by L. B. Reyes
“I messaged him earlier, and he hasn’t replied.”
Jessica raised an eyebrow, her blue eyes accusing. “Don’t you think that you’re way out of line messaging another man while Nathan is parading you around like a perfect little girlfriend?”
I scoffed.
There it fucking is.
“Can’t even hide it, can you?” I asked, tilting my head to the side. “Have you told him about your feelings?”
Jessica pressed her lips together, glaring at me. She was so angry she couldn’t hide it anymore.
“I appreciate the fact that you’ve kept quiet, Jessica, but you can go ahead and tell him,” I said, standing up from the chair. Her eyes traveled down my body, gaze hardening when they landed on my pregnant belly.
“Why would I tell him? He’s with you. You snagged him up good, got pregnant, and now he’s proposed. My feelings don’t matter.”
“For your own good,” I said. “You’re keeping it all to yourself. Nathan loves me, I know that, but maybe telling him will allow you to move on.”
Jessica considered my words, glancing out towards the window. “Even when you were over here and he was in Pennsylvania, I could tell when he’d talked to you. So, you see, my feelings don’t matter.”
Nathan interrupted our conversation when he opened the door, holding up a bag of Chick-Fil-A with a handsome smile.
“Ready for lunch?”
I understood Jessica. It was difficult not to like Nathan. It was difficult not to fall for him. But the more I thought about the little that I knew about Jessica, the more I realized that perhaps she wasn’t in love with him but loved the idea of him. Any woman would be lucky to have a man like him by their side.
We ate lunch together, and though it wasn’t awkward, I decided to leave to give them a chance to talk. I hoped she did tell him. Getting what she felt off her chest would be good for her. She wasn’t a bad woman; I believed that now.
However, as nighttime came, I had something else on my mind. Derek still hadn’t replied. Something was wrong.
He should have answered me by then.
I waited another day, but Derek’s answer never came.
Chapter 31
Nathan
I watched as Evie slept, her expression relaxed and at peace. She was on her side because she was afraid to squish the baby even though her belly was still relatively small.
She wrapped the sheets around her naked body tightly, and she’d ventured all the way to the other side of the bed. Knowing her, she’d woken up in the middle of the night and snuck off for some ice cream.
My lips tilted up to a small smile as I took in the image of her; her long dark hair cascaded on the pillow like a halo, and her slightly flushed cheeks made her look like an angel. Grateful she’d said yes, and feeling lucky to share my life with her, I leaned down, kissing her cheek gently.
The contact made her eyes flutter open, and she smiled sleepily, struggling to keep her eyes open.
“Good morning, pretty girl,” I murmured. Something about that specific day had me feeling some type of way. She was beautiful and strong; she’d been through hell, and though she struggled to leave it behind, little by little she was doing it. We were doing it.
Evie cuddled up next to me, and I held her tight, placing a kiss at the top of her head. As always, her ear rested over my heart. It had a soothing effect on her.
“How are you feeling?” I asked, hoping she’d tell me she felt just fine.
“Hungry,” she mumbled. “And tired and sleepy and hot. I feel hot.”
“You are hot.” Evie nudged me, rolling her eyes. I shrugged; it was a fact. My beautiful fiancé was hot; I couldn’t deny it.
“I wonder if you’re going to say that when I’m 300 pounds with varicose veins and stretch marks and sagging boobs.”
I laughed. “Still hot, baby.”
“Whatever,” she said, rolling her eyes. “You have to say that.”
“Mm, no I don’t. But it’s you, so it doesn’t matter what you look like. You’ll always be hot to me.”
She grinned, standing up slowly, and I couldn’t help but let my eyes roam down her body. She was stunning. Yes, her curves were all there, if not more so, but seeing her pregnant was…
There were no words to describe it.
“Join me in the shower.” She raised her eyebrow, biting her lip. Most times she was shy. Today, however, it seemed like the little minx had other thoughts.
Hell yes.
She giggled, rushing into the shower, and I followed behind her.
This was the perfect way to start the morning.
***
Evie and I walked hand in hand to the local donut shop. It was something we hadn’t done in a long time: take the time to walk together through the city. We both enjoyed it very much, and thankfully where we lived, it was easy to do.
She wore a yellow sundress, and her hair was down in waves. She didn’t wear makeup other than mascara and lip gloss, and still, she took my breath away every time.
I was glad Jessica and I agreed for me to go in to the gallery around noon and take care of it until closing, while she took care of the morning clients. It worked out for both of us, and it also made it easier for me to be with Evie at her appointments.
“What will you have today?” the older woman behind the counter asked us. She smiled, glancing to our interlocked hands and then to Evie’s bump.
Evie bit her lip thoughtfully, though we both knew she would ask for the same things as always.
“I’ll have the strawberry-filled donut and a dozen donut holes. You, babe?”
I scratched the back of my head. “I thought the donut holes were for me,” I whispered in her ear.
She frowned. “Why would you think that?”
Bad idea.
Don’t go there.
“You know what? I’ll have just a glazed donut,” I said to the elderly woman. She seemed amused at our interaction.
“How far along are you?” she asked Evelyn.
“Sixteen weeks, actually,” Evie said with a bright smile. I took out my card, handing it over to the woman while they made small talk.
Evelyn couldn’t hide her excitement. Her eyes lit up every time she talked about the baby, and I loved hearing her.
“Here,” the woman said, giving Evie another bag of donut holes. “For the baby.” She winked.
“Thank you so much,” she squealed.
I left the cash I had in the little tip jar that she had on the counter, watching the woman’s eyes widen with the amount. Evie went and sat down at a booth and started eating when the woman stopped me.
“Oh, that’s not necessary son,” she whispered. “She seems like a sweet young lady. I just wanted to give her a little something.”
“Your actions weren’t necessary, either.” I smiled. “Keep it and thank you.”
I sat across from Evie, paying close attention to her gestures and never-ending motions as she spoke. It was one of the things that always drew me to her; she was expressive, even in the way she spoke.
My parents had always thought of Hannah as dull. Boring.
She wasn’t, I didn’t think. But her priorities were different. There was never time for anything other than work, and without love between us, nothing held us together.
I would have never been able to love her, and she would have never been able to love me. We were incompatible.
“You’re not paying attention to me.”
Evie’s accusation brought me back to reality. She wasn’t angry; she was simply stating it.
“What are you thinking?”
I cleared my throat. “I heard about a house.” Her eyes widened. We hadn’t decided quite yet, but I started to look for houses. I was sure I’d found one that she would like.
“Where is it?” she asked, trying to hide her excitement.
“About forty minutes from here. It’s a bit far, but I think we can make it work. I think you’ll like it.”
I nodded, taking her hand in mine. “We can also look at staying in the city. Maybe find a larger place? It’s up to you, baby.”
“Well, I’m staying open minded. Whatever feels right is what we’ll do.”
I agreed.
After eating, we both headed to the gallery in a cab, making small conversation with the man who drove us. He was perhaps in his mid-thirties and was telling us all about how his teenage daughter was driving him insane. Boys were chasing her around, he said, and it wasn’t something that he appreciated.
If I had a daughter, my number one mission would be to keep boys away from her, at least until she was eighty.
Distracted with a new painting, Evie soon kissed my cheek and walked over to it while I went over to the office where I knew I would find Jessica. Sure enough, she sat behind the desk with a frustrated expression.
“Bad day?” I asked her, taking a seat across from her.
“I hate numbers, Nathan. Can you do the math here?”
She handed me the paperwork she was looking at. There were numbers scribbled on the side, and I just didn’t understand why she was making this complicated. “Jesse, you know we have a calculator, right?”
“Natey, you do know that I don’t like using it, right?”
I chuckled, setting the paperwork down. “Go get your lunch. I’ll figure it out.”
She sighed. “I brought my lunch today.” Jesse took out her lunch bag, but by the crease still on her forehead, I could tell there was still something on her mind. I waited; she never kept things to herself too long. “Are you busy tonight?”
“No, not really. I’m just going home after closing. Why?”
“Do you think we can have dinner? I need to talk to you.”
Her request was hesitant, and hesitating was something Jessica never did. “Is everything okay?”
“No. If you can’t, it’s okay, I understand.”
I shook my head. Whatever it was that she wanted to talk about had clearly bothered her. “I’ll let Evie know. Just text me the time and place.”
“Thank you. You should get out there now. I’ll eat and be there in a bit.”
When I went back out to the gallery, Evie spoke to a couple. Whatever the man said was clearly getting her attention, so I decided not to interrupt. I heard her laugh and then the couple followed, amused with Evelyn’s reaction to whatever they were talking about.
I took a minute to admire how different everything was from even a year ago.
If I hadn’t made the decision to come to New York, Evelyn and I wouldn’t be together. I wouldn’t have the gallery, and we wouldn’t be expecting a baby. Timing is everything.
Despite the rough patches that Evie and I had faced, I had the security that we would get through everything and anything else life could throw at us.
***
“Will you be back tonight?” Evie asked, playing with the collar of my shirt. I’d gone home to shower and change to something less business-like to meet with Jessica.
Though Evelyn didn’t say that my outing bothered her, innocent questions, like the one she was asking, told me she wasn’t all too happy with it.
“I’ll be back in an hour,” I replied, taking her wrist in my hand. She glanced up at me through her eyelashes, a coy smile playing on her lips. “If you keep looking at me like that, I’m going to have to cancel on Jessica and teach you a lesson on making me late,” I muttered, tilting her chin up.
“You can teach me when you come back.” She didn’t even know when she did it, but her voice turned seductive to the point that I was seriously considering cancelling. She nuzzled my neck, and I felt her tongue playing with my earlobe before Evie pulled back with a small smirk.
I leaned down, taking her plump lips with mine. She moaned, taken aback by the abrupt nature of it, but her arms wrapped around my neck eagerly, pulling me close to her. I suppressed a grin, knowing good and well that this was her not so subtle way of letting me know that I was hers.
My hand tangled in her hair, and I broke off the kiss, taking in the sight of her eyes glazed with lust and her lips, swollen and red. Her chest was heaving, and she swallowed, dazed from the intensity.
“Hurry,” she breathed.
I nodded, kissing her softly this time. My hands went underneath the robe she wore, feeling her soft skin. “I love you, Evelyn.”
“I love you too,” she whispered.
“I’ll be back in a bit.” I pecked her lips. I didn’t want to leave her.
“Get going then.”
I shouldn’t have.
I should have never tried to leave that night.
Two officers stood behind the door with paperwork in their hands. They held up their badges, showing the severity of the situation. I stared dumbfounded at them. What else was I to do?
“What is it?” Evie called back. I heard her footsteps as she approached and her startled gasp.
“Stay there,” I said, turning to her briefly but taking those few seconds to remember each one of her features. “May I help you?” I asked the officers.
One of them looked past me, gaze falling on Evelyn, who stood behind me, her hands on my shoulders. “Are you Nathan Maxwell?”
I swallowed. “Yes.”
“We have a search warrant for your place of residence and vehicle. We’re going to need you to step aside.”
“Why?” Evelyn shrieked behind me. Her voice trembled. The officers ignored the question, answering it with the following statement.
“And we have a warrant for your arrest for the attempted murder of Derek Hensley.”
Chapter 32
Nathan
You’re under arrest for the attempted murder of Derek Hensley.
The words echoed in my head, my brain not really processing the fucking insanity leaving the officer’s lips. What the fuck was he talking about?
“I haven’t done shit,” I finally hissed when they reached out to touch me. One of them had already stormed past Evie and me with a hand on his weapon.
Evie clung to me. “You can’t take him. He’s done nothing,” she said, her voice breaking.
“Sir, it is in your best interest to cooperate—”
It was the man that had spoken to Evelyn at the gallery. He probably recognized her as his gaze softened when he saw her desperate state.
“Fuck you,” I spat, not giving a damn.
I knew it was a terrible idea. I knew that the last thing I should have done was defy an officer, but I couldn’t think, not when they were accusing me of something I hadn’t done, not when Evelyn held on to my arm as if she’d never see me again.
“Nate, you can’t go,” I heard her say shakily. I turned to face her, all previous happiness gone. “Nate, tell them you didn’t do anything, please.”
I heard one of them, I didn’t know who it was, requesting back up, and immediately I grew anxious.
Think about Evelyn.
Think about your baby.
“Evie, call David. He’ll know who to call,” I said, taking hold of her arm. She was already shaking her head, crying. “Baby, please, please.”
The officer that had gone inside walked up behind her, taking hold of her arm as he tried to pull her away.
I raged.
“Don’t you fucking touch her!” I wrapped my arm around her, protecting her.
“Neither of you are cooperating—”
“She’s pregnant,” I stated. “I’ll go, but don’t you ever fucking touch her.”
The man who she’d talked to before stepped in then. “Let her be. You take care of Mr. Maxwell. I’ll conduct the search.”
Evie whimpered, and for the first time in my life, I felt helpless. Scared. There was nothing I could do or say to stop this from happening, and I didn’t want her to get hurt.
The other officer took advantage of my momentary lapse and pushed me against the wall. I grunted but complied as he placed my hands behind my back and cuffed me.
“You have the right to remain silent.” I closed my eyes, wishing that this would be over or a fucking nightmare. “Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law…”
The sound of Evie’s sobs drowned out whatever rights the officer said to me; I didn’t give a damn. All I cared about was her calming down. I wanted to hold her, tell her it was going to be okay, but I couldn’t even do that. At least I had the comfort of knowing that the less asshole officer was staying with Evelyn.
She had her arms wrapped around her body, and she trembled.
This was hell, absolute torture.
I didn’t say anything else and made sure her eyes met mine at least one last time. It didn’t last long enough, and soon the officer forced me to leave her.
***
Evelyn
I stared numbly at the door, trying to figure out how the hell everything had changed in a matter of minutes. I tightened the robe around me, feeling how the baby desperately moved, sensing the chaos surrounding us.
“Are there any weapons in the house? Anything illegal you wish to report?”
My lips parted as I eyed the man in front of me; the same man spoke to me at the gallery. He’d been so kind to me; I never thought anything about it. I shook my head slowly, feeling a bit frightened after the way the other officer had pulled me back and away from Nathan.
“Do you need a medic?” the man asked with genuine concern.
“He didn’t do it,” I replied, my voice breaking with the statement. “He—Nathan wouldn’t do that, he’s a good man, he—”
Lightheaded, I gripped the island and held on to it as firmly as I could. I heard him radioing for paramedic, and though I didn’t think I needed one, I didn’t oppose it.
The other officers who arrived conducted the search while Officer Bennett stayed with me as we waited for the paramedics.
“He didn’t do it,” I repeated.
The nausea that until then had been gone reappeared, and though I wanted to fight it, it was pointless.