by Brook Wilder
Maddie chuckled.
“I hope so. I’m not good with blood.”
“With the burning down below, I think that will be the least of your worries.”
Maddie winced.
“Thanks for that.”
Jace chuckled. He leant over and laid a hand over hers, giving it a squeeze.
“You’ll be fine. I know you will.”
Maddie smiled back. Jace wanted to see that smile more often. She was looking less pale and less ill. Even as she was, she looked beautiful.
“Maddie?”
Jace looked up. A tall, dark-haired man in a pristine business suit was by their table. He was looking at Maddie in surprise. Maddie sat up, pulling her hand away from Jace’s.
“Martin, hi. I didn’t know you came in here.”
“Just when I’m stopping off for appointments at the hospital. It’s convenient.” Martin raised an eyebrow at her. “I didn’t realize you came in here as well. We should’ve had coffee if you did.”
Jace felt something stir in his belly and his chest tightened. He suddenly realized jealousy was rearing its head. For the first time since he had left Broken Hounds, jealousy was making an appearance. All because a man was showing interest in Maddie, and there was no doubt in the way that Martin was looking at Maddie that he lusted after her.
Jace didn’t like that.
“I don’t frequent here.” Maddie was looking a little uncomfortable. She glanced at Jace, her expression saying she didn’t want to be there, but she would handle it. Jace let her handle it. “I was just having some respite before I headed home.”
“Oh.” Martin looked a little deflated and that made Jace’s chest swell. “How…how was the hospital appointment? Did you find out the cause for your vomiting?”
“I did.” Maddie smiled. She sat back and twiddled the straw in her fingers. “The OB-GYN was very pleased.”
Jace watched as Martin’s face changed. He looked stunned, his eyes widening and his mouth dropping open. He had clearly not been expecting that.
“OB-GYN? You…” he spluttered. “You never said you were pregnant.”
Jace couldn’t stop himself from growling.
“Does she have to tell you everything when she’s barely out of the first trimester?”
That was when Martin noticed him for the first time. He sized Jace up and down and Jace could see his mind turning to he-didn’t-like-what-he-saw and there-was-competition. Maddie then realized what was happening and hastily made introductions.
“Jace, this is Doctor Martin Roberts. He’s one of the doctors at the surgery I work at. Martin, this is Jace Howard.” She paused. “He’s the father of my baby.”
Jace then saw the penny dropping. He felt extreme satisfaction from seeing the man who saw him as competition realize he was out of the running before the rivalry even started.
“He’s…he’s the father.”
Martin looked like he was about to have a heart attack. He then looked incredulous, staring at Jace as if he was something he had scraped off his shoes. Jace began to stand, sizing the man up. Martin was taller, but Jace was sure he could take him. He had taken bigger men in fights and he had won.
“Have you got a problem with that, sir?”
It looked like Martin was about to size up to him. But then he stopped, glancing at Maddie. Maddie was staring at Jace in alarm. Martin gave Jace one last glare and backed away.
“I’ll get my coffee elsewhere. See you later, Maddie.”
Then he was gone, practically hurrying out of the diner. Jace was aware of the few people inside watching him, but he didn’t care. He was staking his claim on Maddie and didn’t care who saw.
Jace sat, still seething. Maddie looked uncomfortable and sighed heavily, hunching over her shake.
“I had hoped Beth was wrong about him.”
“Wrong about what?” Jace frowned. “What are you talking about?”
“Beth said Martin had a thing for me. I told her she was being ridiculous but…it looks like she was right.”
Jace didn’t like hearing that. Maddie was a beautiful woman and that she would have admirers was to be expected, but to see one of the men in person and clearly showing his attentions towards Maddie made Jace’s jealousy flare up again.
“Well, I hope he keeps his distance now. I don’t want to tell him to keep his hands off you.”
Maddie stared at him.
“I beg your pardon? You and I are not in a relationship. I can see whoever I want.”
Jace started. He hadn’t expected Maddie to react that way. He stared at her.
“A relationship with Martin Roberts?” He couldn’t stop himself from smirking. “It doesn’t look like he’ll take you now.”
“Because you made me used goods,” Maddie snarled. Her nerves and smiles had gone. Now she had red blotches on her cheeks in her fury. She leant over and jabbed a finger at him. “And you acted like a bastard to him. He’s a colleague and I don’t need any trouble.”
“You should’ve thought about that before you sucked my cock,” Jace sneered.
That had been a bad idea, as Jace found out when Maddie slapped him. Hard. Jace hadn’t realized Maddie was so strong. It was the first time a slap had actually hurt. Maddie sat back, looking like she was close to crying.
“I think I’d better go.”
“Maddie…”
Maddie stood, glancing at the ultrasound.
“That’s your copy. No need to return it. You want to know anything about the baby, text me. No calls, nothing. I don’t want to hear your voice.”
“Maddie…”
Jace now realized he had messed up. He had forgotten that, when you weren’t treating women as bed partners but as actual people, they had feelings. And he had forgotten about Maddie’s feelings. Jace had crossed a line.
Now he was staring at Maddie’s departing back as she slammed out of the diner.
Chapter Six
“For the love of God!” Maddie cried as she paced. “I never asked him to stand up for me!”
Beth sighed and watched her pacing around from her vantage point on the couch. She then looked at the magazine she had been flicking through.
“Well, you are carrying his baby. He would be a little possessive.”
Maddie growled. After the diner she had gone straight home, furious with Jace for speaking to Martin the way he had. Jace didn’t have a claim over her. The only reason they had a connection at all was because of the baby. He didn’t have to speak to Martin in that way.
Maddie had found herself softening towards Jace, thinking he would change. But he hadn’t. He was still a bully, even if it wasn’t directed at her anymore. Maddie didn’t want to be associated with a bully of any sort.
Which reminded her to have a word with Jeremy about ruling her life without letting her have a say.
Beth hadn’t got off work until four and that had left Maddie charging around her condo, trying to focus on anything other than finding Jace or her brother and attacking them for being idiots who thought they could control her life. The condo was now spotless and there was a second load of laundry in. By the time Beth had arrived, Maddie had dried, ironed, folded and put away her clothes, something she had never done before. Her iron hadn’t even been taken out of its box.
Just by looking at it all, Beth knew that Maddie was mad.
Now Maddie was pacing around her lounge while Beth sat on the couch, her feet up as she looked through an old magazine Maddie had missed when throwing things out.
“I’m not going to sleep with Martin, though,” Maddie protested. “He doesn’t need to worry about that. I can fight my own battles. I’m not completely helpless.”
“I know you’re not helpless, but you know what men are like. They need to show they have big, brass balls that are bigger than the other guy’s.”
Beth cupped her hand as if she was cradling huge testicles. Maddie grunted, running her hands through her hair.
“I’m so glad
I’m not a guy. God, I hate men’s egos.”
If it had been anyone else, Maddie wouldn’t have minded. In fact, she would have liked a knight in shining armor showing some jealousy. But this was Jace Howard she was involved with and he was anything other than a white knight. He certainly wouldn’t be riding in on a noble steed to rescue a damsel in distress.
“Have you considered that it could be something else as well?” Beth asked.
Maddie turned to her friend. Beth was looking at her strangely, the magazine in her lap. She was trying to tell her something, but Maddie’s brain was too focused on her anger to figure out what.
“What?”
Beth sighed.
“Come on, Maddie, you’re not stupid. Maybe he did it because Jace actually cares about you rather than you’re being the the baby’s momma.”
Maddie faltered. Did Jace care about her? She had wondered but then she had discarded it. That couldn’t happen, not with Jace Howard. He wasn’t capable of caring for a woman. He was a love-them-and-leave-them person.
She shook her head.
“He doesn’t care about me like that. And it still comes under being possessive, Beth.”
Beth snorted. Maddie frowned.
“What? Why are you looking at me like that for?”
“You really are willing to think the worst of Jace, aren’t you?”
“Can you blame me? You were there, Beth. You know how bad it got for me.” Maddie turned away, trying to force away the memories that were now suddenly flaring up. “I can’t simply forget it all because we’re adults now. Forgive and forget doesn’t work with me.”
“I know it doesn’t.” Beth sighed and rubbed at her eyes. “But maybe he’s thinking otherwise.”
Maddie didn’t want to have Jace think about her like that. He was the father of her baby, that was it. Maddie may have invited him to the birth to hold his child, but she wasn’t going to let him in to her life. Not a chance.
She sagged onto the ottoman, burying her head in her hands.
“It’s going to be a while before I forgive him for anything. Maybe ever.” She swallowed and fought back the tears of frustration. “I do regret sleeping with him. If only I’d known.”
“Well, it’s happened now.” Beth raised her eyebrows. “And, from the look of it, the attraction is still there.”
Maddie started up. What had Beth just said? She was attracted to Jace? Maddie shook her head vehemently.
“No, no way. The attraction is not still there. Not a chance.”
Why did that feel like a lie? Beth didn’t look convinced, either.
“Are you sure?”
Maddie scowled. She wasn’t about to explain herself. She was not attracted to Jace Howard.
Was she?
“I thought you were meant to be here for moral support, not tell me someone I hate might have feelings for me.”
If Jace had been a good man, hearing he might have feelings for her would have made Maddie feel good. But he wasn’t, and Maddie didn’t like it at all. Beth shrugged and closed the magazine as she stood.
“Sorry for trying.” She tossed the magazine on the coffee table. “I’m hungry. Would you like to fix us some food?”
Maddie made a face. The doctor had given her some anti-sickness tablets and they were helping, but the thought of food made her nauseous. She sighed.
“I fancy ordering in.”
“Maddie.”
Maddie winced. She had made the promise only a few days before not to get so many takeaways and to eat heathier food. She groaned and stood.
“Fine. We’ll eat in. I’ve got some pasta and some sauce.”
“Then let’s get cooking.”
Maddie followed Beth into the kitchen and the two of them began to prepare. Beth got out the cooking utensils and Maddie found the pasta and the sauce. She poured the pasta into a baking dish and then the sauce, filling the jar with water to pour the remains of the sauce over the pasta. She stirred it and then Beth took it, placing it in the oven.
“Oh, by the way,” she said as she straightened up. “Jace isn’t the only one affected by you and the baby.”
“How do you mean?”
Maddie found some frozen garlic bread in the freezer and put it on the counter. She was suddenly having a hankering for garlic bread.
“I was speaking to Martin when he came back to the office.”
“I thought you didn’t talk to Martin unless you needed to.”
“Well, I thought I needed to. He looked like he had been hit over the head.”
Maddie wasn’t surprised. Martin had left the diner with an expression similar to what Beth had just described. But what did surprise her was the fact Martin had reacted in that way. Maddie had been aware that he found her attractive and wanted to have a date or two with her at least, but she hadn’t thought he would react to her being pregnant with someone else’s baby.
And a biker’s at that. Martin had shown great distaste for biker gangs, especially Broken Hounds. Maddie had never understood why, but she had witnessed Martin show an extreme dislike for Jeremy on more than one occasion when he’d come into the surgery. The girls in reception, even a couple of the female doctors, found Jeremy attractive and thought his tattoos were sexy. They sighed and swooned over him as soon as he turned his smile on them. Even the male doctors thought Jeremy was a nice guy, despite knowing exactly what he was. Martin was the only one who hated Jeremy.
“I can’t imagine why he would be so stunned.” Maddie hoisted herself onto the counter. “What did he think? That I was a virgin and waiting for the right man to come along?”
Beth burst out laughing, almost dropping the frozen chicken she had been putting out on the baking trays.
“Beth, careful!”
“Sorry.” Beth was still giggling as she put the chicken breasts onto the tray, putting the bag back into the freezer. “But seeing you as a virgin waiting for your white knight…? You would be the worst choice to play someone like Rapunzel.”
“Thanks a bunch.”
“And coming from a family like Broken Hounds, that would have been impressive for any girl.” Beth sighed as she washed her hands in the sink, using a huge amount of soap “I don’t know exactly what was going on in his head, but it was like he had the perfect image of you and now it’s been tarnished by someone else.”
Maddie snorted. She didn’t like those who backed away as soon as something happened. They passed off at false, pathetic individuals. Her opinion of Martin Roberts was lowering rapidly.
“Well, he’s going to have to lump it. I don’t answer to him.”
“And you don’t get on your knees, either.” Beth said with a giggle.
Maddie glared at her.
“That’s not funny.”
“No, of course not.”
But as Beth turned away, her shoulders were still shaking.
Chapter Seven
Jace knew what he had to do. It meant doing something he had vowed never to do again. It also meant going back into a fold that Jace had spent a lot of his life running away from. But if it meant something stable for his child and for Maddie, then Jace would do it.
He felt really bad for reacting the way he had in the diner. It had turned Maddie against him. Again. Jace had allowed his ego to get in the way and he knew that Maddie hated egos. The tentative trust he had been working on was now broken and it would take a very long time to get it back together.
If that trust was ever mended.
Even then, Jace knew he needed a job, something, so he could support the baby if he wasn’t able to be in its life every day like Maddie would be. And he knew the best person who could give him that job.
Despite this, Jace felt apprehension when he knocked on Jeremy’s door. He heard Jeremy bid him to enter and it took a few moments for Jace to brace himself. He didn’t know how Jeremy was going to react to Jace’s news. Hopefully it was in the positive.
“Is there anyone out there?”
There was a scraping of a chair and then the door was flung open. Jace jumped, realizing he had been outside for a little too long. Jeremy had probably thought someone was messing with him. His snarl faded when he saw Jace.
“Jace. What are you doing here?”
“I…” Jace told himself to get a grip. He wasn’t scared of Jeremy, even if the man had pointed a gun at his head earlier that day. “Can I talk to you a minute? Are you busy?”