in my body.

  After a few minutes he leaned down, stopping when his cheek was touching my temple. I could feel his warm breath on my skin. I waited for him to do something, anything; finally he spoke. “Let’s go get you a drink.”

  I felt so confused. I knew I wasn’t alone in feeliing what had just happened. It wasn’t physically fucking possible to feel that kind of chemistry and magnetism from another person without them feeling it too. Then again, I thought Brody loved me. I guessed I wasn’t the greatest judge of character right now. Plus with my hormones raging, I could just be horny and Jaxon was a boatload of eye candy, no doubt about it.

  UGH men were so difficult.

  He took my hand and braided our fingers together, pulling me to the table where Drew was sitting.

  Drew stood up and nodded to the dance floor. “I’m gonna go dance with Barb. She’s too wild to be left alone,” he yelled over the music thumping out of the speakers. “Someone has to look out for those poor unsuspecting men out there.”