One Night

by K. L. Humphreys

  I walk away not wanting to listen to any more of this; I shouldn’t have had sex with him last night, it was a mistake. One that I don’t intend on repeating. I walk toward mom and Livie and see that they seem to be in a heated exchange. I hear Livie as I get closer, “I didn’t mean to, it was an accident!”

  “Oh, and I suppose Carson accidentally punched Ethan.” Oh, mom’s using her mom tone with Livie, that’s not good.

  “But momma B…”

  “But nothing Olivia, you and Carson shouldn’t have hit them.” Wow, mom’s giving Livie one of her special lectures. I tune them out as I go into the backroom and start mixing the color for Loretta.

  I’m just about to head back out when I hear the bell above the door sound, and instantly hear Jaxon’s mom “Oh your eye! You poor thing.”

  “What are you doing here?” I hear Livie’s bitchy tone.

  Rushing out of the room I come up short when I see Ethan, Shyanne and Sabrina. Why the hell do they have to be here? Ouch, Shyanne’s eye has to hurt, what the hell did Livie do to it?

  “So, it’s true, you’re pregnant,” Shyanne says disgustedly.

  “I’ll ask again. What are you doing here?” Livie’s getting impatient, she’s tapping her foot, and her arms are crossed.

  “We’re here to tell you that if you continue with this upset that you have caused not only to me but also to Shyanne, we will have you and Carson arrested,” Sabrina says smugly, and I want to strangle the bitch.

  “Arrested for what?” Mom says, and I see movement from the corner of my eye and turn to see Loretta and Jaxon walking towards the group.

  “For assault!” Shyanne screeches as she stamps her foot. Loretta walks over to her and puts her arm around her, causing me to glare at the traitor. I mean this is the girl that my ex-cheated on me with.

  Livie starts laughing, “I didn’t assault you, my handbag did. You were way too close to me; I didn’t know that you were behind me when I put my handbag on my shoulder.” I know she’s lying, she did it intentionally! I can’t believe that she gave her a black eye using her handbag. “And you!” She points her finger at Ethan, “You have some nerve coming here! Carson didn’t hit you, he bumped into you, and you fell over.” Oh God, Carson pushed him on purpose, I know my brother, he’s the biggest geek ever, but he’ll do anything to protect me.

  “Olivia…” My mom warns her, and I know that she’s only looking out for her, as she doesn’t want Livie to get into any more fights.

  Ethan walks over to me, putting his hand on my face making me flinch as he does, “Bri, I’m sorry for everything. If I could go back and make things right, I would. You and the baby mean everything to me.”

  “They’re not your babies!” I vehemently tell him.

  “Brianne, I know I hurt you, but you can’t keep the baby away from me.” Shit, the fucker doesn’t believe me.

  “Babies, there are two of them,” Livie tells him, and he takes a step back, his face paling as he does so.

  “Jaxon, you didn’t reply to my text last night. I was hoping we could have had another rendezvous. I’ve missed you.” Sabrina says seductively as she walks up to Jaxon and places her hand on his chest and Jaxon does nothing to remove it.

  Last night was definitely a mistake!

  Chapter Eleven

  Jaxon

  I immediately stiffen when Sabrina places her hand on my chest, I wasn’t expecting it, so I don’t react right away. As soon as my eyes land on Brianne’s bowed head, I know I’ve fucked up, I’ve fucked up big time!

  “Oh, just look at you two,” my mother says, a taunting smile playing on her lips as she looks at Bri. “They look perfect together, don’t you think so Brianne?”

  “Okay, that’s enough, ma.” I glare at my mother as the anger starts boiling the blood in my veins. “Get off me, Sabrina,” I shrug the bitch off of me, probably with more force than is necessary.

  My mother’s eyes widen, getting as big as saucers at the pissed off tone of my voice but quite frankly I really don’t give a shit. I don’t know why she’s being like this toward Brianne because she’s always liked her.

  “So, we are having twins?” Ethan takes a step closer to Brianne who takes a step back. “It’s going to be a challenge, but we’ll make it work baby. I’m going to be the best dad, you’ll see,” he continues before stretching out his hand in an attempt to cup her face.

  “The babies aren’t yours!” Bri, Liv and I say in unison. Why the hell can’t he just get it in his damn head that those kids aren’t his? Could he really be that dense?

  “Of course, the kids are mine,” Ethan rolls his eyes at our outburst.

  “But Ethan, what about us- what about me?” This from a pathetic looking Shyanne as she holds her hand to her chest.

  God, did they all have to be here right now, at the freaking same time?

  “Shyanne, we’ve talked about this, I want to be with Bri and our kids,” the stupid dick says without an ounce of shame.

  What the hell did he think? That even if the kids were his that he could just cheat on Brianne and she would just roll over and forgive him like he didn’t break her heart into a million pieces? The fucker is even more stupid than I thought!

  “I’m getting bored with all these theatrics,” Liv says, her irritation obvious in the way she’s tapping her foot. “So, Ethan, Sabrina, Shyanne, I’m going to need you to leave before any more accidents similar to last night start happening,” Shyanne and Sabrina pales at Liv’s threat. They know that Olivia is crazy enough to do a lot of damage.

  “We’re leaving, but be warned touch us, and we will have you arrested!” Sabrina says, already shuffling toward the door and Shyanne right on her heel.

  “I’m not leaving until Brianne agrees to give us another chance so that we can raise our kids together,” Ethan, the stupid prick says taking another step toward my girl who is carrying my babies.

  “Oh, for fuck sakes!” Brianne is also starting to get irritated as she glares at the idiot in front of her. “These. Babies. Aren’t. Yours!” She tells him through gritted teeth. “How many times do you want me to tell you this?”

  “Brianne, if they are not mine as you claim, then who’s are they?” Brianne freezes as her eyes snap to me and then my mother.

  “You see, they are mi-”

  “No, they’re not yours you stupid prick!” I pause after cutting Ethan off. “The babies are mine,” My mother gasps in shock, her eyes getting even bigger than before.

  “What!?” Ethan and the two bitches by the door who I thought had already left exclaim in unison like they’re in some kind of choir.

  “Jaxon honey,” My mom approaches me, anger evident in her blue eyes as she looks between Brianne and me. “Just because the girl doesn’t know who the father of her kids is, doesn’t mean you should take the blame for something we all know you didn’t do. Sabrina’s momma said this would happen.”

  The fuck!? My mother did not just say that!

  I take one look at Brianne and almost lose it when I see the tears welling in her eyes. My mother has gone too far, and I will not have it!

  “Now listen here Loretta,” Bri’s mother hisses before I can say anything to my mother. “Don’t you dare talk about my daughter like that!” Bri’s mom’s hands are now clenched as she takes a step toward my mom. “Who the hell do you think you are?”

  “Let’s go, mother!” I hiss as I take her hand to lead her out of the salon.

  “But Jaxon, my hair!” she protests.

  “You are not welcome here anymore Loretta,” Liv says, her irritation replaced by pure rage. “All of you fuckers, get the hell out!” she continues, wielding a broom that I had no idea when she grabbed.

  We all shuffle out of the salon leaving Bri, Liv and Mrs B behind. I’m the last one to exit, and I hear a heart-breaking sob just before I close the door behind me. I take one last look through the glass doors and see both Liv and Mrs B embracing a c
rying Brianne. Shit, this whole thing is a mess, a mess I have no idea how I’m going to fix. And what’s worse, my mother just fucked up any chance of me succeeding in getting the woman I’ve loved for years but could never have.

  “Come on ma; we need to talk,” I say, turning my attention back to her before grabbing her hand again and leading to my car.

  “But I drove myself here,”

  “I don’t care, get in the car,” I say opening the passenger door for her. At this point, I really am struggling to reign in my anger at the woman who gave me life. I don’t think I have ever been so angry with her before. Sure, I’ve been disappointed to no end but never been this pissed off.

  I slam the door shut as soon as she’s inside and takes quick angry strides to the driver's side.

  “What the hell was that, ma?” I hiss as soon as I close my door.

  “What the hell was what Jaxon?”

  “Don’t play dumb with me, why did you insult Brianne like that?”

  “I was just stating the truth Jaxon; I will not allow that girl to shove you into a corner and make you take the blame for her mistakes!”

  “I am the father of those kid’s ma, and you had no right to disrespect Brianne like that, especially not in front of her mother!”

  “Sophia said this would happen, that girl just-”

  “What the hell does Sabrina’s mother have to do with anything?” I cut her off, slowly but surely losing the battle of trying to stay calm.

  “I spoke to her, and we want you to be with Sabrina. She said that Brianne has been spending all this time with you ever since she got back because she’s jealous of you and Sabrina because that Ethan boy didn’t want her anymore,” she breathes before continuing. “And I agree with Soph, Brianne probably doesn’t know who the father of her kids are, so she wants to pin it on the first decent man she sees. And you have to sleep with a girl to get her pregnant!”

  “That is enough mother!” I hiss, outraged by what is coming out of her mouth right now. “And it’s a bit too late to try and teach me about the birds and the bees; I know how babies are made!”

  “Oh, so you slept with her?” I roll my eyes at her question. “Well honey, if she could sleep with you while she was with that Ethan boy then who knows who all she slept with while she was away. You can’t just accept that those kids are yours.”

  “I said...” I glare at the woman who’s supposed to be happy that she’s going to become a grandmother but instead is bashing and disrespecting the woman I love with no shame whatsoever. “That’s enough!” I continue through clenched teeth. “Here is what’s going to happen, You...” I point at her. “You are going to accept that you are going to be a grandmother and then you are going to pay Brianne and her mother a visit to give a heartfelt apology for the shit you spewed today.”

  “But-”

  “And then you and Sophia are going to stop talking shit about Brianne and my kids and then most importantly you, Sophia and Sabrina for that matter are going to get it through your heads that I. Want. Brianne!” My mother’s eyes are wide again with shock, I’ve never spoken to my mother like this. I usually just ignore her, but I will not let her, or anyone else, for that matter talk ill about Brianne or paint her as the town whore.

  “Now, get out of my car ma,” I say leaning over her to open the door.

  “But-”

  “Now ma!” I cut her off, glaring at her.

  She bows her head before getting out and closing the door behind her. I stab my keys in the ignition and turn it as I curse this day to hell. Great, after everything that happened today, I have a lot of fucking damage control to do, and all this shit just made me jump back to square one on my mission of getting Brianne to be mine. And I have no damn clue how the hell I’m going to fix this mess.

  With a frustrated huff, I drive back to my house. I’ll just give Brianne time to breathe before trying to fix everything, and I think I’m going to need help from my best friend to do it.

  After twenty-four hours of no sleep, I’m pacing my living room in frustration after trying for the millionth time to call Brianne, but she refuses to answer any of my calls or texts. I even went over to the salon, but I found it closed. I was even desperate enough to try and talk to her through Olivia, who told me in so many words to go fuck myself. I’m not sure what I did to fuck up so bad that she doesn’t even want to talk to me, but I need to fix it.

  I’ve also been trying to get a hold of Carson for the past few hours, but he is also not answering my calls. I’m starting to feel like the world is pissed at me and is against me winning over Brianne. With a sigh, I stop pacing and dial Carson’s number again.

  “What the hell did you do to my sister yesterday!” Carson’s angry voice nearly blows my eardrums to hell as he finally answers. “What the hell man, my sister has been crying since she got home yesterday morning.”

  “I need your help to make things right man,” I say, I’m starting to feel a bit defeated, but I refuse to give up.

  “What the fuck happened Jaxon?” Does he seriously think I would do anything to hurt Brianne?

  “My mother, Ethan, Shyanne and Sabrina happened,” I sigh again.

  “Okay, if it was everyone but you, then why the hell does she cry every time your name is mentioned?” Carson’s tone is filled with disappointment. My best friend has never been disappointed in me before. Fucking hell, yesterday fucked things up more than I thought, and it pisses me off.

  “What?!” The surprise in my voice is evident, what did I do to fuck up this bad?

  Damn my mother!

  Damn that prick, Ethan!

  Damn Shyanne and Sabrina!

  This is all their damn fault.

  “You need to help me fix this shit Carson, please,” I plead with him. I’m desperate and have no clue what to do seeing that Bri won’t even talk to me.

  “I’ll help you on one condition,” Carson says.

  “Name it!” I answer eagerly.

  “You are going to tell me what in the hell happened yesterday morning that upset my sister so much...” he pauses. “She, Livie and my mom refuse to tell me,”

  “Deal!” I reply.

  “Fine, I’m on my way.” He ends the call without another word.

  Carson is now the one pacing me in my living room and cursing up a storm. He arrived about thirty minutes after our telephone conversation, and I just finished telling him every detail of what went down yesterday morning.

  “Dude, that's just fucked-up!” He says for what feels like the millionth time.

  “I know, but I think I have a plan to fix this whole mess and possibly get Bri to give us a chance,” I say, thinking of the plan I conjured up while I was waiting for him to get here. “All I need is for you to get Brianne out of the house for a little while and then get her to go back alone. I doubt she will willingly come over here.” I continue.

  “Okay, what do you have in mind?” He asks, stopping his pacing before plopping on the couch with a huff.

  “Well, let's just say it’s going to involve Roses, seeing that Lillie’s make her sick now, Chocolates, a few baby bits and a shit-ton of grovelling from my side,” I say, determined to fix what was broken and get my woman.

  “Done, I’ll text you once I have her out of the house, I think she has a doctor’s appointment today anyway,” Carson says as he stands from his seated position and makes his way to the door.

  “Doctor?” I ask panicked. Shit, is there something wrong with our babies? Why wouldn’t she tell me?

  “Don't worry, it's just for a check-up,” he says when he hears the panic in my voice and sees my wide-eyed expression. I sigh in relief, but still, wish I could be with her when she goes to the doctor. I have missed six months of the pregnancy, and I want to be part of everything and be there for her through the rest of it.

  “Oh, and here,” he turns to look at me from the door and throws keys my way. I catch them mid-air and look at him
questioningly. “Keys to her house, don’t be a jackass and lose ‘em okay,” he says before closing the door behind him.

  Great, I have a plan. Please God, let it work!

  Chapter Twelve

  Brianne

  “Where the hell are we going, Carson?” I ask him; I don’t like it, he’s in a weird mood; he’s acting all shifty.

  “Come on, Bri. We’re going to get some food; mom said you haven’t been eating properly.”

  “But I have an appointment soon.” Ugh, this heartburn is killing me, I’m trying to figure out what to eat that won’t cause this heartburn to get worse.

  “You have an appointment in two hours; we have loads of time. Come on; I’ll even drive you to your appointment.” He picks up my purse off the kitchen counter along with my keys and starts ushering me out of the house.

  “Calm your horses. I’m coming!” I shout as I follow behind him trying my hardest not to trip over my dress, it’s too long, especially as I’m wearing my flip-flops. He locks up the house behind me and has a stupid grin on his face; he’s up to something I can tell, but I don’t know if I want to know. I get into his truck absentmindedly, I need food, and if I have eaten a full meal, it might help me clear my mind and see the situation with Jaxon a bit more clearly.

  “Bri, about Jax…” Carson starts, and I hold my hand up as tears start to form in my eyes. I don’t want to talk about him. Just thinking about yesterday gets me upset, I can’t believe that Loretta thinks I’m a whore who doesn’t know the father of her own babies.

  “Bri,” Carson pulls me from my thoughts, I look at him, and he looks worried, I know he hates this, he doesn’t know what to do for me. “Look Bri, yesterday, it wasn’t Jax’s fault.”

  “The way his mom was speaking… God, Carson, they were arguing, and it was because of me. To make matters worse, his mom practically called me a whore, and I’m mad at Jaxon because he didn’t call her out on her bullshit, mom did and then to top all that shit off Ethan won’t leave me the hell alone. He’s constantly calling and texting; he even emailed me.”