Yep, the energy was gone. And he wanted it back. He wanted her back.
“You’ve returned.” Calvin padded barefoot into the living room. Sam winced. The guy was wearing a red thong. No wonder the women couldn’t get enough of him and the men were pissed off. It was like living next to an all-male nudie review every day.
Eventually, they’d have to find him somewhere else to live, but for now, he was grateful for the company.
“When did she bring the couch?” Sam asked, dropped the pillow, and stood.
“Yesterday sometime. I was out.” Calvin scanned his face. “You miss her.”
“Yes, I do.” He felt like a jerk for the way they’d left things. It was mostly his fault. But in order to fix the relationship, he had to break down and go to her before she moved on without him. “I want her back.”
That was as close as he’d ever get to sharing his feelings with another guy. And there was no beer or sports involved. Jess would probably call that progress.
“She’s living with Taryn.”
“I know.”
“Then why are you standing here? Go get her.”
* * *
“I’ll get it!” Jess called out and headed for the door. She’d been doing an online search for houses for rent that accepted dogs and had decent schools. The pickings were small, but she was determined. She needed her own place.
Buying might be a better option. That meant permanency. The thought of a white picket fence all her own was on her mind as she crossed through the house and flung open the door.
The familiar face flipped her stomach. “Sam.”
“Hey, Jess.”
He shifted feet and never looked so adorable or unkempt. He looked like he’d just rolled out of bed.
Darn. All the work over the last few days to kick those unwanted emotions out of her heart were for nothing. Yep, she still loved him. Nope, she wasn’t over him. Not by a long shot.
Deep brown eyes turned her to mush. “Can we talk?”
So much for small talk, she thought. He was a get to the point guy.
“Who’s at the door?” Taryn said as she walked in, drying her hands on a kitchen towel. At the sight of Sam, she spun and went back out.
“We’re having a Bar-B-Que. Summer and Jason and Irving and Alvin are here. Calvin is supposed to come later and bring the potato salad. He has a protest to get to on campus first. Something about saving a platypus.”
Jess rambled as she led Sam outside and to the front porch swing. Her nerves were raw. She wanted to touch him, to feel his arms around her. She wanted him to give up being a big jerk and let her back into his life.
Clasping her hands together gave her some control. “What do you want to talk about, Sam?”
If he wanted a to-the-point conversation, he’d get one.
“Us.” He twisted on the seat until they were almost face-to-face and touched her bent knee. Their eyes connected and held. “I’ve missed you, Jess.”
“Hmmm.” Don’t get your hopes up, Jess, she thought. He likely missed Spike, too.
“That’s all you have to say?”
“What do you want me to say? That I miss you, too?” She played with a loose thread on her frayed jean shorts. “I do. But that doesn’t change the gap between what we want. I want a house and a dog and a husband and kids. You don’t. We have no future. End of story.”
She moved to stand and he took her arm.
“I never said I didn’t want a family.” He pulled her onto his lap. She made no protest. It felt good to be in his arms one last time. “And I’m not emotionally stunted. Being cautious isn’t a bad thing.”
Jess looked up into his eyes and hated that he felt vulnerable. She could chalk it up to pregnancy hormones but that excuse only went so far. “I agree. Yet sometimes life throws in a twist that you don’t see coming.”
Confusion edged his eyes. “Would you care to explain?” She said nothing. “Are you seeing someone else?”
“Would it bother you if I was?” Kicking a sleeping bear could get her bitten. She sighed. “Why not get to the point of this visit. I have potato salad to eat and friends to enjoy.”
Though not fully mollified, he relaxed back and ran a hand down her arm. “I want you to move back in with me. Spike, too. I want to give us a shot.”
In another time and place, that would be enough. Now, she had more than herself to consider. Before she agreed to anything, he had to know all the facts.
“Sam, I’m pregnant.”
He jerked, his eyes going wide with shock. “What? Are you sure? How?”
“Well, you take an egg, a sperm, and a fallopian tube—”
“You know what I mean.” He wasn’t in the mood for jokes. The man had just been hit in the face with the life twist she’d mentioned earlier. “We used protection.”
“It had to have been the night at the fight.” She’d counted back and that was the closest guess. “We used condoms all the other times and I don’t think we had a slip. They only thing that makes sense is pill failure. I didn’t consider that a month earlier I’d had a sinus infection and took antibiotics. It must have messed up my system.”
Surprise and disbelief slowly melted into sober acceptance. There was no joy in his expression. “I can’t believe this.”
Well, there it was. She’d deposit his monthly check and bundle up little Molly or Sam Jr. for the weekly visit with dad and his latest girlfriend. They’d exchange polite comments during the handoff about the weather or an upcoming school function and it would all be very grown up.
The image tugged painfully at her heart. She wanted more. Was it wrong to want more?
“I’m going to be a dad.”
His tone brought her back to the present. Her gaze darted to his face. He was smiling. It was her turn to be surprised.
“You’re happy about this?”
“Baby, why wouldn’t I be?” His hand slid down to her belly and splayed his fingers open over where their peanut-sized baby grew. “This isn’t the way I saw things play out for us but, yes, I’m happy. Everything else we’ll figure out as we go.”
A sob caught in her throat. “I thought you’d feel trapped.”
He tipped her head up and brushed a kiss on her mouth. “Never.” He kissed her again. “I love you, Jessica Suzanne Lucas. And I love our baby, too.”
Tears sprung free as she kissed him all over his face to his chuckles. And somewhere beyond the window screen, she swore she heard the sound of muted happy squealing coming from inside the house.
Epilogue
It was an unusually warm spring day when family and friends gathered in the shadows of the lighthouse in Ludington to watch the weddings of Jess and Sam and Taryn and Jason. Even Spike was there, though he’d gone off to chase some seagulls down the beach. So much for doggie training classes.
“I feel like a stuffed turkey,” Jess grumbled and rubbed the small of her aching back. Though thrilled to be a mom, she could do without the swollen ankles and fatigue. “I’m just glad that the bridal shop makes wedding tents for knocked-up brides.”
Summer laughed and looked down at the pretty white dress. “You look beautiful. Now smile or I’m pushing you off the pier.”
Jess did as ordered. “At least I’d float,” she joked. “My gigantic breasts will keep me bobbing upright in the water indefinitely.”
She looked over at Taryn. Dressed in a white off-the-shoulder dress that skimmed over her curves, her friend looked stunning with her hair swept up and a smile lighting her face.
What a perfect day with perfect friends and family to share it. Even Jess’s mother and father had taken time out of their fifty states tour to come. Their big motor home in the nearby parking lot had served as a bridal room for last minute touches.
Yep, it was a good day.
“Sam must be pleased,” Taryn said and looked down at Jess’s cleavage. “Those two need their own zip codes.”
Jess laughed. “He’s as happy as a kid in a candy factory.”
“Okay, enough about that,” Summer said before the conversation got naughty. “We need to get you married.” She linked arms with both friends and steered them down the pier. When the guests parted and Sam came into view, Jess stumbled. He was so handsome he made her heart flip.
“You two are very lucky,” Summer said.
Taryn nodded and grinned at Jason. “Who knew that two years ago, we’d all be married. And Jess is having a baby.”
“I did,” Irving said as he approached. He glanced over at Doris Klein, the flamingo lady, and grinned. She’d shown up one afternoon with cookies for the Brash ladies and she and Irving had struck up a friendship. “Only an idiot wouldn’t see how amazing you three are. And your men are no idiots.”
He kissed Jess and Taryn on their cheeks and took Taryn’s arm while Jess’s dad, decked out in uniform, took hers.
“Now get to it,” Irving scolded. “I hear the reception caterer makes one hell of a crab cake.”
The two women headed up the last ten yards to where Sam and Jason stood, smiling and waiting. Jess rubbed her lower back with her free hand. She’d been having a dull ache all morning.
“Have patience, little one,” she whispered as Sam took her hand and drew her to his side. She leaned against him.
“Ready?” he said.
It was hard to believe not that many months ago, she’d considered him worse than the plague. Now she never wanted to be without him. He would soon be her husband and the father of her baby.
Crazy, right? She cupped her belly as the ache turned into a breath-catching clench. She gasped out, “We both are.”
And the vows went on without a hitch.
Well, almost.
Don’t miss the next story in the Brash & Brazen series:
THE SWEETHEART MYSTERY
By
Cheryl Ann Smith
Click here to get your copy!
A fan of romance fiction since the dark ages, author Cheryl Ann Smith loves to throw her heroines into danger, just to see what they’ll do. She’s currently working on an exciting a new contemporary romance series that mixes her crazy sense of humor with the adventures of a trio of female PIs, who are the kick-ass heroines Cheryl has always wanted to be.
Cheryl lives in Michigan with her family and when she isn’t writing, she dreams of living in a grass hut on her own tropical island. Since that’s unlikely to happen, she looks forward to any vacation that gets her near an ocean. If you’d like to learn more about Cheryl or her books, you can visit her website at www.cherylannsmith.com, or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/cherylannsmithauthor
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