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Grace sagged against her friend for precious seconds. “He’s a lying, cheating bastard. There’s a woman in his room. In his bed! Naked!”
The more details she tried to give, the higher her voice rose, but instead of falling apart-or falling apart any further-they acted to galvanize her, and fury washed through her once again.
“I have to go,” she said again, pulling away from Ro
On some level, she realized she was out of control and on the verge of a breakdown, but all she could think was that she couldn’t stay here-in this city, in this building where Zack had cheated on her, betrayed her, ripped her heart from her chest and stomped all over it.
“Okay, okay, give me a minute,” Ro
Letting go, Ro
A moment later, Ro
She took Grace’s purse and dug out her key ring, keeping it in hand. Though her brain still wasn’t processing details as well as she’d like, Grace was frankly relieved to turn the task of driving over to someone else, since she knew she was in no shape to get them back to Cleveland in one piece.
“It’s all right, sweetie,” Ro
But everything wasn’t all right, and Grace knew deep down in her soul that it never would be again.
Purl 8
When Je
Aunt Charlotte would never forgive her if she dropped the ball in taking care of her little sweethearts, no matter how distracted Je
Which was why she didn’t think twice about a vehicle passing by the house. The dirt road ru
And right now, she had much more important things on her mind. Baby names and colors for the nursery.
Oh, she knew it was premature to be thinking about that sort of thing already. She’d only finished having sex twelve hours ago; there was no way she could know for sure whether she was pregnant or not.
But she was hopeful. So very, very hopeful.
The fight with Gage that morning had definitely shaken her, but it hadn’t exactly been unexpected. She’d known how he would react once he became cognizant enough to realize what she’d done-and why.
It hadn’t been noble of her in the least, that she could fully admit. In some ways, though, it had been necessary-at least to her.
She was lucky, too, that she knew Gage so well. He was furious with her, yes, and he would likely take out his anger and frustration at the gym, pumping iron and pounding a punching bag until his already impressive guns grew even bigger and harder. And he would probably drink a little-a few beers at home in front of the TV and then a few more later, once Zack and Dylan got back into town and could help him commiserate about the deceptive nature of women in general and his ex-wife in particular.
Je
Despite all of that, however, soon after Gage had stormed out, she’d caught herself humming and then realized that she was also smiling… and she hadn’t stopped since.
She was humming every lullaby she knew, one after another. Her hands continually drifted to her abdomen as she wondered if she really might be pregnant at this very moment, and she kept trying to decide if she should do the baby’s room in Sesame Street or adorable jungle animals.
There were so many things to consider. Did she want to know the baby’s gender before he or she was born, or did she prefer to be surprised? Did she want to do a nursery in standard boy (blue) or girl (pink) colors, or should she go with something more general, like green or yellow?
It was frightening, but it was also exhilarating, and she couldn’t wait. She just couldn’t wait to find out if she was or wasn’t… and she prayed to God she was.
Finishing up in the barn, she wiped her hands on the seat of her pants and turned for the open barn door. The car-or truck or whatever-was still out there, she noticed. Rather than passing by, it seemed to have stopped, idling near the house.
Je
Leaving the barn, she headed for the house, but couldn’t see the driveway until she’d rounded a small tool shed between the two larger buildings. When she did, when the driveway and the big chrome-and-black Harley-Davidson Low Rider sitting there came into view, she froze.
Her arms fell to her sides and her feet refused to budge. Deep in her chest, her heart began a staccato thu-thump, thu-thump, thu-thump, sending blood pounding through every part of her body except her brain. That remained surprisingly inactive and empty of coherent thought.
Gage, who continued to balance the bike while it throbbed beneath him, pi
The entire time, he barely took his gaze off of her. Halfway across the yard, he stopped, cocked his head, and said, “You coming in?”
Je
What was he doing here? Where was he going? Why did he have a duffel with him? Why was he headed for the house?
Why couldn’t she seem to get enough oxygen into her lungs or reduce the beat of her heart to something slower than a hummingbird’s?
Without waiting for a response, he continued onto the porch and through the front door. And finally, almost as though a firecracker had gone off behind her, Je
Screen door banging shut behind her, she raced into the house, only to find the dining room and kitchen empty. She checked the living room. No one there.
There was only one place left where he could be.
Upstairs.
Taking the steps two at a time, she rounded the newel post and started glancing into open doorways.
She found him at the end of the hall, in her room. The same room where they’d spent last night.
His duffel was on the unmade bed and he was systematically pulling items out, placing them on the nightstand or in the single dresser alongside her own clothes.