“Nothing, pumpkin.” He cradles her face in his hands and kisses her cheek softly. “Can you go inside and help your mother while we have a moment?”
Oh shit. Nothing about the statement along with the way they’re looking at me says I’m in for anything good.
Faith peers over her shoulder, and I nod. “Okay. Don’t be out here too long,” she says, dragging her gaze between her father and brother.
“Everything’s fine, sweetheart. Go inside,” her father tells her.
They stare at me as I stand on the driveway and wait for Faith to walk inside and close the door. When the door finally closes, Mr. Ridley peers at the window to make sure Faith has walked far enough away. “It’s your mother.”
I rub my forehead and groan. I thought she’d leave after I made it very clear I want nothing more to do with her and threw some money her way to get out of town. I should’ve known better.
“She went to a local reporter and spilled your life story,” Roscoe blurts out.
“What?” I clench my teeth. My heart’s beating so wildly out of control my eardrums pound and become deafening. I squeeze my eyes shut and see the color red.
Mr. Ridley steps forward and places his hand on my shoulder. “We’ll be on the road for the next few weeks, but she can easily find us. It’s best if we take care of this as soon as possible. I’ll get the PR team on the story immediately and make sure we release an official statement.”
“I’ll do whatever you need and want. What about the reporter?”
“He’s an old friend, so don’t worry. He’ll never print her trash, but I’m not sure who else she’ll try to sell her lies to. I’ll find out, and we’ll make sure the truth comes out.”
I breathe a sigh of relief at the saving grace of small-town life. Anywhere else, and her convoluted story would be printed in tomorrow’s paper instead of landing in the trash basket.
“Now, boys. Put a smile on your face and enjoy dinner. If we don’t, there’ll be hell to pay from the ladies inside this house. Understood?”
“Yes,” Roscoe and I say at the same time.
Mr. Ridley enters the house first, followed by Roscoe and then myself. I’m glad he thinks this conversation is going to be easy to gloss over, but knowing Faith, she’s not going to let it go.
* * *
We are barely able to move with so much food in our bellies. Mrs. Ridley cooked a feast that could’ve fed a small army instead of five people, but I will not complain. Home-cooked meals are something I never had but could get used to. Somehow, though, I don’t see Faith as the domestic goddess her mother is.
Faith rests her head on my shoulder as we sit on the couch. She keeps her hands in her lap, and I keep mine at my side because we’re in her parents’ home and I would like to get out of here alive.
“What was that about when we first got here?” she whispers in my ear.
“Just business.” I glance at Roscoe and Beau, but they are too busy watching television and in a food coma to even hear us.
She moves her hand to my knee and squeezes it tightly. “Don’t lie to me.”
“I made everyone’s favorite,” Mrs. Ridley announces and walks into the living room holding the biggest carrot cake I have ever seen.
At this rate, with Mrs. Ridley overfeeding us, I will not be able to fit in my suit next weekend. I keep eating everything she puts in front of me and can’t seem to tell her no. It is a problem I have with both women in this family and something I don’t think will ever change.
“Mamma, you’re going to have to roll me out of here,” Roscoe says.
“Everyone has to have at least a bite. I spent hours making this.”
“We’ll all take a slice, my darling,” Mr. Ridley tells her, answering for all of us to make his wife happy.
She smiles at him as she places the tower of sugar on the coffee table in front of us. “I’ll get the plates.”
When she walks out of the room, Faith squeezes my leg again but harder. “I’m not going to ask again. What did my dad and Roscoe want?”
I peer down at her before kissing her forehead. “We’ll talk about it later,” I say softly and try to satisfy her enough to stop her interrogation and not break my word to her father.
“You will tell me.”
I smile and laugh softly. “I tell you everything.”
“You will.”
I have no doubt she speaks the truth. Faith has a way of getting me to talk, even when I don’t want to. I have seen Mrs. Ridley skillfully extract information from her husband, and Faith learned by watching her mother handle her father like a pro. There is no use in fighting, because I know Faith won’t stop until she gets exactly what she wants.
FAITH
I grip the sheets in my hands as my knuckles turn white, and my knees start to buckle. “Harder!”
“You want it deeper?” He rears back, taking his cock with him before slamming back into me with so much force I rock forward on my tiptoes to stay upright.
I push my ass backward, meeting each of his thrusts. He places his mouth next to my ear and grabs my hair in the palm of his hands. “Maybe you want it in your ass,” he whispers.
“Brooks!” Roscoe pounds on the door.
I stop breathing and peer over my shoulder at Brooks. His eyes are wide, matching my own, as we both turn toward the door with our lower bodies motionless. I’m so close to orgasm, I can barely see straight, and every muscle in my body aches in the most delicious way because of Brooks.
“What the hell?” I groan into the mattress as Brooks scoops his jeans off the floor and heads for the door, mumbling something under his breath about Roscoe being an asshole.
He bounces up and down, trying to pull his tight and super-sexy jeans on and having difficulty because of his erection.
“Brooks! Open the goddamn door!”
“Coming. Jesus,” Brooks mutters as he tries to zip up his jeans. Giving up, he opens the door to find Roscoe with his hands on either side of the doorframe, breathing heavily and soaking wet. “What the fuck, man?”
“What’s wrong?” I wrap my arms around his middle and peer around his shoulder at my brother. “We were sleeping.”
His eyes dart to mine before returning to Brooks. “It’s your place.”
“My trailer?”
“Yeah. It’s destroyed.”
I gasp and cover my mouth. Destroyed? It is not like the thing was a palace, but losing everything without any warning is more than one person should have to bear. Especially someone like Brooks, with so few things to his name as it is.
Brooks jerks backward, taking me with him. “How?”
“Your mother was found at the scene with a bottle of vodka and a lighter.”
Brooks scrubs his hand down his face and sighs. “Is she in custody?”
“Yeah.”
“Good,” I say.
Roscoe gawks at Brooks. “That’s all you got to say? All your stuff is gone.”
“Roscoe, I learned a long time ago that things don’t matter. I’ll buy new shirts. I’ll find new jeans. As long as Faith’s safe and my mom gets help, I’m happy.”
“Dude,” Roscoe groans. “I’d be flipping my shit right now.”
“Everything I need is right here, man. I came from nothing, and I know how to survive without stuff.”
“I’m so sorry.” I tighten my hold on him and place my cheek against his back. “It’s all because of me.”
He turns, lifting my face upward as I keep my arms wrapped around him. “This has nothing to do with you, princess. She’s crazy. All that matters is that we’re both safe.”
“I’m glad you stayed over tonight. I can’t imagine if…” My voice trails off as the nightmare scenario plays in my head.
Brooks could’ve very easily been inside when she decided to have a hillbilly bonfire. The very thought makes my blood turn cold and leaves me breathless.
“Don’t think it.” He presses his lips against my mouth and swallows my whimpe
r. “Everything will be okay.”
Roscoe clears his throat and waits as we have a moment. Standing there, staying silent, can’t be easy for him. I know he wants to probably punch Brooks in the face again, but somehow, he remains civil as we both turn to face him. “We’re pulling out in five hours. I’ll have a new trailer prepped for you while we’re on the road and will have it ready to go. So, don’t worry about where you’re going to stay.”
“Don’t go to all that trouble, man.”
“You have to stay somewhere.”
I take a step forward and place my hand on Brooks’s chest. “He’s staying with me in my trailer, Roscoe.”
Brooks’s eyes widen in shock. “I am?”
Roscoe hangs his head and grumbles under his breath, but he keeps his unhappiness to himself. “Whatever you want.”
“I have plenty of room, and that trailer wouldn’t be road ready in time.”
“Fine. Fine.” Roscoe pushes off the doorframe and straightens. “I thought you should know what happened and that you two were safe tonight.”
“Thanks for letting us know,” Brooks replies with his arm around my shoulder.
“Night, Roscoe,” I say as he jogs down the narrow stairwell to the door leading outside.
Brooks scoops me into his arms and carries me toward the bed. “We need to talk, princess.” Those are the words no one ever wants to hear. He sits on the edge and holds me in his arms. He gazes at me, sweeping a strand of hair away from my face with the back of his fingers.
“What’s wrong?” I stare into his eyes as the butterflies start to flutter inside me.
He kisses me softly with his hand cupping my face and his thumb gently brushing against my cheek. He pulls away a moment later and rests his forehead against mine. “I love you, Faith. I’ve never loved another person more than I love you.” His hold tightens, and he closes his eyes. “The thought of losing you terrifies me.”
The butterflies inside my stomach start to buzz around, almost knocking into each other. Tears form in my eyes as I stare at him, knowing that it couldn’t have been easy for him to confess his feelings after how he’d grown up. “I love you too, Brooks.”
“Promise me you’ll never put yourself in jeopardy.”
“I promise.”
“Promise me you’ll always come to me if you’re worried.”
“I promise.”
“Promise me you’ll marry me.”
“I promise.”
My eyes widen as the realization of what he asked and what I agreed to finally hits me.
“What?” I whisper so quietly I can barely hear myself speak.
“I want nothing more than for you to be mine.” He lifts me in the air and places me on the bed before kneeling in front of me. “Faith Ridley, will you marry me and be mine forever?”
Covering my mouth with my hands, I let out an ear-shattering screech as he opens a box with the most beautiful diamond inside. I’m so overcome and in such total shock I can barely breathe, let alone speak. Sticking my hand out and wiggling my fingers, I nod frantically as my eyes fill with tears.
“Is that a yes?” He pulls the tiny princess cut diamond out and drops the box to the floor.
“Yes!” I’m so happy I do not even let him slip the ring on my finger. I leap into his arms and start to pepper his face with kisses.
He laughs and falls backward from the impact, but I don’t let that stop me. I straddle his sides and finally make my way to his lips. “I love you,” I say because I want to hear him say the words back to me again.
“I love you too, princess.”
People are going to think we are mad—well, everyone except my parents. They eloped after knowing each other for only three weeks. They knew they were meant to be, just like I know Brooks Carter is meant to be mine forever.
Epilogue
Brooks
She’s been in the bathroom for over a half hour. I pace outside the bathroom, dressed and ready to roll because we’re already late. “Faith. Come on.”
“One more minute,” she says.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
She’s lying. There’s a loud crash from inside the bathroom, followed by a few curse words. I push open the door and find her sitting on the linoleum surrounded by a half dozen tiny white sticks.
“What the hell?”
“Fuck,” she groans and stares up at the sky light.
I step inside and take a closer look at the mess. My body rocks backward as I realize what’s lying near her feet. “Are you?”
Her eyes narrow as she focuses her gaze on me. “You knocked me up.”
“How?” The wind is knocked out of me as I stand there in shock, staring at her and the six positive pregnancy tests.
She grabs a stick and holds it in the air, jiggling it as she does. “You had sex with me. Duh!”
I’m going to be a father? What?
I never thought I’d have children of my own. Never in a million years did I ever imagine having a wife, let alone a family. The doctor had told me it would be almost impossible after the injury I sustained, but clearly, he was wrong.
I drop to my knees and pull her into my arms. “We’ll be okay.”
I’m not sure if I’m trying to reassure her or myself. I do not know the first thing about raising kids. With a crappy mother and a missing dad, I feel totally helpless and clueless.
She clutches my T-shirt and presses her face into my chest. “Oh, God. I’m going to have stretch marks and a big ass.”
I hold her tighter. “I’ll love every inch of that ass, princess.”
“None of my clothes are going to fit, and my breasts are going to be so big they’ll likely slap me in the face when I go for a jog.”
“For real. You’re selling me on this pregnancy thing. Giant tits. What else can a man ask for?” I laugh and kiss the top of her head.
Part of me is joking, but the other part is already imagining her belly with my baby inside and her curvy body, riding on top of me. The image is sexier than I ever imagined.
She slaps my chest and peers up at me. “This is serious, Brooks. We’re going to be responsible for another human.”
“You’re going to be a wonderful mother.”
“I’m scared.”
Scared doesn’t even begin to describe how I feel as the news settles and becomes reality. I’m petrified and worried I’m going to mess up some little helpless soul as much as my parents did me.
“How do you think I feel? I don’t know the first thing about raising kids.”
She touches my face and smiles at me tenderly. “You know what not to do, and you’re one of the most loving and protective people I know. You’re going to be a wonderful daddy.”
I love the sound of that word.
Daddy.
“I thought you were on the pill.”
She glares at me. “The day after we got drunk and had sex, I couldn’t remember if I took my pill the day before. So…”
“So, this wasn’t my fault.” I raise an eyebrow.
Her eyes widen. “Are you saying it’s mine?”
“Baby,” I say and pull her tighter. “It’s no one’s fault. It’s a freaking miracle and blessing.”
“Now we have to tell my father.”
I thought breaking the news to Mr. Ridley about dating his daughter was difficult, but having him find out that I knocked her up—and out of wedlock no less—is going to be damn near frightening.
FAITH
Stepping inside my father’s trailer and about to break some life-changing news may very well be the scariest thing I’ve ever had to do. He’s always been so proud of me, bragging to all his friends about the “good girl” Faith he raised the right way. My heart breaks a little knowing my dad is never going to be able to look at me the same way.
“Wait here,” I say to Brooks as I release his hand and walk toward my father. Country music blares in the distance from the party tent outside Bristol, and pe
ople are everywhere, drunk and happy.
He steps forward, following me, but I stop him. “I should be there,” he pleads.
“I need to do this.”
He nods, and I slowly approach my father as he sits at the dining room table, sipping on a beer. “Hey, Daddy. Where’s Mamma?”
“She’s in the bathroom getting ready. What’s wrong, pumpkin?” He pats the seat next to him and glances at Brooks, who hasn’t moved from the doorway.
“Don’t freak out.” I smile nervously and set my hand on my stomach almost out of instinct.
My father’s eyes dart to Brooks and narrow. “Someone better say something before I jump to the wrong conclusion.”
I slide into the chair and grab his hand, clutching it in mine. “I wanted to talk to you first about something very important.”
“Are you sick?” His eyes search my face, but I smile and try to calm his fears.
“No, Daddy. It’s nothing like that.”
“Jane?”
“No. She’s still in jail.”
He adjusts his body in the chair and moves closer to me. “What is it, then?”
He’s already jumped to the worst possible scenarios to begin with, so hopefully the news about me being with child won’t sting quite as much.
“I’m pregnant,” I say quickly, spilling the beans because I’ve already tortured him enough.
He stares at me with an unreadable look before his eyes drift to Brooks. He’s silent, and I can’t tell if he’s about to catapult himself across the room and wrap his fingers around Brooks’s neck or so overcome with joy he can’t form words.
“How?” he asks, but I don’t answer—discussing sex with my father has always been awkward. “I know how, but…”
“Yeah.”
“When? Wait, I don’t want to know that either.” He covers his mouth with one hand while squeezing my hand with the other. “You sure, pumpkin?”
“Six tests say I am, Daddy.”
He practically jumps out of his seat and whoops, holding his head in disbelief. “Mimi, get your ass out here, darling. We have something to celebrate.”
Misadventures with a Speed Demon Page 16