“Why are you acting like this?” she cried, holding out her palms.
“Get rid of it. I insist. Tonight. I will drive you myself. I know a lady who takes care of these matters.” His lips curled into an unpleasant smile, and Brittany shuddered, wondering how she’d ever thought him handsome. Sexy.
She shook her head, hanging onto the counter for support. “No. No.”
He pulled his cell phone from his pocket. “Quiet! I’m taking care of it, since you obviously didn’t. One call, and the problem is gone.”
“Jose,” she whispered, feeling desperate. Everything in the past few minutes had gone horribly wrong. He’d never been anything but kind. He loved her. “You told me you had three ex-wives. We’ve been seeing each other for a year. Why are you saying these things? I would know if you were married.”
“So, what is one small lie? You didn’t know, and didn’t care. You became the star of the show. Right? Isn’t that what you wanted all along?” He turned his back. “Now, pack an overnight bag and I’ll drive you to someone who takes care of all the girls.”
All the girls? “No!” She shouted, folding her arms around her stomach. “I’m not going.” Tears blurred her eyes. “If you don’t want this baby, that’s all right. The baby is mine. I will raise him, or her, without you. My family…”
“Yes, your family…. it’s always about your family, isn’t it?” He sneered. “Do whatever you want. Just don’t expect anything from me. Far as I know, this baby could be anybody’s. You’re quite the tease, aren’t you, Brittany? A young, vivacious, beautiful woman who likes the attention of men. Many men.”
“I do not,” she hissed. She marched to the door and flung it open. “Go!”
He stepped around her and slammed the door shut, blocking the exit. “You work for me. I’ve seen you flirt, don’t forget.”
“They were patrons. People who support our business.” She tossed her head back, glaring at him. “You said it was part of our job.”
“Huh. How many of those men did you invite back here, or did you go to their place after one of our shows?”
She drew in a shuddering breath, shocked by his accusations. What had happened to the suave and charming man she’d thought she knew? He was a stranger standing in front of her—his face and soul as ugly as the words that spewed from his mouth. “That never happened,” she said softly.
“Why would I believe you?”
She looked him dead in the eye. “I never slept with another man. Not during the entire time you and I were together.”
His face showed his contempt. “I’m sterile. Had it fixed a long time ago.”
“That’s not true,” she whimpered, putting a hand over her mouth.
“You could ask my wife, but I don’t think either one of you would enjoy the conversation. Do you?”
“No. No.” Brittany bent over, feeling queasy, as though she might be sick.
“Be smart,” he said, his voice cruel and hard. “Get rid of the problem. You could still dance for me. We could still be friends.” His eyes dropped to her cleavage, and she regretted wearing the low cut dress that exposed her breasts and a lot of thigh.
“Friends?” She shivered. “You lying bastard, we can never be friends after this.”
His hand whipped out and smacked her across the face. The huge diamond on his pinkie sliced her tender skin. She screamed, holding her cheek, feeling the sticky blood on her palm. “Get out. Get out,” she cried.
Without a word or a backward glance, Jose turned and left. Hot tears mingled with the blood on her face as she ran to the bathroom. She cleaned and bandaged the wound, knowing the one inside was much deeper and would take longer to heal.
She kicked off her shoes and slipped out of her dress, putting on a pair of knee-length shorts and a tee. She went back into the kitchen and began to shovel the hot paella into a trash bag with a wooden spatula. The scents which had smelled so delicious an hour ago now turned her stomach and made her gag. She took the bag outside to the corridor and dropped it down the garbage chute. She didn’t know how long she’d be gone, or if she’d ever return. But it seemed unlikely now.
Brittany packed a large travel bag with comfortable, casual clothes for the laid-back Keys. She spotted all her lovely dresses on hangers in the closet, and touched them with regret. She might never wear them again, or if she did, they’d be attached to unpleasant memories. Of Jose. Of all the seductive temptations that the past few years and the dancing world had brought her.
Still, she couldn’t resist. She grabbed half a dozen and stuffed them in her bag too. Then she called her mother. “I’m coming home.”
* * *
Brittany lowered the top on her little red Miata convertible, then tossed her oversized suitcase in the back. The night air was hot and humid, not unusual for Miami, especially in late August. But her heart was heavy, the steamy night oppressive, weighing down on her like a deflated balloon. The damn car was too small, she sniffed, wiping away tears. But it would get her away from here and that lying, sneaky bastard, and that was all that mattered.
Jose’s final words rang in her ears, and brought a stifling sob to her throat. “Get rid of it,” he’d snarled, as if a baby—his baby—was nothing more than a nuisance, an object easily discarded, as meaningless as a stray kitten that she’d mistakenly brought home.
How could she have been so wrong about him? And what had he said about being sterile? Had he lied about that too?
Feeling miserable, she flicked around the radio stations and settled on one that played nineties hits. She listened to Celine wailing about her heart going on and on, and then to Whitney about it not being right, but it was okay.
Well, she certainly knew a lot about that!
The music was not helping her mood so she switched it off as she executed the heavy Miami traffic to find her way back to the Keys. Mile after mile, her spirits lifted, knowing that her mom would be waiting with open arms. She needed her right now, more than ever before.
Happy tears blurred Brittany’s eyes the moment she saw the blinking pink and green flamingo on the side of the road. “Taylor’s Café.” Her sister’s café bordered Paradise Cove Cottages, the seaside resort her family inherited after her step-dad’s untimely death, only months before he was to retire.
Situated in the Upper Keys, the drive had taken less than an hour and a half. It was not yet nine o’clock but the café was closed and most of the cottages were dark. Islamorada was a fishing community, where people got up at the crack of dawn to catch the biggest fish.
It was this lack of nightlife that had driven her to Miami to pursue being a professional dancer instead of teaching ballet to kids whose parents wanted a babysitter for a couple of hours. She’d had success—for too short of a time—dancing her way across the Eastern seaboard.
That life was over. It hurt her to realize it, but it was a bitter-sweet kind of hurt. She was home, broken-hearted and pregnant, but safe, and loved, teary-eyed by the mere sight of the familiar blinking flamingo.
She swiped the tears away, turning left on the dirt road. Her shoulders were knotted and tight, and she ached from inside out. She couldn’t wait another minute to feel her mother’s warm arms around her, to breathe in her familiar flowery scent, and to feel the love and acceptance that would always be there.
Anna was a strong woman who had taught her daughters to be strong. She’d picked up the pieces and held the family together through the many tragedies life had thrown their way. She’d convinced them all to come to the Keys and rebuild this resort, her husband’s retirement plan that he hadn’t lived to see.
Brittany had thought it was a crazy thing to do, but she’d been outvoted by her two older sisters. They’d each found their true strengths here as well as their true loves. Kayla was now married to her handsome cardiac surgeon, and Taylor had opened her café, married her charter boat captain, and adored his sweet son.
Life had been good to them—it would be for her, and her baby to
o. Paradise Cove was a happy place, filled with love, and nothing else mattered. She had been a fool to leave. I’m back now. To stay.
She pulled up in front of the light pink cottage she had once shared with her mother and sisters. A wooden plaque read Birds Of Paradise above the door; she’d proved to be the flightiest bird of all. Now her wings were clipped and she’d come limping home.
She sucked in a breath and released it slowly. Tears burned behind her eyes. Everything would be all right. Her family would make it so.
Turning off the engine, she stepped out of the car and breathed deep—ocean air caressed her skin, a hint of salt on the breeze.
Suddenly, the cabin door opened. Shouts of welcome surrounded her as her mom and sisters smothered her in hugs—the best medicine in the world.
Her two sisters were stunning brunettes, tall like her, with warm-colored skin from their Greek heritage, and they’d all inherited the same passion and fire. Petite Anna was nearly crushed by the three girls.
“Kayla, what are you doing here?” Brittany kept one hand on her sister’s shoulder while looking at Taylor. “You too, Tay. You should be home with Colt.”
Damn, but they looked good. So happy. Even in this dire situation, they had a knack of turning bad luck into good fortune. Kayla, the eldest, was wise beyond her years. Always patient, thoughtful, a mother hen in her own right. Taylor, with her love for cooking, was a homebody by nature, and should have had a dozen kids. Newly married, there was plenty of time to do just that.
“Mom said you were coming home,” Kayla answered. “For good. We wanted to welcome you back.”
Anna pushed her way into the circle, put her arms around Brittany, and stood on tiptoe to kiss her daughter’s cheeks. She withdrew a little, to get a better look. “Oh, my sweet girl. What happened to your poor face?” She touched the bandage, and tenderly took Brit’s chin in her hand. “Did Jose do this?”
“Yes. It’s a long story,” she replied, giving a careless shrug that masked her deep hurt. “Let’s get inside and I’ll tell you all about it.”
“This sounds like an excuse to make a pitcher of drinks,” Anna said with a renewed twinkle in her eye.
“I better not join you,” Brittany said. “I’m pregnant.”
Play Right by Me is available now on Amazon
MORE BOOKS BY PATRICE WILTON
Find all of Patrice’s books on Amazon or her website.
REPLACING BARNIE
book 1 in the Candy Bar series
WHERE WISHES COME TRUE
book 2 in the Candy Bar series
NIGHT MUSIC
book 3 in the Candy Bar series
REVENGE IS SWEET
single title Women’s Fiction
CHAMPAGNE FOR TWO
single title Contemporary Romance
ALL OF ME
single title Women’s Fiction
CATERED AFFAIR
single title Women’s Fiction
A HERO LIES WITHIN
Contemporary Romance
HANDLE WITH CARE
Contemporary Romance
AT FIRST SIGHT
Contemporary Romance
SERENDIPITY FALLS
Romantic comedy–book 1 in the Serendipity Falls series
WEDDING FEVER
Romantic comedy–book 2 in the Serendipity Falls series.
LOVE STRUCK
Romantic comedy–book 3 in the Serendipity Falls series
TROUBLE IN VEGAS
Romantic comedy–book 1 in the Vegas series
A HOT NIGHT IN VEGAS
Romantic comedy–book 2 in the Vegas series
KISS ME SANTA
Holiday romance
PARADISE COVE
Contemporary Romance–first book in my new series
HOOKED ON YOU
Contemporary Romance–book 2 in Paradise Cove series
PLAY RIGHT BY ME
Contemporary Romance–book 3 in Paradise Cove series
A HEAVENLY CHRISTMAS
Contemporary Romance–book 1 in the Heavenly Christmas series
SOMEONE TO LOVE
Contemporary Romance–book 2 in the Heavenly Christmas series
Right Man/ Wrong Groom: Paradise Cove Series - Destination Wedding Book 1 Page 21