A Good Time

by Shannyn Schroeder

  “Okay. I guess I’ll see you when I see you. Have a safe trip.”

  “You too.”

  They both lingered, and silence weighed heavily before he hung up. Griffin grabbed his overnight bag and quickly tossed clothes in. Indy might not have asked him to come, but she would need him. Griffin had the feeling her father would continue to jab at Indy unless he remained unconscious. She already had enough stress.

  He drove through the night and pulled over at a truck stop to sleep for a couple of hours in the morning. By the time he arrived at the hospital, he felt crappy enough to be a patient.

  The automatic doors slid open, releasing the hushed gloom of the hospital. The antiseptic smell assaulted him. He swallowed, afraid bile might rise. His feet became bricks as the memories of his mother’s last days swam in his mind. The useless pacing, the horrible coffee, the quiet that wasn’t really quiet.

  He reminded himself that his mother’s misery was over and he had nothing to fear. Pushing on, he went to the nurse’s station to ask for Walt’s room.

  Indy was there all right. Her voice easily carried into the hall. “Don’t you think I know the date? I know it’s Mom’s birthday. You’re not the only one who lost her. You don’t see the rest of us running out on a bender and driving drunk.”

  Griffin paused with his hand on the door. He waited instead of pushing it open.

  “I loved her.” Walt’s weak voice croaked, so unlike the booming quality he’d had at Quinn’s dinner party.

  Indy snorted. “You loved her so much you trapped her in a life she hated.”

  “What are you talking about? I tried to give her everything she wanted.”

  “A life in this crappy little town is what she wanted?”

  Walt sighed, and Griffin heard the mechanics of the bed whirring. Griffin removed his hand from the door and backed up a step, remaining silent. Guilt crept into his chest. He shouldn’t listen to the private moment, but he couldn’t leave.

  “When I met your mother, I fell head over heels immediately. I loved everything about her. Two months after our first date, she told me she was pregnant. I didn’t even know if it was mine.”

  “You’re sinking pretty damn low calling Mom a slut.”

  “Don’t you talk to me like that. I’ve never said any such thing about your mother. She wanted the baby more than anything, so I married her. I’d have done anything to make her happy.”

  A chunk of ice-cold fear plummeted into Griffin’s stomach. Married? Is that what Indy would want? What the baby would need? He eased away from the door. Marriage wasn’t an option for him.

  He vowed he would never hurt a woman the way his father had crushed his mother.

  He wouldn’t make promises he couldn’t keep.

  Not after what had happened with Selena.

  Griffin turned away from the room and stopped at the nurse’s station. He forced his charming do-me-a-favor smile “Hi. When Walt Adams’s daughter comes out, could you tell her I’m outside?”

  “You can go in to visit if you’d like.”

  “No. I think they need some time. I’ll wait. Thanks.”

  Indy fisted her hands to control her rage. “That’s a lie. You were married for three years before you had me.”

  “There was another baby. She lost him. Our son. All she wanted was a family. Babies.” His red-rimmed eyes filled with tears.

  It certainly explained a lot. “That’s why you can’t stand the sight of me. It’s not that I wasn’t born a boy. I lived. I lived, but your son didn’t. And you hate me for it.”

  The anger and hurt burned through the tears streaming down her face. She turned away from her father. The one man she’d always sought attention from. The only one she wanted to love her. At least now she understood the futility of her attempts.

  “Independence.”

  She couldn’t face him.

  “I’ve never hated you. I’ve always loved you too much.”

  Indy spun around. “Funny way of showing it. Everyone knows Quinn’s your favorite. That doesn’t even bother me. What kills me is the look of disgust I’ve seen on your face for most of my life.”

  As the words left her mouth, Indy’s mind spun back in time. He hadn’t always looked at her like that. Deep in her memory, a flash of his loving eyes held her. The crush of the memory forced more tears.

  “By the time you were a teenager, all I saw in you was your mother. I was afraid of losing you. You were wild and couldn’t wait to get away from here. Then your mother died. Every time I look at you, I still see her. It hurts too much.”

  Her father cried. The only time he’d ever shed tears had been at her mother’s funeral.

  He cleared his throat and brushed away the tears. “I always pushed myself to give Quinn more attention because I didn’t want her to know you were my favorite.”

  Indy laughed. Her voice bounced off the tastefully decorated, bland walls while the tears continued to streak her face.

  “That’s her right there. My Alice. Turn emotion on a dime and laugh like there’s no tomorrow. I miss her laugh most of all.”

  Hearing him say her mother’s name eased some tension. Indy sat on the edge of the bed and took Walt’s hand. “I wish you’d talk about her more. It would’ve made the last fourteen years a whole lot easier.”

  “I can’t.”

  “You just did.”

  “And look what it did to me.” He rubbed his face again.

  Indy sighed and stood, afraid she’d get no more out of him. She walked to the window and looked at the cars below. The colors and shapes of the vehicles looked like a child-created mosaic. “If Mom was so happy here, why did she always push me and Quinn out? She harped on us almost daily about going away to college.”

  “She wanted you to get as much out of life as you could. She wanted you to find your own happiness.”

  She sat with him until he fell back asleep. Unlike most people, Walt didn’t look peaceful in his sleep. His craggy, bruised face still held sorrow. Indy went to the bathroom and splashed cool water on her face to smooth the ruddiness in her cheeks.

  A walk in the fresh air would do her good. She reapplied her makeup. It would be just her luck to run into an old boyfriend when she looked like crap. She made sure Walt was still asleep and then she eased out the door. Everything she believed, no, assumed, about her mother had been wrong. If Dad’s telling the truth now. God, I wish Mom were here. Why would he marry her without a paternity test? He’d trapped them both by being nice, doing the upright thing. She couldn’t wrap her mind around the insanity.

  She moved silently, afraid to make noise, knowing it made no sense. The patients were awake and doctors and nurses bustled around, but she still couldn’t stop her steps from being quiet.

  A rock sat in the pit of her stomach, grinding at already-frayed nerves. She knew she’d always been like her mother, but now the similarities were spooky. Pregnant and unmarried. What were the chances? She even had a guy who’d proposed. Although the father of the baby, he was a total ass.

  “Ms. Adams,” a nurse called.

  Indy turned to face her. The younger woman beamed at her with a friendly smile. “Yes?”

  “A friend of yours asked me to tell you he’s outside.”

  “Did he give his name?”

  “No.” Her smile broadened and she lowered her voice, as if to reveal a secret. “Very good-looking with a killer smile. He came in some time ago, so I don’t know if he’s still out there.”

  “Thanks.” Indy walked to the elevator and rode down. No one knew she was in town except Griffin. Good-looking and killer smile definitely described him. But why would he come here?

  The elevator doors parted at the lobby. The exterior doors mimicked the motion. The glare of the sun made her squint. She felt his presence before she saw him. A tingling awareness tickled her nerves.

  He leaned against the building, watching her. A smile tugged at her lips that she couldn’t stop. Her heart swelled, and she tr
ied to push it back. She wasn’t supposed to feel this way about him. “Hi.”

  Griffin reached out and pulled her into his arms. “How are you?” She took a moment to soak up the strength surrounding her. “I’m okay.”

  He kissed the top of her head and held her close.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked, the sound muffled by his shirt.

  “I thought you’d need a hug.”

  She laughed and stepped back from the embrace. “Awful long way to go to deliver a hug, but I appreciate it.”

  “How’s your dad?” Griffin gestured to a bench.

  “He’ll be fine.” Indy sat on the cool metal. “I don’t want to talk about him. Tell me about your upcoming trip.”

  Keep the conversation neutral. Casual. She was the queen of casual.

  “That won’t make for interesting conversation.”

  “I don’t care.” She settled into the corner of the bench, keeping distance between them.

  “I have to go play nice with some parent group who is making my life hell. I’m evil because I’ve created a video game kids want. It’s rated for mature audiences, and parents are in an uproar because kids are asking for it.”

  “So what are you going to do?”

  “I have no idea. We’re counting on strong sales from this new game for the holidays.”

  “What kind of game?”

  “It’s called Night Beasts. You’re a human and you choose what kind of hunter you want to be: vampire, demon, or werewolf. Then you hunt the creatures down.”

  “That doesn’t sound too scary.”

  “The deaths are pretty bloody. I wouldn’t want my ten-year-old playing it.”

  She tilted her head up. “You have a kid I don’t know about?”

  “An expression.” A grim look clouded his face, but he covered it with a half-assed grin.

  His face said more than his words. He didn’t want a kid. She took that in. What the hell was she doing? She was pregnant and he didn’t want kids. She remembered his reaction to Quinn’s pregnancy, and she caught a glimpse of what Michelle had warned her about last month. At least Richard wanted a baby with her. Her brain felt like it would split.

  Escape.

  Safe ground. Talk about the game. “Why not make a kid-friendly version where the hunter . . . I don’t know . . . shoots out a net to catch the creature. Offer it free on the Internet before the holidays. Moms like free and nonviolent.”

  His body stilled. Her idea was stupid and he didn’t know how to tell her. She knew nothing about his business or video games. She should’ve kept her mouth shut. His face remained blank as he stared out into nothing. “Griffin?”

  “That might be it. We’ve been racking our brains trying to figure out how to offer another version simultaneously. We didn’t consider a free Web-based version. You’re brilliant.”

  “Okay.” She didn’t feel brilliant. She still felt like he was so completely out of her league.

  “I’m going to have to go.” He paused, turned to face her. “Look, I wanted to see you before I left because I might be gone for a while. I wanted you to have this.”

  He put a check in her hand. “What’s this?” she asked, trying not to drool over the big number.

  “You didn’t get a commission on my house. I closed the other day. Without the information you gave me, my negotiation wouldn’t have gone so well. You deserve the commission.”

  Indy swallowed hard. “Even if I got a commission, it wouldn’t have been this big.”

  “Six percent is the going rate.”

  “I never would’ve gotten all six percent. One, one and a half maybe.”

  He closed her hand around the check. “This is for you. You need it and you worked for it.”

  He touched her cheek, and she looked up into his eyes.

  “This is for you. Not him,” he added with a tilt of his chin toward the hospital.

  “What do you mean?”

  “I know you help support him. This is for you, so you can stop working at the bar.”

  “Thanks. It’s way more than I expected.” Why now? Why offer money now?

  He stood and she followed. He raised his hand as if to touch her, but thought twice. He’d never hesitated touching her. Then she realized why he pulled away. He was going out of town and he’d handed her a big check. He wanted out but didn’t want to seem like a dick breaking up with the pregnant girl. She didn’t know what had changed between last night and this morning, but he was different. They both seemed to be at a loss.

  She reached deep into her pocket where she’d slid his key last night. “Here. You should probably take this back.”

  He stared at the key.

  “You said you weren’t sure how long you were going to be gone. I might stay here for a while to deal with my dad.”

  His stony face sank. She couldn’t read the expression, but it didn’t look like relief.

  “You can hold on to it.”

  She swallowed hard. Why hold on to something she wasn’t meant to have? “That’s probably not a good idea. You’re really busy and my life is still messed up.”

  “Will I see you when I get back?”

  “I’m sure Quinn and Ryan will have us over for dinner and the holidays and stuff.” Keep it simple and friendly. A civilized breakup.

  “So that’s it?”

  “It’s probably for the best, don’t you think? I mean, we both keep saying no expectations, no strings, but here you are three hundred miles from home.”

  His mouth lifted on one side. “But you didn’t expect it, did you?” She bit her lip and forced a smile. “Have a safe trip. I better get back to Dad.”

  He kissed her quickly on the cheek, and she backed away before it could become more.

  She strode back through the swooshing doors without a glance over her shoulder. She had prepared herself for this. She’d known it wouldn’t last. Griffin had been her rebound guy and she’d gotten much more than she’d bargained for: a good time and a fat check. She walked through the lobby and tried not to think about the quiet house on a tree-lined street with the willow in the yard, but the image of a child on a tire swing squeezed her heart.

  She almost made it to the elevator before she felt like passing out. Her chest tightened and her breaths exited as short gasps. She sat on a bench and closed her eyes. She didn’t have panic attacks. Anxiety was foreign. Breaking up with a guy never had this effect.

  Indy straightened her spine and inhaled deeply. Taking the check out, she thought of the baby growing inside of her. Griffin’s money gave her a chance for a fresh start. The question became, what did she want to do with her life?

  Rule One: No more useless men. I’ve wasted enough time having fun that went nowhere. That might mean no men at all.

  She stood and tucked the check safely in her pocket. She had a lot to consider and plan but no idea where to start. This new territory of being a planner sent shivers up her arm.

  Chapter 11

  Griffin couldn’t believe she pushed him away again. To think he planned to ask her to move in with him. He’d dodged that bullet. If she wanted to run away, far be it from him to stop her. She wouldn’t marry the baby’s father, she wouldn’t live with him, and now she intended to stay in Small Town, USA. As if this town could handle someone like her. She’d never be happy here.

  Griffin drove back the way he came. At least all the hours in the car hadn’t been a total waste. He had a solid idea to satisfy the parent group. They probably wouldn’t be happy, but they could at least stop complaining. He made the calls to get production in motion, but his mind traveled back to Indy and how beat she looked.

  He couldn’t do anything about it. She wanted him out of her life. Her breakup method mirrored his—clean and smooth. Being on the receiving end felt strange. He wasn’t angry. How could he be? If she called him next week and wanted to get together, he would. They always had a good time. But she wouldn’t call. Of that much he was sure.

  By t
he time he reached Chicago and headed for the airport he’d just about had himself convinced that life without Indy would be an improvement. He shielded his heart with logic. He didn’t need the complications she would bring. The press catching sight of her pregnant would certainly cause problems. Kendra would have a fit.

  Yes, it was better all around that they ended before either of them got in too deep. His work projects and the foundation would keep him busy. She was pregnant with another man’s baby. They were better off.

  It had taken a lot of talk, but Indy had been able to convince Quinn to stay in Chicago. Indy managed to get a lawyer for her father and spend a day shopping for a used car for Lydia.

  Responsibility was exhausting.

  Indy had quit her job at End Zone because she hadn’t known how long she was going to be out of town. Now she returned home not knowing what to do for work. She’d called the real estate office to check in, but the owner seemed stiff.

  She still hadn’t told anyone she was pregnant. The debate raged in her head. The ultrasound appointment loomed over her. She didn’t want to go alone. Call Quinn and have unyielding support, or call Kate and have reality slapped at her?

  Indy imagined Quinn would be excited by the thought of having their children be the same age. Cousins growing up together.

  She wasn’t ready for excitement. She questioned her ability to do this. After cautioning Quinn about the hardships of single parenting, why did she think she could succeed?

  She drove to Kate’s house. Her husband, Mark, would be at work, so they’d be able to talk. Kate opened the door with a look of surprise. “Hi. What are you doing here?”

  “I need to talk.” Indy followed Kate through the house.

  “It’s not your dad, is it? Quinn said he was fine.”

  “He is.”

  “Let’s go to the kitchen. I have coffee on. Sesame Street will keep the kids busy.”

  Kate quickly poured two cups of coffee and sat across from Indy at the table. “What’s going on?”

  “I’m pregnant.”

  Kate bobbled her mug, and coffee sloshed over her hand. “Shit.” She jumped up and grabbed a napkin. “Did you say pregnant?”