by K. S. Smith
But instead I was alone, pleasuring myself to the vivid memory of our five minute bathroom rendezvous. After I’d blown two loads to the memory of my wife I figured I better get some sleep because tomorrow I was going to march into her office and bring her back home whether she liked it or not.
CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR
I’d given Reagan an extra hour to get into the office before I took a quick stroll to her building. When I came through the glass doors the receptionist greeted me, “Mr. Conrad, what a lovely surprise.”
I walked right up to her desk and leaned in, “Is Reagan in by chance? I’d like to surprise her.”
The girls face fell, “I’m sorry, she’s not in today. Her assistant sent an email around this morning informing all of us that she was taking a two weeks’ vacation.”
My eyebrow lifted, “Two week vacation?” I asked, “Did she say where she was going?”
The receptionist shook her head, “I’m afraid not.”
Knowing I wasn’t going to get anything further from her I thanked her for her time and turned, walking out of the building and straight to my car.
I flew through town and came to a screeching halt at the Cartwright’s house, I hopped out of the truck and rushing up to the house. I banged on the door until it finally opened and Teresa was standing there staring at me.
“Cole, what are you doing here?” She asked as if she really had no idea.
“I’m trying to find my wife. I am so damn tired of playing these bullshit games, now will someone tell me where in the fuck she is?” I knew I was totally out of line speaking to Teresa like that but I’d had enough.
I watched on as Teresa leaned her head against the side of the door, her eyes closing and then reopening as if she was just as hurt by all of this as I was. She took in a deep breath, “She went out to the condo on Pass-a-grille Beach. Said she needed a week or two of alone time. She left last night. I’m not sure what happened, but she was pretty upset when she got home.”
“Thanks.” I said before I leaned in and kissed the cheek of the only woman I knew as my mother-in-law and darted back toward the truck. When I hopped in I revved the engine and took off toward the beach.
The drive was brutal, granted it was only forty minutes, but it still took every ounce of energy out of me. I spent the entire trip talking to myself, clearly looking like a lunatic to anyone who passed by.
“What are you going to say to her Cole? You’ve got to put your foot down. This is your wife, for better or worse, she can’t just bail because we are currently dealing with the worst. You love her and have always fought for her, but what if she doesn’t want that this time? What if she never comes back?” I went back and forth with myself the entire drive over and when I finally pulled into the designated parking space at the condo I sat there for a moment.
I flipped down the window mirror, looked myself directly in the eyes and started in on my pep talk, “You go in there and tell her like it is. You know what you want, it’s her, it’s always been her since the day you first laid your eyes on her.”
Ready to deal with all of this once and for all I jumped out of the truck and rushed through the lobby, taking the stairs three at a time as I rushed up each flight until I was directly in front of the door that would lead me to Reagan.
Hesitating for a brief moment I stood there and took in a few deep breaths to calm myself and then reached out and knocked on the door thanking the good Lord above that there wasn’t a peep hole.
A few moments later the door was being pulled open and Reagan stood there in a black bikini with one of those beach skirt things tied around her hips. She looked so beautiful it took everything in me not to scoop her up and take her straight to the car and home with me, but instead I refocused on why I was here.
“May I come in?” I asked doing my best not to sound irritated. I didn’t want this to be a fight, this was it. Reagan and I would both know at the end of this conversation how our future together would play out.
“Sure,” she said stepping to the side as she swung the door open further, “can I get you a drink?”
I shook my head, “No thanks.” Then walked over to the balcony and wrapped my hands around the railing, my knuckles turning white as I gripped it for dear life.
Reagan followed me out there and stood next to me, placing her left hand on top of my right. The touch of her soft, cool skin caused me to loosen my grip and relax a bit.
I ran my fingers through my hair before taking in a deep breath. I held it for a moment and then released before I started, “I can’t do this much longer, Reagan.” I said, staring out over the water. “I love you, but I can’t deal with someone who is half in. I need it all, all of you and if you aren’t willing to give that to me then I’ve got to let you go.”
We stood there in silence for a moment before I heard a sniffle escape her. I wanted so badly to turn and scoop her up into my arms and tell her how much I loved her and couldn’t imagine my life without her, but I knew I needed to get my point across and that would only send mixed signals.
Her arm wrapped around mine as she leaned in against my body sending electric jolts straight through me, “I understand where you’re coming from.”
I could hear the cracking in her voice as she went on.
“I know that this has been difficult on you. And as usual, you’ve given me exactly what I needed, space. But I just don’t think I’m ready. I am broken, Cole. I know we’ve been here before and come out on top, but I’m just not sure how we can manage that again. My parents, our baby, all of the things I’ve lost. It takes a toll on me and people just have to understand that these wounds may never heal. I can’t continue to drag you down with me. You don’t deserve that.”
My heart was breaking all over again as I listened to her speak. Each time I thought it had begun to heal she’d shatter it all over again.
“Six months.” I said out loud, hardly able to believe that I’d let those two words escape my lips.
“What?” Reagan asked, confused.
I turned and stared into her big brown eyes that I loved so much as I gripped her waist, “Do you love me, Reagan? After all we’ve been through, do you still love me?”
A single tear slowly trickled down her cheek before I lifted my hand and wiped it away.
Reagan caught my hand and held it against her cheek, pressing her face into it as she stared up at me, “Of course I still love you, Cole. I’ll never stop.”
Relief washed through my body in that very moment and I leaned down and kissed her forehead before pulling back to look her straight in the eyes as to make sure that she fully understood every word that was about to come out of my mouth.
“Six months. You’ve got six months to figure yourself out. To realize that I don’t care what demons you are fighting, I want to fight them with you. If you don’t come back to me in six months I will know we’re over for good. I’ll call my attorney and have him draw up divorce papers and they’ll be waiting on your desk when you arrive to work. I’m done playing by your rules because they obviously don’t work. So understand me when I say this Reagan Conrad, think about this. Think about it long and hard because it’s never going to happen again. You come back to me in six months’ time and want to stay together this shit doesn’t ever happen again, because if it does I’m out. I refuse to spend the rest of my life on edge wondering if my wife is going to leave me. We’re playing by my rules now, learn them and figure out if you want to live by them. Six months, starting right now.”
I didn’t give myself anytime to linger, instead I just turned around and walked out leaving my wife alone with plenty of time to think about the options I’d given her.
CHAPTER THIRTY FIVE
182 DAYS LATER
I’d spent 182 days distancing myself from everyone as I focused on my work, all the while praying that Reagan would come back to me, but with less than twenty-four hours left in our deal I’d begun to give up hope.
As I sat at my desk
at home I was reviewing and answering emails from clients when the doorbell rang. I looked up from my computer screen and instantly my heart stopped beating. I wasn’t expecting anyone. I leapt out of my seat and darted toward the front door, the silhouette of a woman with what looked like bags in each of her hands staring back at me through the opaque glass of the front door.
I reached for the handle and swung the door open, calling out her name before I could even see her face, “Reagan!” I shouted, excitement in my voice.
My eyes locked with her as she responded, “Nope, just me, boss.”
I lurched forward as my stomach flipped and I literally thought I was going to be sick right there in the foyer of my house, “Toni, what are you doing here this early on a Saturday morning?”
Toni stepped into the house with bags pushed up each arm, “Your annual client cocktail holiday party is tonight. Why wouldn’t I be here?”
I glanced down at my watch and saw the date, “Shit, this is not a good day for this Toni. Can we reschedule?”
She laughed as she made her way through my house and toward the kitchen, “You’ve got over fifty of your biggest clients and their wives coming this evening, I think it’s a little late to cancel.”
“Fuck,” I groaned as I walked into the kitchen and poured myself a cup of coffee, “I’ll be in my office, just come and get me half hour before the party starts so I can get ready.”
Toni nodded, “You got it boss.” Then continued on her merry way with preparations for this party that I’d completely forgotten was even taking place.
****
The party was finally over and it had actually been a success. Everything had run according to plan -not that I even knew what the plan was- and surprisingly, I actually enjoyed myself and had a good time.
But now I was exhausted, physically exhausted from the last five hours with clients and mentally exhausted from racking my brain over the fact that Reagan and I were over for good. I needed to sleep for the next few days so I could prepare myself for what I had to do next.
I trudged up the stairs leaving an article of clothing on each step as I made my way upstairs. In nothing but a pair of boxer shorts I pushed the master bedroom door open ready to fall into bed. The closet light was on, but I didn’t have the strength to walk over and turn it off. Instead, I fell face first in to bed, utterly exhausted.
It wasn’t even a full minute and I was on the brink of a sound sleep when cold fingers brushed against my warm back. Startled, I rolled over in bed and came face to face with Reagan who was knelt down on her knees on my side of the bed.
“Hi.” She whispered, a faint smile on her face.
Still in shock I just laid there staring at her.
“I hope I’m not too late,” She said. “I’ve actually been here for a few hours. I didn’t realize that the cocktail party was tonight, otherwise I would have come earlier.”
Still nothing out of me, I couldn’t speak.
“I should have come down to find you, but there is something I wanted to tell you in private first, so I just waited. I hope that’s okay?”
Something she has to tell me? She’s here which means she back. She knows my rules, so what on earth could she possibly have to tell me? I thought and was finally able to speak.
“What is it?” I asked hesitantly.
“Well first, let me say that I am so sorry, Cole. I should have never left the way I did. I really took your words to heart that day at the beach and I’ve taken these six months to really figure out what I can’t live without and I know that the number one thing I can’t survive without is you. I love you Cole, so much and I can’t imagine a life without you. You are the oxygen that keeps my lungs pumping and without you I might as well be dead.”
Not needing to hear another word from her I got up out of bed and pulled her body against me as I molded my lips to hers, but that was short lived as I quickly pushed her away from me, now holding her at arm’s length.
My eyes squinted in the dark room knowing that they must have been playing tricks on me when I heard a giggle escape Reagan’s lips. She didn’t even give me a moment to speak, instead I watched as her hands began to cradle her belly.
“This is what I wanted to tell you in private.” She said as she pointed to her belly that was much bigger than it should have been.
I’m not sure if it was the alcohol I’d had at the party, the fact that I was half asleep or if I’d finally lost my mind, but I was not following. “You’re pregnant? How...when...who...what the fuck, Reagan?” I asked as I took a few steps back and ran my hands through my hair, utterly confused.
A smile spread across her face as she stepped closer to me, reaching out for my hand and placing it on her belly. “To answer your questions, yes, I’m pregnant. How? Well, I had sex. When? One night when I was out at a bar. And who?”
I pulled my hand from her belly and took another step back, my mind was racing a hundred miles a minute, “Who, Reagan. Whose baby is this?”
This time she stepped in even closer, her belly now pressed up against me as she looked up into my eyes, “The who would be you.”
Confused, I began rubbing my hands over my face, “Cut the shit Reagan, that’s not possible. We haven’t slept together in…”
And then it hit me, like a ton of bricks. She had sex one night when she was out at a bar...with me. “Malio’s? The night in the bathroom?” I asked, practically begging for confirmation that I was correct.
Her smile grew and she nodded her head up and down, “All it takes is one time.”
Unable to control myself I threw my arms around her and swooped her up off of her feet as I spun the both of us around our bedroom, kissing her face.
Reagan was giggling the entire time and when I finally set her down I fell to my knees, both of my hands resting on each side of her belly, looking up into my wife’s eyes. I had a million questions and she could tell they were all about to come spilling out.
That’s when she stepped back, climbed into bed and patted the space next to her, “Tomorrow I will answer any question that you have, but for right now I just want to lie down, at home, in bed with my husband, right where I belong.”
EPILOGUE
I couldn’t help but count my blessings as I rested back against the hospital bed, my right arm tight around my beautiful wife and my left cradling our precious baby boy, Colton Jr., better known as CJ.
I kissed the top of Reagan’s head, “You did good momma, our baby is perfect.”
She smiled up at me before reaching for our son who was beginning to fuss, “Perfectly hungry.” She said as I slipped out of the bed so she had plenty of room to get situated and feed CJ.
Taking a seat in the uncomfortable recliner that came in each of the rooms I took it all in. My perfect wife was feeding our incredible baby boy.
There was no doubt that the road to this moment had been very rocky, but I wouldn’t have changed a single thing because it all somehow brought Reagan, CJ and I right here and for that I would always be grateful.
THE END
UPCOMING BOOKS
THRASHER
CHAPTER ONE
“Get off of me you asshole!” I screamed angrily in the face of the utterly inebriated frat boy who’d almost knocked me over for the second time while dancing with my girlfriends. He was way past drunk and the bouncers were clearly not doing their job.
“I swear to all that’s holy if he touches me one more time I’m going to shove my knee so far into his balls he’ll never be able to get it up for another sorority sister, ever again.”
Megan laughed uncontrollably at my comment before she began dancing with me again. Our favorite song, Katy Perry’s dance remix of Roar was blaring through the speakers over the sea of people; our bodies swaying sexily to the beat.
The DJ was fading into the next song right when his body came crashing into mine, ten times harder than it had the previous two times. His giant body collided with my tiny frame and before I coul
d catch myself from toppling over I was slammed into the side of the bar and fell to the ground taking a few other patrons with me.
Startled, I shook my head to assess my whereabouts before jumping back up to my feet; anger surging through my body as I flew after the douchebag that had finally tipped me over the edge.
Megan saw the fire in my eyes and instantly threw her arms around my waist stopping me just in time for me to see the frat boys pretty face being pummeled by a total stranger, a beautiful stranger.
“Let me go, I swear I’m going to kill him.” I screamed over the thumping music, but instead of releasing me she just held me tighter.
The beautiful creature was still smashing the kid’s face as a sea of men tried to pull him off. Finally, the bouncers were doing their job, bodies were being pulled from one side of the club to the other and the beautiful stranger was yelling at the top of his lungs as his friend’s tried to pull him away, “I swear to God if you fucking hurt her, I’m going to kill you, you arrogant little prick.”
Looking around I saw that the frat brother was bleeding profusely from his face. Serves him right, what a tool.
“Ma’am, you’re going to need to come with us,” a stern voice roared over the music.
I looked at the script on his shirt that read SECURITY and I knew this night had just gone from good too horrible in a matter of a few songs. Reaching for Megan’s hand I pulled her behind me, not wanting to follow the bouncer all alone.
We both followed him down a long dimly lit hallway before he pressed through a door that dumped us into the back alley of the club. There were already four police officers and an ambulance, all with their red and blue lights brightly shining, along with sir douchebag, a few of his frat brothers and the group of guys that included the gorgeous specimen who’d been pummeling on the piece of shit who knocked me over.
