by Tess Summers
She was so damn confused. Not to mention mad. Just maybe not so much anymore about his sister and more about this discussion.
And why the hell did he have to be so goddamn gorgeous?
* * * *
Ava sent Travis a text after she stopped by to see Fred, who was doing much better.
She texted him, Vet says our Freddy should be able to go home tomorrow.
He replied, That’s great! Dinner at my place tonight to celebrate and welcome him home?
Travis smiled when he read her next text. No, tomorrow will be fine.
He liked that she was playing hard to get. He expected nothing less and was going to enjoy the chase. At least he hoped playing hard to get was all it was. He was astute enough to realize that morning something was wrong when they were talking about pregnant girlfriends. He thought he was proving his commitment to Ava by not choosing his fictitious baby mama over her. (Travis did not take Women 101 in college.)
Yet today his heart was a lot lighter than it had been yesterday at the idea of getting her back. His secretary, Kelli, commented on his better disposition and was floored to learn about Fred. When he explained who had brought his dog to the vet, she smiled as if it all made sense. She had openly wondered about Ava Ericson’s significance in Travis’ life ever since the day he hurried down to the lobby to meet her for lunch. Kelli had been gracious and tolerant of his horrible mood over the last month, ever since Ava hurried out of his office. He’d never had a woman have any sort of influence over him before, and when he snapped at his secretary a few times recently, he was taken aback at what a dick he was being. After he blew something way out of proportion, Kelli had had enough and told him to quit being stubborn and get the girl back already. It was the best advice she’d ever given him.
Unfortunately, his mood soured again the next day when out of the blue and with no explanation, Ava canceled their dinner plans and would not return his calls or texts.
Travis had his suspicions why, and they had to do with a certain marine.
Chapter 21
FEELING exhausted, Ava left work early to catch up on the sleep she had missed the night before when she had been with Travis. She had been tired a lot lately. Waking in the middle of the evening, she tried to eat something when she got up but was sick—again.
What the hell is wrong with me? If I didn’t know better, I’d think I was pregnant!
The second she thought the words a feeling of panic set in. She was supposed to have had her period a few weeks ago, but it never came. Not having been with anyone that month, she hadn’t thought much of it. Now that the idea was in her head, she was rattled and went to the drug store to buy a pregnancy test. When the word pregnant showed up on the little white stick, she began to cry.
Talk about timing. She was a firm believer in things happening for a reason and knew she and Travis having the what if a girl shows up at your door pregnant talk that morning was meant to happen. Realizing she was going to be doing this on her own made any romantic thoughts she’d been secretly harboring about a happily-ever-after with Travis go away. Just like that.
After a brief cry, Ava went into crisis management mode, making a list in her head of everything she needed to do and prioritizing it. First thing that needed to happen was getting a doctor’s appointment and finding out how far along she was. That would determine when she would tell Travis—if she told him at all. She wasn’t about to tell him while the window for an abortion was still available as an option.
Jumping when her phone rang, she looked down to see it was Steven calling. Knowing she couldn’t talk to him right now without spilling everything, she sent it to voicemail. She missed her big brother. Maybe she could look for a job on the East Coast to be near him and away from Travis.
Hiding from Travis was more like it, if she was being honest with herself.
Back in the things happen for a reason mind frame, she wondered if this baby was supposed to motivate her to get back into her beloved profession of organic chemistry. It clearly wasn’t meant for her to have a man in her life. Ron Thompson was now, obviously, off the table, and the thought of Travis simply writing a check to her every month was depressing. She was happy she knew she’d be okay financially if she decided not to tell him. The idea of telling her parents made her feel scared to death.
I’m twenty-nine years old, for goodness sake!
It didn’t matter. She knew she could be fifty-nine and would still be worried about what her parents thought of her.
* * * *
Ron called Ava before leaving for overseas. She sounded upset when she asked him to lunch, so there was no way he was going to tell her no.
She suggested they meet at the State Street Outdoor Café, and he was waiting at a table on the sidewalk when she approached. Standing as she came near, he kissed her gently on the cheek and pulled her chair out for her.
Looking at her fondly, Ron sounded concerned when he said, “You seemed pretty serious on the phone. Is everything okay?”
Ava opened her mouth to speak but no words came out, so he sat patiently looking at the menu while letting her collect her thoughts.
Ron thought Travis might have made his move, and she was letting him down in person, so he was not prepared when she finally took a deep breath and quietly said, “I’m pregnant,” without looking at him.
He hoped his shocked look was quickly masked with a broad grin before she looked at him again. “Congratulations!”
Giving a weak smile, she offered, “Thank you. I’m obviously surprised,” before quickly adding, “pleasantly.”
He grabbed her hand and squeezed. “Travis is a lucky man.”
His comment seemed to catch her off-guard, and she jerked her head up. “How do you know Travis is the father?”
Smiling, he kept her hand in his and responded, “Isn’t he?”
Ava looked down and whispered, “Yes.”
Something about the way she answered prompted him to inquire, “Is he excited?”
She wouldn’t look at him when she disclosed, “He doesn’t know yet.”
His sharp intake of breath conveyed he was startled at her answer.
Ron still hadn’t let go of her hand when he leaned over and kissed her cheek again. “I think he is going to surprise you,” he affectionately told her.
She finally looked at him again with tears streaming down her face as she sobbed, “You are a wonderful man.”
He must have looked horrified because she laughed while sniffling. “Hormones.”
The marine nodded his head as if he understood. He, of course, had no idea about pregnancy or hormones.
Watching her emotions wreak havoc made him a little glum. Travis better be the stand-up guy Ron thought he was because Ron meant it when he said he thought Sterling was a lucky man. Not only having had this beautiful blonde in his bed but now carrying his child? He allowed himself ten seconds of imagining himself in the lawyer’s shoes, at least as far as Ava was concerned. He’d never want to trade his life or career with him, but the idea of having her to come home to was something he realized would make him happy.
Ava received a phone call. She needed to go to her condo immediately—there had been a fire in her building. Ron drove her home and caught her when she fainted at the sight of her unit completely engulfed in flames.
Effortlessly carrying her back to the cab of his truck to lay her down, he found her phone and called Frannie. After Ron explained what had happened, the elder Ericson woman started clucking her concern, and he offered to bring Ava to her mother’s home. Ava came to on the drive, disoriented, it took her a moment to realize what was happening, and as they pulled through the guard gates, she implored him not to say anything about her pregnancy to her mother.
“You’re the only person I’ve told,” she confided.
He knew that omission wasn’t meant to make him feel flattered, but it did.
“My lips are sealed,” he sa
id with a sweet smile, noting she was more concerned about her mother finding out she was pregnant than she was about her home that had been destroyed by a fire.
Arriving at the Ericson estate, he went round to the passenger side and carried her in his arms to the front door, where Francine was waiting anxiously. Mrs. Ericson instructed him to deposit her on the living room couch, which he did, then kneeled down to quietly talk to her and stroke her hair while Francine was on the phone to her husband, who promised to leave work as quickly as he could.
“Are you going to be all right here?” Ron quietly asked.
When she nodded her head yes, he continued, “Because you are welcome to come stay with me for a few days.”
Ava smiled meagerly. “That’s very kind of you to offer but I’ll be okay.” She grinned a little broader upon hearing her mother’s concerned voice. “If not, I’ll call you.”
Frannie came through the door, still fussing over Ava before turning to Ron. “Thank you so much for bringing her home. I can’t imagine what would have happened if you hadn’t been there!”
The general stayed a little longer before making his exit. Walking him to the door, Francine told him, “We’d love for you to come to our Halloween party next month.”
“I’ve heard about your famous party, and I wish I was going to be in town to attend. Unfortunately, I leave in a week and will be gone until December.”
Mrs. Ericson’s disappointment showed on her face. He chuckled, thinking to himself, That’s where Ava gets it.
“Well, please plan on Christmas Eve then.”
Ron leaned over and kissed the woman’s cheek without committing to attending. “Take care of your beautiful daughter,” he told her before walking out the door.
* * * *
Ava continued to try not to think about Travis over the next month as she took care of her mental to-do list of what she needed to prepare for the baby. Her condominium being destroyed might possibly prove to be a blessing in disguise, as it would allow her to move to the East Coast for a while without having to worry about renting or selling her place.
She got a call from Tracey early one afternoon, upset about her boyfriend, and wondering if Ava had any time to have dinner or drinks later. The two women had met for lunch a few times since the night of the ball, and Ava really liked her. She was spunky.
Ava was supposed to meet Anne for dinner. She was going to tell her friend about her pregnancy tonight. She needed her support more than anything right now. Hearing the desperation in Tracey’s voice, however, tugged at Ava’s heartstrings—she knew what the girl was feeling all too well.
“My girlfriend Anne and I are having dinner tonight, why don’t you join us?”
“I don’t want to intrude,” Tracey said between sniffles.
“It’s no intrusion at all. It will be just what you need—a little girl time to vent.” Ava could tell Anne after dinner or tomorrow at lunch. She knew a girl in crisis came first. Being pregnant wasn’t going to change, not for several months anyway.
They met at her favorite pizza place, and she was dismayed when the smell made her queasy.
No! Not this place too! There wasn’t going to be anyplace left she would be able to eat. She took her anti-nausea pill and hoped for the best. Still, she sat on the outside of the booth in case she needed to get to the restroom quickly.
For a girl who was heartbroken, Tracey looked pretty damn good. She had the type of complexion some women paid thousands of dollars to get, and other than the slight bags under her bright blue eyes, you’d never know she had been losing sleep at night. She had her long, dark blonde hair in a braid that seemed to match Anne’s. The two girls sitting opposite her almost looked like twins.
They ordered their meal, and her two companions had a beer while she had water. Anne wouldn’t be suspicious she wasn’t drinking because the only alcohol the restaurant served was beer, and Ava wasn’t a big beer drinker.
Ava got down to brass tacks. “So what’s going on with Jeff?”
Tracey frowned. “Jeff? Nothing is going on with Jeff, why?”
That surprised Ava. “Aren’t you two an item?”
The other girl seemed shocked she knew about them and replied with an apprehensive, “No,” obviously trying to see how much Ava knew.
“Oh, I saw you two at the ball and—”
“Oh my God! You saw us!?”
Ava knew she was missing something by the relief on Tracey’s face when she said, “I saw him grab your boobs.”
“Oh. Well, Jeff and I sometimes mess around if we’re both single, but we haven’t actually since the ball. Fortunately, I figured out I needed to let his bullshit roll off my back and not take him too seriously before I took him too seriously, if that makes sense.”
It made perfect sense. Ava was sad though; she had liked Jeff the night she met him and thought he and Tracey were cute together. She was sorry to learn they had only been a fling. The thought of being pregnant with her own secret affair’s baby almost caused her to warn the girl about flings, although it sounded like Tracey already had that figured out on her own. Maybe Ava should have gotten advice from Tracey about temporary romances.
“So if not Jeff, who?”
Tracey sighed, “Well, I started seeing my ex again right after the ball. Jeff was in one of his moods where he wasn’t sure if he wanted to be fuck buddies or just friends. Which is fine, I guess, but when my ex-boyfriend Garrett called, I let him take me out for drinks, against my better judgment, and next thing I know, we’re back together. Now I think he’s regretting calling me though.”
Ava dutifully inquired, “Why? What makes you think that?”
“He knows in his heart we’re over but is too big of a chicken shit to just make a clean break, so instead he’s being mean hoping I’ll do it.”
Yeah, that sounded like some of the prick guy moves she had heard about too many times from her sorority sisters in college. Yet, it seemed kind of juvenile. Wasn’t Garrett a grown-ass man?
“What is he doing?”
Tracey swallowed a drink of beer then explained. “Just in the last week or so he’s made a few snide comments comparing me to his ex-girlfriend—not favorably, by the way. I’m not sure why even. I felt like telling him, if she’s so fucking great, then why the hell were you sticking your dick in me the day after you two broke up? But I didn’t, I’ve ignored it. But now, he doesn’t even want to sleep with me, and I’m left wondering if maybe he’s seeing her again.”
Anne and Ava made the obligatory girlfriend comments about what an asshole move that was, why would he do that, and she didn’t deserve that.
Tracey nodded appreciatively at the support and continued. “Then last night, I walked out of his bathroom in slutty lingerie I had just bought.” Her eyes welled with tears. “He took one look at me,” her lip started to quiver as tears began streaming down her face, “and started laughing.”
Ooooh. Party foul, dude. Party-fucking-foul.
Ava thought back to when she had appeared in Travis’ home office doorway in only her four-inch heels. She would have died a slow death if he would have laughed at her that night. She couldn’t imagine how that must have made Tracey feel. Putting yourself out there to be vulnerable can be pretty nerve-wracking and probably shouldn’t be considered when one has a boyfriend who is a fuckhead.
Anne gasped and asked incredulously, “He did what?! What. A. Dipshit.”
Ava reached over and grabbed Tracey’s hand. “Honey, I have no idea why the hell he would laugh at you. You are beautiful, and any other man would kill to have you walk into his bedroom in slutty lingerie. Maybe he’s scared?”
The downtrodden girl shook her head. “No, that’s not it. I think it’s run its course, and this is his way of dealing with it.”
Ava shook her head in a sympathetic, understanding fashion. “You don’t think it’s fixable?”
She had no idea why she asked that. No, it’s n
ot fixable. He’s a fucking asshole; why would Tracey even want to repair it? She felt a little nauseous at the Operation Sex Kitten flashbacks she was having and how her original goal had been to get asshat Brad back in her bed. It was almost laughable how dumb and naïve she had been, and how much bullshit she had been willing to put up with for the sake of ‘love.’
Brad and Garrett, table for two?
In between tears, Tracey choked out a laugh. “At least it made me get my ass out of bed this morning and to the gym.”
They all laughed, each having been there. Anne had lost fifteen pounds after her last breakup.
“Are you interested in maybe seeing Jeff more seriously?” Anne inquired.
Tracey shrugged her shoulders and sighed. “I don’t think so. We—” she paused, debating how much to reveal to Ava before just coming out with it. “We had amazing sex, but he can be a man whore and moody as fuck. Besides, it would ruin our friendship if we tried to be anything more than friends with benefits.”
As great a couple Ava thought Tracey and Jeff would make, she did have to admit she saw the girl’s point.
Tracey took another sip of beer before continuing. “Hopefully Charlie and I are able to keep it platonic when I move in with him, so I can take some time, get my act together, and figure some things out.”
“Wait, what? You’re moving in with Charlie? Where is Brad going?” Ava asked. She actually couldn’t give a shit less where Brad was going but was more curious about why the two men weren’t going to be living together.
“I guess he can’t find a job here in San Diego. His interview with Carson, Burns, Sterling, and Cooper was a disaster, and Travis Sterling practically threw him out of the building!”
Ava didn’t know whether to giggle or feel sorry for Brad. So the stories of Travis being a son-of-a-bitch were actually true.
“Well, I don’t have to tell you what a great guy Charlie is. Maybe you two will hit it off?”
“I think I need to be single for a while. It seems like I settle a lot. Why do I do that? Do I think that’s all I deserve? The guy will be really good looking but lousy in bed. Or great in bed but a total mind fuck. He’s got a great job but can’t make time for me. He’s a damn slut or he’s still in love with his ex-girlfriend. That pretty much sums up my past five relationships, including my secret one.”