I shrug. “Honestly, I haven’t figured anything out. Worse case scenario, I move back home to my family’s ranch. It’ll be hard. I’ll be embarrassed, but I’ll be taken care of. The baby will be loved.”
Nadia gives me a small nod before turning her attention back to the books. She’s quiet for a while. “You never talk about your family,” she remarks.
“You never talk about yours,” I say with a smirk and a nudge to her shoulder.
She laughs. “I guess it’s ‘cause I didn’t get to pick ‘em.”
I can totally empathize with that. “I agree 100 percent…but I’m glad I got to pick you to be my friend.”
“Awww, Hails!” She leans in and gives me a bear hug.
“I love you, Nadia!”
“Love you, too, Hailey!” She hugs me for a moment longer before she pulls away. “Okay, this is getting way too sentimental for me.”
I laugh.
She glances at the clock on the wall. “Oh, no! We totally lost track of time. We should get going.”
We both grab our piles of books and magazines and head to the cash register.
Chapter 14
Four missed calls from Jackson.
Well, that’s just too bad.
I have no intention of calling him back. As heartbroken as I am, I won’t let him jerk me around. He treated me horribly the last time we saw each other. I’m not over it.
I slip out of my jacket and hang it on the rack near the door. I kick off my boots. I hurry over to the kitchen table and empty the contents of my purse onto the table.
And there it is.
I pick up the printout of my ultrasound. I hold up the cloudy black and white image and smile as I try to figure out exactly what it represents. Nadia and I spent the whole train ride back from my doctor’s appointment trying to decipher the head from the arms from the feet. And as blurry as the image is, we cooed over just how cute my baby is.
My baby.
I smile to myself as I stare at the photo.
I hear my stomach growl loudly. That’s my reminder that I need to eat. I can’t diet and skip meals now that I’m pregnant. That would be harmful to the baby.
I set the ultrasound down on the counter near the sink and reach into the fridge for the quinoa and bean salad that I had set aside for dinner. Just as I’m about to grab a fork, I hear keys rattling in the lock on the front door. I hurry into the vestibule just in time to see Jackson step over the threshold.
Chapter 15
“What are you doing here?” My tone is grating and unkind. My shoulders are tense.
He’s supposed to be back in Texas working on his app business. Why is he here? In New York? In my apartment?
I haven’t spoken to him since the day he confronted me about using my friendship with Amber to convince Spencer to invest in the app.
Things ended badly that day.
They ended for good.
I won’t be with someone who can be so cruel when I was only trying to help him. So, I’ve been avoiding his calls. And his texts. And his emails.
“I’ve been trying to reach you for days. Why haven’t you answered?” he’s standing at the door looking utterly refined, wearing a black designer leather jacket over his crew-neck sweater. His face is freshly shaven. His nails are manicured. There is nothing rough around the edges about him anymore.
I glance down at my faded sweater and worn jeans. “I’ve been busy,” I say coldly.
He’s silent for a while as he studies my face. I fidget uncomfortably.
I can see the rawness in his eyes. His soft spot. The part of him that wants me despite himself. Despite his pride. I recognize it because I have a similar weakness for him. I fold my arms tightly across my chest to cover that weakness up.
“I’m here to get my stuff,” he says finally.
“Well, go right ahead,” I growl as I stomp down the hallway to my bedroom and slam the door behind me.
I’m acting tough, but I feel bare and heartbroken. I never thought that things would turn out this way between Jackson and me. I stand in front of the mirror, rubbing my belly and tears run freely down my face.
I’m having a baby by a man I can’t see eye-to-eye with. It’s a terrible feeling.
My bedroom door bursts open all of a sudden. “Don’t you know how to knock?” I bark at Jackson as I turn away to dry my tears discreetly.
“I heard you crying.” He comes to me where I’m standing. “I still want to be with you, Hailey. I can’t get you out of my head. I can forgive you for going behind my back to find me an investor. We can find a way to move past it.” He runs a finger down my cheek, pushing away the tears.
I offer nothing in reply.
“Let’s give us a shot, Cowgirl,” he begs softly.
That’s what I want. I want to be with him. But that’s easier said than done. We need to go our separate ways.
He comes even closer and holds my face in his hands. He brings his lips to mine.
And just like that, my defenses begin to melt.
Chapter 16
His hungry groans resonate through out my body, his hands tangled in the wool of my sweater. In no time, my clothes have been stripped off and discarded in a pile on the floor.
I kiss him as though I could eat him. Eager and impatient. I’m famished for him. It’s been so long.
He growls my name and I feel like I’m on fire. It stokes me on – seeing his body throbbing for mine stokes me on. I grab at his shirt, yanking it over his head and tossing it to the floor. He pushes me softly and I land on the bed. He climbs on top of me. His lips touch my neck…my breasts…my stomach. My eyes roll back into my head and I quiver as his tongue flicks across the lips of my sex.
“Jacksooooonnnnn.” I throw my head back into the sheets and scream his name loud enough that the whole city can hear, can know that I’m under his spell.
My fingernails dig into his shoulders as I thrust my pelvis against his eager mouth. His tongue is hot against my flesh and lashes at me repeatedly. I grab at his hair, at the sheets. Anything to keep me grounded because the pleasure is so intense, I feel like I might evaporate.
“More…Don’t stop…Please.” Unfamiliar sounds escape my lips as Jackson’s tongue sweeps across my most sensitive parts again and again. Then, he sucks. He licks. He spreads the delicate folds and dips his tongue inside. “Hailey – you taste so good. So sweet.”
My back arches off of the bed. My fists clench at my sides. My toes curl. I gasp, desperate for air as a mind-numbing orgasm washes over me.
My body is too sensitive, still descending from the climax. Still, Jackson is unrelenting. He refuses to give my throbbing flesh a break. I cry out, overwhelmed, when I feel his rock-hard cock slither through my folds. “Hailey – Shit. So good,” he moans. He’s raw. No protection. I would protest, but I’m already carrying his baby, a secret buried in the deepest part of me.
He’s hovering over me, pinning my hips to the mattress, thrusting deep inside me. His glorious body is tight with effort and glistening with sweat. I surrender to the pleasure, allowing his body to dominate mine completely. I submit wholly to his deep, grinding thrusts.
I jolt forcefully as a second climax snatches my senses. It snuck up on me. I wasn’t ready. My thighs flex and clench as he pours his essence into me. My core swallows it up greedily.
A satisfied smile pulls across his face. “Jesus, Hailey,” he mutters into my damp skin. “I’ve missed you so much.”
Chapter 17
I roll over into his arms, still struggling to catch my breath. Three orgasms later and I’m almost too tired to move a limb.
This is goodbye sex.
I needed to feel him one last time before we go our separate ways for good. I hope he understands that. This last night together has provided me with the closure that I need to move on.
“I’m gonna go get a glass of water,” Jackson says as he shuffles out of my embrace and rises to his feet. “Want one?”
“Yes,” I say, fighting back a yawn.
I pull the warm comforter around my naked body as he pads down the hallway to the kitchen. I’ve already begun to drift off the sleep when the bedroom light suddenly flicks on.
“Hailey – what is this?”
Even in my drowsiness, I hear the trepidation in his voice. I look over to where he’s standing by the bedroom door.
Shit – I forgot it on the kitchen counter.
I see my ultrasound image dangling from Jackson’s fingers.
Chapter 18
“Were you ever gonna tell me?” he growls angrily.
Was I?
I don’t know, honestly.
“Hailey – were you ever gonna tell me about my child?” he insists. “Wait – it is my child, right?”
“Of course it’s your child, Jackson,” I say impatiently. Coming from him, the question feels like a slap in the face.
Jackson stops pacing my bedroom floor for long enough to sit on the edge of the mattress. “So, what happens now?”
“You want me to have an abortion, don’t you?” I say defensively as I sit up in the bed. “Well, I can’t do that.” Going to that Planned Parenthood clinic with Ruthie was one of the most traumatic experiences of my life. I could never go through with the abortion.
Jackson’s eyes dart to my face. “What? That’s the last thing I want…I want us to be a family. You, me and our baby.”
Huh?
I can hardly believe my ears. This is not at all what I expected him to say.
“Finding out that you’re pregnant, Hailey – that may be the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
I feel like the boulder that’s been sitting on my chest for the past few weeks has been rolled off. Still, I’ve got to ask, “What about your app business? It’s just taking off. I don’t want to get in the way.”
He laughs. “Are you serious? You’re not getting in the way. This baby is the greatest gift. I have everything now. A successful career, a beautiful girl and a baby. I’m the luckiest guy alive.”
I breathe out a sigh of relief and a tear runs down my cheek. All this time I spent torturing myself for no reason. Jackson wants us. He wants me and this baby.
He comes close to me and he wraps me in his arms. “You’ve given new meaning to my life, Hailey. You and this baby – you’re my number one priority. Don’t ever forget that.”
I drape my arms around his neck and hug him tightly. “Thank you, Jackson,” I murmur against his cheek.
He kisses my forehead lightly and caresses my stomach. “No – thank you.”
Chapter 19
“You have to stop telling that story!” Ruthie says with a bashful giggle. Her cheeks are red but she’s beaming as Michael recounts the story of how they met. I’ve heard the story from Ruthie before. The x-rated version. Honestly, Michael’s account isn’t so bad.
Ruthie buries her face in a napkin and Michael pokes her in the ribs, laughing. “What? You don’t want people to know that you’re a fiery siren who seduced me at a Times Square nightclub while I was just hanging around, minding my own business?”
“I did not seduce him,” Ruthie insists, trying to convince the rest of us of her innocence. We all just laugh.
I decided to take Madison up on her suggestion that we go on a triple date to Bliss, a new Broadway show. Now, Jackson and I, together with Madison, Domenic, Ruthie and Michael, are enjoying a nice dinner at a quaint French restaurant a few streets away from the theatre. The wine is flowing liberally and our table has already begun to get a touch too rowdy for the upscale restaurant but we’re all having fun.
“So, Jackson, tell us how you and Hailey met,” Madison requests as she steals a bite of Domenic’s trout tartare.
“Oh, Maddie, you already know the story,” I say, spooning some ratatouille onto a piece of baguette.
She shoos me off with a dismissive flick of the wrist. “I want to hear Jackson’s version of events.”
Jackson laughs. “Let me tell the story, Cowgirl!”
I shrug my shoulders, defeated.
“So, it was a chilly morning in late November –” he begins.
I interrupt him. “Early December. It was early December.”
“No – It was late November,” he insists.
“Jackson – I’m telling you – it was early December.”
“Guys – it really doesn’t matter,” Domenic says with a laugh as he takes a gulp of his red wine.
“So, as I was saying…” Jackson laughs, nudging me playfully in the shoulder. “It was a chilly morning and I had a job interview for a part-time security guard position. I was early so I decided to go across the street to grab a cup of coffee. I glanced out towards the sidewalk and I saw this angel approaching the building – blond waves, eyes like the ocean, looking like a real lady with her fancy coat and handbag. I stopped dead in my tracks. She was perfect, walking towards the building, smiling to herself.”
I feel heat rush to my cheeks as he speaks. “You’re blushing, Hails,” Ruthie remarks with a giggle and I bury my face in Jackson’s shoulder.
He gently strokes my cheek before he continues his story. “I find myself walking towards her. I didn’t know what I was gonna say, but I had to talk to her. But some jerk beat me to it. He caught her attention and she smiled at him, and then, bam – he grabbed her handbag and started running.”
I hear Madison gasp as she clutches her chest.
Jackson continues, “And something took over me. I don’t know what it was. But I jumped into action. I chased him for half a block and when I caught up to him, I gave him a good swift kick and snatched the bag. By the time I got back to the building, there was a huge crowd around my angel. I was so amped up on adrenaline that I didn’t even ask for her number when I gave her handbag back.”
“Awww,” Ruthie sighs, clasping her hands over her heart.
Jackson turns to me and resumes his story. “I was kicking myself all day. When I saw you walk through the lobby the next day, I knew I would make you mine.”
Tears are running down my cheeks and Madison and Ruthie are misty-eyed. “That’s so sweet, Jackson,” Madison coos.
Ruthie snuggles close to Michael. “So, you wanted her from the first day you saw her…”
Jackson leans over and places a soft kiss on my cheek. “Yeah – it was love at first sight.”
Chapter 20
Thank goodness it’s Saturday because I’m in no shape to get out of bed this morning.
Last night’s outing to Broadway was lots of fun but I’m exhausted now. Plus, I have insane nausea.
I’m really annoyed by the fact that Jackson was nowhere to be found when I open my eyes this morning. I know that there isn’t much he can do to make me feel better but his mere presence in bed would have been comforting.
He must have gone back to the suite. His ‘bachelor pad’, as I begrudgingly call it. Even though he and I made up and we’re very much a couple, he hasn’t officially moved back in with me. He’s still keeping the condo in Greenwich Village. He says it’s easier for him to get work done when he’s over there but I feel like that’s a poor excuse. I have an extra bedroom here since Ruthie moved out. Jackson is more than welcome to turn that into a home office. But instead he leaves me here to go work at the condo.
Although Jackson and I are back together, I still have my doubts about us. He says that he’s happy we’re having a baby, he sings my praises and says that he’s thrilled about his new family, but I don’t know…He’s a young, handsome businessman who just left Texas for the Big Apple only to get some girl pregnant and end up tied down. What if someone else catches his eye? Someone prettier…thinner…less pregnant. I have to be prepared for that.
Just then, I hear rattling at the front door. Then, there’s commotion in the kitchen.
It must be Jackson.
He left while I was sleeping. He just snuck out. I won’t let that slide. I’m ready to confront him. If he’s not prepared to be a fa
mily man, he can just say so. He doesn’t have to sneak around. No one’s holding him hostage here. I’m going to tell him that.
I use all the strength I can muster to sit up in bed.
“Hey sleepy head,” he says jovially as he enters the room. He’s balancing a platter of sliced granny smith apples in one hand and a mug of piping hot tea in the other hand. “I brought you something to eat. My mother says that orange peel tea and green apples are good for nausea,” he says with a gorgeous smile.
Moments with Hailey - The Esquire Girls Series - Hailey's Story (Books 1, 2, 3 & 4) - Box Set (featuring Tender Moments , a brand-new Valentine's Day novelette) Page 15
