Misty Reigenborn Romance Boxed Set

by Misty Reigenborn

  "What's going on?"

  "His ex-wife suddenly called him up." Her face darkened then. "It was bad news for his poor son in a way along with the really good news, but we'll take what we can get. She's getting married, having a baby, and her prick of a new husband doesn't want Elijah around."

  "What an ass."

  "I guess at least he's being honest about it. I wouldn't want the poor little guy to grow up feeling second best. But the good news is, he is going to start spending the weekends with us to get used to the idea, starting not this weekend but the next, and he should be living with us full time by next summer. I'm so excited. I'm going to meet my baby's baby. He was so happy Ami. You should have seen him. He did a victory dance around the living room."

  Ami smiled. "That's great news. So you're not only going to have a newborn to take care of then, you'll have a three year old too?"

  "He'll be four by then. He has a birthday in April. But like I was trying to tell Carson, maybe the bitch will let him come sooner if we get a house. The trailer had three bedrooms, so he'd have his own room instead of being stuck on the couch in this tiny apartment. We could fix it up so nice."

  They had reached the apartment. Ami locked the car and followed Alicia back to her apartment.

  "It doesn't freak you out thinking about taking care of a baby and Carson's son?" Ami said as she waited for Alicia to unlock the door.

  "I took care of my brother's kids for years before me and Brian moved away. I love kids."

  "So you're perfectly okay with having a stepson?"

  Alicia gestured for her to sit down on the couch while she went to the kitchen to make their sandwiches.

  "Of course. There was a pretty sticky time between me and Brian a few years back when he was messing around. There was this woman who came up out of nowhere and said her little girl was his. She wanted to drop off the poor kid and just leave. I was cool with it but Brian insisted on a DNA test. It turned out that the kid wasn't his, but she spent almost a week with us. She was so sweet and she looked so sad when her mother came to pick her up. The things that people do to their own flesh and blood are so sad sometimes. I love Carson and I will love anything that came from him. I don't want Elijah to feel like he's any less important than the baby just because I'm not his natural mother. I'm so lucky Ami. Carson stepped right up. He's going to my next doctor's appointment and we're getting married next weekend."

  "Next weekend?"

  "We wanted Elijah to be included. His ex-wife tripped out at first, but then she must have figured she couldn't say much because she's getting married in a month and she doesn't even want him there."

  "Her own son?"

  "She's a bitch. With Carson's phone being broken, I got to listen in on that one too."

  "Wow. I wish you guys the best of luck. If you need help with anything just let me know."

  "Thanks hon. Do you want chicken or turkey on your sandwich? And we only have mayo, and American cheese. I hope that's okay."

  "Turkey and the rest of it is fine too."

  "Do you want barbecue or sour cream and onion potato chips?"

  "Barbecue please."

  Alicia finished their sandwiches and then brought the plates out to the living room. "I wanted Nick to be at the wedding too, but now I'm not so sure with the way he's been acting."

  "He's got to be there. He and Carson seem so close."

  "It's pretty ironic. The past few days Nick has been acting like everything he warned me that Carson was. And Carson is acting like the man that I always figured Nick to be."

  "I feel like it's my fault."

  Alicia rolled her eyes. "Honey, if a man can't handle the fact that he thinks he can't stick his dick where he wants it to be, it's his problem. Sorry to put it so bluntly, but it's true."

  "I guess that's one way to look at it. I should have told him the truth.”

  "So tell him. No, don’t because he’s being an enormous ass. Give it a little time and then casually bring up that you broke up with your boyfriend."

  "Why are men so damned complicated?"

  "I figured that one out years ago. Men are complicated so that women don't fall in love with the wrong one every day."

  Ami laughed. "That doesn't always seem to work though."

  "Of course not. Anyone that tells you that life is perfect is full of shit, too." Alicia's phone rang then and she answered it with a smile. "Hey baby. Are you coming home for lunch? Okay. That sucks. Well, I'm sure Ami won't mind a little extra company tonight. Yeah. No, it's all finished and that ridiculously expensive truck is back at the lot. Really? Yeah, we can do that. Okay. I will. Love you too. Bye."

  She ended the call and turned to Ami. "Well, Carson's friend bowed out of their guy's night out tonight. His wife isn't feeling well. You don't mind if Carson hangs out with us too, do you? I thought we'd get a couple of movies, order a pizza or something."

  "I don't want to intrude on your time alone together.”

  "We'll have our whole lives to be alone together. Or after eighteen years, or twenty-five years or however long it takes all the kids Carson wants to have to grow up and move out of the house. You look like you could use some company."

  She didn't know whether she'd rather have company or sulk all night by herself. But she knew Alicia was trying to be nice, so she said "Okay."

  They spent the rest of the afternoon talking, watching TV and listening to music. Alicia was funny, and she always said what was on her mind. It was really nice to have a friend after so long, and Ami enjoyed their time together.

  Carson came home a little after six and gave Alicia a kiss before heading to the shower.

  He looked tired and again Ami started to feel bad about intruding on their night. Alicia told her she was being ridiculous and took out her phone to order the pizza.

  When Carson got out of the shower Alicia said "Did you get the movies I asked you to?"

  Ami thought that he looked truly apologetic. "I forgot baby. I'm sorry."

  "Give me your keys. Me and Ami will go get them, you adorable forgetful man."

  "I'll get them," Ami said.

  She wanted a cigarette, having only gone outside twice all day to have one. She wanted to get away from Alicia and Carson for a few minutes anyway. Love and affection oozed out of almost everything they said to each other.

  "You sure?" Carson said. "I can go Ami."

  "It's no problem. What movies did you want Alicia?"

  Alicia told her. One was a romance and the other was an action movie, neither genre of which she particularly enjoyed, but it was her friend's house she thought. Ami wrote them down on a slip of paper Alicia handed her in case she forgot and then made her way outside and to the video store that Carson gave her directions to.

  The video store was crowded. She couldn't find one of the movies Alicia wanted, so she ended up spending fifteen minutes reading her friend titles and descriptions of movies with Carson laughing in the background.

  By the time she had checked out, over half an hour had passed. There was an accident blocking the direct route to their apartment building so she had to find another way home. It was forty-five minutes later when she pulled into the parking lot, almost three times as long as she'd expected to be gone. She almost felt like she'd been at work all day instead of just out running an errand for her friend.

  She had a cigarette clamped between her lips when she got out of the car. She almost choked when she saw the scene ahead of her at the picnic table, letting her lip go slack and the cigarette fall to the ground. If she hadn't had Alicia's movies in her hands she would have turned around and gotten back in her car, but she couldn't.

  Alicia and Carson were standing next to the picnic table having a heated conversation which just got louder when Alicia looked up and saw Ami. She wasn't sure if she heard her friend right, but it sounded like she said "I told you to get them the hell out of here before she got back."

  She couldn't hear Carson's response, but none of it seemed to bo
ther Nick and the woman he was making out with. Ami thought that it was even better that they were turned so not only could she see Nick's hands cupping the woman's ass, she could see the woman's hand on the crotch of Nick's jeans. She felt sick.

  Alicia came over to her. "I am so sorry. I told him to get them the hell out of here. But no, my wonderful fiancé would not listen."

  Carson, who had followed Alicia with his hands shoved in his pockets, looking helpless, said "What the fuck am I supposed to do Ali, pry them apart with a crowbar?"

  "Has she never heard of discretion?" Alicia hissed. "Next thing we know she's going to be giving him head right here in the parking lot. Why the hell are they here?"

  Carson shrugged. "I don't know."

  "He is trying to hurt her and this is going too damned far. Carson come on, do something."

  "Ali what do you want me to do?”

  Ami closed her eyes, slumping back onto the hood of her car. She pulled out another cigarette, but ending up throwing it on the ground after the first drag. She couldn't watch this anymore, she just couldn't she thought.

  It was like Nick came back to earth then. He disentangled himself from the woman, whom Ami could see was very pretty, though she was wearing a great deal too much makeup. But what was more disturbing to Ami though, was that her coloring and her size were similar to Ami's own. She even had green eyes, though they were a brighter green, closer to the shade of Gabe's wife's. She was disgusted.

  But what Nick did next was almost worse Ami thought. He almost roughly shoved the girl away from him. Ami heard him tell her to get the fuck away from him. She looked puzzled for a minute, and then she must have noticed the look in Nick's eyes because she suddenly grabbed her purse from the picnic table and tottered away on what Ami found to be a ridiculous pair of spike heels, mumbling something about "Fuckin' prick" and "girlfriend."

  Ami closed her eyes again. The poor girl thought she was Nick's girlfriend? This night was just getting better and better she thought. And Nick was coming their way.

  She turned back towards her still open car door, throwing the bag of movies to Carson.

  "Ami," Alicia said, looking alarmed when she was behind the wheel. "Where are you going?"

  She turned to Nick, giving him easily the dirtiest look Ami had ever seen her friend give. "Don't let this asshole get to you. He's leaving, aren't you Nick?" Her words were pure ice.

  And then he was leaning in her window. She wanted to throw up and it wasn't just because of the strong smell of alcohol coming off of him. "Ami. You gotta forgive me. I can't believe I let you see that. I just can't. . . I couldn't. . ."

  She didn't let him finish the sentence it sounded like he wasn't sure how he was going to finish anyway. She needed to go for a drive to clear her head she thought. The first time she had let herself get even semi interested in a guy after all this time, and this had happened.

  “If you want to do something like that in public, that's your business. We're not together remember?"

  Why did it hurt to say those words Ami wondered? She looked over his shoulder at Alicia who, still looking angry, had her arms crossed over her belly. Carson was trying to pull her into his arms but she was still too pissed to let him.

  "Ali I'm fine. I'm going for a drive.”

  "You sure you're okay?" Alicia said.

  "Yep. You guys have a good night."

  "You too hon," Alicia said. Ami thought that she still looked worried but she had calmed down enough to let Carson put his arms around her.

  Nick wouldn't look at her as she drove past him out of the parking lot and she was glad. She didn't want to see the look on his face.

  She stopped for gas on the way out of town, buying a soda, and eating a sandwich that made her stomach, which was already in turmoil, feel worse. She drove aimlessly for an hour and a half and then with a sigh, turned around and started towards home.

  Chapter 8

  It was after midnight when she finally arrived home. She was glad once again that Nick was nowhere in sight and that the light was off at Carson's and Ali's.

  Her feet felt like they were dragging when she went up the stairs. She was glad when she was finally inside.

  She locked the door behind her, throwing her purse on the couch.

  She didn't bother to look at her computer as she passed it. She used the restroom again since the soda had filled her bladder and then brushed her teeth, going back to the bedroom, feeling like she was dragging again.

  She tossed and turned for what seemed like hours, but it was only a little after one a.m. when she fell into an uneasy sleep.

  She awoke the next morning a little after nine a.m. to a pounding on her door.

  She sat up in bed, rubbing her eyes. The knocking subsided. She sighed, getting out of bed.

  She padded out to the living room and opened the door. No one was around, but there was a blue piece of paper taped to her door. She pulled it off and read ‘Ami is everything okay? Nick feels like shit and wanted us to tell you that he's sorry and that he doesn't blame you if you don't want to see him ever again. Call me or come down later please. Carson and I are going to look at a couple of houses this morning and afternoon but he's going out with Nick tonight, so it'll just be me. Nick is taking him out to dinner and a movie to make it up to him for being such a shit these past few days. I told him it was you he should be making it up to, but he got a funny look on his face and told me to let him know when you're ready for an apology. No, he won't be here tonight. I told him he can't come any further than the edge of the parking lot until you've at least sort of forgiven him. Please, please come see me Ami. I'm worried about you. Ali.’

  Ami was glad that Alicia was going to be gone the morning and afternoon. She didn't want to face her friend and her questions. She knew they were well meaning and that Alicia cared, but she just wasn't up to it.

  She ignored her computer again and curled up on the couch with her library book. She finished the first book and had fallen asleep halfway through the second when a knock on the door awakened her again.

  She sat up, and said "Just a minute."

  Alicia was standing on the other side of the door, looking concerned. "Can I come in?"

  Ami stepped back. "Sure."

  "No offense sweetie, but you look like shit."

  Ami laughed. "I know."

  "Ami, I am so sorry. Men are such assholes."

  "You seem to have found a good one. Who I thought was an asshole."

  "He can come off like that, yeah. You poor thing."

  "I'm an idiot Alicia."

  "No, you're not."

  Ami gave her a half-hearted smile. "I think I'm done with men again. Maybe I'll try for ten years this time instead of seven." Why didn't she think it was going to be that easy though, she wondered?

  "Don't give up on them yet. Nick really likes you. He just did some really stupid stuff because he thinks you have a boyfriend. He's chilled out. I don't think you'll see him with another woman for a long time."

  "I don't think it would be a good idea for either of us to jump right in to a relationship when we've both acted like such idiots."

  "Give it some time. I think he'll make it up to you, if you'll let him."

  "I don't think I want him to right now. It's all too damned complicated. I want my simple life back."

  "Nothing that's worth it is ever simple, Ami."

  "I guess."

  "You want to come down and watch a movie or something?"

  Ami shook her head. "Maybe later. How did your house hunting go?"

  Alicia made a face. "Not good. They were all too small, or they wanted too much of a down payment, or too high in the monthly payments. It looks like we might end up in the trailer after all, though now even that's going to take longer than we thought. It was a repossession and now it looks like everything is going to be tied up in court for a while. It won't be until February that we could move in. Of course Carson's hoping like hell that something else comes up before t
hen."

  "Good luck."

  "Thanks. Call me or come down if you want anytime. Work’s been slow for the past couple of days and I'm bored out of my mind when Carson's not around."

  "Okay," Ami said, but she figured she was going to wallow in her self-pity for the rest of the day and then go to bed early, to prepare herself for what she figured was going to be a busy night at the bar.

  Alicia reached out and squeezed her hand briefly. "It's gonna be okay Ami."

  "I know." She gave her friend another weak smile and then walked her to the door.

  When Alicia was gone, she turned her stereo on low and went back to the couch with her book.

  She debated on making herself something for lunch but she wasn't really hungry.

  She finished the book and then had nothing else to do.

  Finally she sighed, went into the kitchen and made herself a sandwich. She returned to the living room and turned on her computer, skipping her e-mail and instead heading to the movie site to watch a movie.

  She watched three movies and then took a shower and went to bed.

  She didn't sleep well and it was almost noon when she finally got out of bed. She made herself another sandwich which she didn't taste and then curled up on the couch to watch another movie, still feeling sorry for herself.

  She dressed in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and headed out to work.

  Chapter 9

  She was glad when Carson's car wasn't in the lot and Alicia wasn't around. She felt guilty for not hanging out with her friend and knew she couldn't avoid her forever.

  Candy was behind the bar when she got there, chatting with a dark haired man who was hanging on her every word.

  She wasn't sure how far along Candy was but you couldn't tell she was pregnant as she moved around smoothly behind the bar, slipping past Eric with ease.

  "Hey Ami," she said with a smile.

  "Hi Candy."

  Conversation was halted then, because it got very busy. They didn't hit much of a lull even when Rick brought in a pasta salad which Candy insisted on sharing with Ami.

  After they'd cleaned up and split the tips, which Ami noticed were easily twice as much as they'd been on the nights she'd worked with Rick and they'd locked up, each headed to their separate cars, she noticed a tall figure standing next to her car.