“Why hello there, Zoe. Fancy meeting you here.” She froze and the pen fell from her grasp, clattering across the counter, the noise the only thing she heard other than her heart thumping in her ears. Slowly turning, she paled and the world spun.
There stood Derek, all 6'3” of him, with a cocky smile on his face. The world went dark.
Chapter Five
The sound of people talking in the background and a cool rush of air woke her. She took a breath, swimming through the fogginess in her brain as the world came into focus. Derek's bright green eyes bored into hers, a furrow of concern knitting his brow as he stared down at her. Zoe realized she was lying on the floor, her head supported on Derek's very firm thighs.
“Shit,” she muttered, struggling to push herself to sitting. “This passing out thing is really getting old.”
“Whoa!” he admonished, his hand curling around her arm. “Take it slow, Zoe. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. Are you okay? Do you want to go to the hospital? Is – is the baby okay?”
“Let me go, Derek,” she pulled against his grasp, easily breaking her arm free. “I'm fine. Don't you know you're not supposed to sneak up on people?” She pushed herself to standing, ignoring his outstretched hand.
“Look honey, I'm sorry, all right? Layla called me and told me to come get you. That it's what Calvin would want.”
“Great, so everyone knows that I'm a whore. I don't even know who my baby's dad is.” She walked back to the rental car counter. “I still need that car.”
“No, you don't.” Derek whispered firmly against her ear. “I'm taking you home.”
“You're taking me to Calvin's grandparents' house.” Her dark eyes flashed. “I am going nowhere else with you.”
“Zoe... Be reasonable,” he pleaded, that whiskey soft voice curling through the few good memories they had together.
“I am reasonable. You didn't want me, but you want no one else to have me either. Ugh, Derek.” Grasping her suitcase by the handle she pulled it behind her, and walked out into the parking lot. “Let's get out of here, I've already made a big enough scene.”
His hand brushed against her lower back and she shot him a venomous look. “Don't touch me.”
“That's not what you used to say, Zoe.”
He opened the door to the truck and she crawled inside before spitting back a sharp response. “You know what they say, Derek. Don't live in the past.”
He laughed and shook his head as he loaded her bags in the back of the truck and Zoe found herself fuming. When I get my hands on you, Layla Hall!
Derek started the truck and pulled out onto the interstate. “Wanna stop at Sonic?”
Zoe's stomach grumbled and she shook her head no. “No thank you,” she muttered stiffly.
“Oh come on, not even a cherry limeade? No route 44 drink for Zoe? No ice cream? We have to feed my baby.” He reached forward and switched the radio on. Strains of a country song filtered out of the speakers and she cringed.
“It's not your baby, Derek.”
“Oh? There's a chance, isn't there?”
Zoe blew out a breath and nodded. “Unfortunately.” Damn you Calvin Hall! When I get my hands on YOU, too.
Derek turned into Sonic and pulled into a parking spot. “What do you want to eat, babe?”
Zoe's dark eyes flashed. “I'm not your babe, and I'm not hungry. I told you I don't want to stop. It's not like this is a date, Derek, because it's not. There is nothing between us. I'm a married woman.”
“Honey,” he smiled sweetly, running his hand through his hair, “Vows that are spoken are made to be broken.”
“You are such a dick, Derek. Take me home, or I'm getting out of this damn truck and thumbing it back to Major.” Her hand found the handle and she popped the door open.
“Hey! All right, damn it, fine. I'll take you to their house. But this isn't the last you'll see of me, Zoe. I have a right to be in my child's life! Shut the damn door and stop being a dumb bitch!” he barked and Zoe jumped.
“Don't yell at me,” she ground out between clenched teeth. “Don't you dare.”
Derek blew out a breath and deflated. “Fine. Close the door. Let's get you where you want to go.” His fingers drummed against the steering wheel impatiently as he peeled out of the parking lot.
“Don't drive like an idiot either.”
“I've got suspension, just ride and hush. I know what I'm doing, Zoe.”
She groaned and stared out the window, self-consciously adjusting the seat belt to make sure it was snug across her thighs. Gotta love the backwater “I'm a he-man” mentality!
Silence stretched between them as the miles the tires traveled took them closer to Major. Finally Derek cleared his throat. “Heard anything from your daddy recently, Zoe?”
Her stomach clenched and the baby fluttered. “No, why would I? He left me, last I remember.”
“Don't you think it's time to forgive him too?”
“What the hell, Derek, forgive him, TOO? Who says I have forgiven you? Or ever will?”
“Well, I want you to know that I have full intentions of winning you back, Zoe. I'm going to make you remember everything you ever loved about me.” He shot a quick glance over at her and smiled, his eyes crinkling up at the corners. “Cause I remember everything I ever loved about you. Seeing you there at the counter just solidified everything. You look good, Zoe. You look damn good.”
“Ugh,” she groaned. “You can forget that mess, Derek. I'm not interested. I'm a married woman.” She couldn't deny a tiny frisson of pleasure that blossomed in her belly at him saying she looked good. It felt good to hear. But she was loyal to Calvin and always would be.
“Like I said, sweetheart, I'm determined to win you back.”
“But what if it's Calvin's baby?” Her words made him cringe and he swallowed.
“What if it is?”
“You still going to fight for a black man's baby, Derek?”
“Well, I – I ...” he spluttered, staring hard at the road. “We'll cross that bridge when we get to it, Zoe.”
“No, Derek, we won't. Because I don't love you, I never did, and I never will. You hold zero appeal for me.”
He glanced at her again. “I can make you love me, Zoe. I know I can, if you just give us a chance.”
Zoe sighed and her mouth tipped up on one side. “No, Derek. It's just not going to work. I spent years trying to make you love me. You can't make yourself do something you just don't want to do. It won't work out. If this is your baby, you will be in its life, I promise. I wouldn't deny you that right, but you and me?” She pointed at herself then at him. “There is nothing there.”
“Can we be friends?” he whispered, his voice ragged and broken.
“Maybe one day, Derek, but a lot of water has to pass under that bridge first. A whole lot.” He pulled into Calvin's grandparents' driveway and parked the truck. “Don't get out. I've got my bag. I'm a big girl.”
She rolled the pink bag up the driveway and before she could knock, the door was flung open and she was wrapped in Grams' arms. The sound of Derek peeling out of the driveway was deafening, but Zoe ignored it. She only focused on the feel of being loved.
“I'm so glad you're home, Zoe.”
Zoe leaned back and kissed her cheek. “I'm glad to be home too, Grams.”
“Why didn't you let us know you were comin', honey? I could've made you something to eat. We gotta keep your strength up.” Grams fussed around the little kitchen, rummaging through the refrigerator.
“Layla knew I was coming, but I asked her to keep it a secret... Actually she was supposed to come get me. Any idea where she is?”
Grams frowned. “She was? No, she's off doing something with her girlfriends... You should've let us know, baby, we would've come!”
Zoe sighed, exhaustion creeping into her bones. “I wanted it to be a surprise.”
“And so it is, honey, but you should've let us know. You can't be traveling like this and getti
ng all worked up. You go to Calvin's room and lay down a spell, you hear me? I'm gonna get you something cooked. Don't you get up until I call you, you hear?”
“Yes ma'am, I hear you,” Zoe smiled tiredly. “Where's Pops?”
“Out back, working on a lawnmower. You know how he is.” She chuckled. “Now get on and rest.”
Zoe nodded, each step she took to the back of the house getting heavier and heavier. She opened the door to his room and barely kicked her shoes off before she crawled between the covers and slept.
Chapter Six
She awoke sometime later to a door slamming and sat up groggily, her limbs heavy with exhaustion. The light coming through the window was dull and shadowy; night was coming on. Sliding from between the covers, she padded to the door and opened it. Pops' voice filtered from the kitchen, followed by Grams' mellow response.
It feels good to be home, she thought with a smile, running her hand through her long, dark hair and easing through the house. As she walked into the kitchen, they stopped talking and glanced in her direction.
She suddenly felt self-conscious standing there in Calvin's old shirt and a worn pair of yoga pants. “Hi,” she mumbled. “Sorry I slept so long.”
“Honey, don't you worry a thing about it. You needed some good rest and now you need some food for that baby. Sit on down here.” Grams pointed at a chair and Zoe came around the table to sit. Pops eyed her.
“You all right, honey?”
“I'm fine,” she smiled. “Thanks.” Tension seemed to stretch through the room like the proverbial elephant and she swallowed before speaking. “I want to apologize.”
“Apologize?” Pops eyed her with a quizzical glance. “What for, baby?”
Grams sighed and spooned something into a bowl. The scent of chicken and dumplings tickled Zoe's nose and she breathed deep. “Ain't got a thing to apologize for, girl.” She put the bowl in front of Zoe and sat down at the head of the yellowed Formica table. “Now you just sit there and eat.”
Zoe shook her head, hanks of chocolate hair sliding over her shoulders. Her eyes grew damp and her voice shook with emotion. “I do. What if the baby isn't Calvin's?”
Pops shrugged. “You move on. Any man can be a father, honey, but it takes a special man to be a Daddy. Calvin promised himself to you and that boy won't falter in his obligation to you...or to that baby. Neither will we. We stand behind you.”
Tears pooled at the corners of her eyes and swam down her cheeks. She swiped at them with the back of her hand, smearing the saline as she went. “I don't deserve that.”
“Says who? Your daddy? That boy who hurt you? Who gives a damn what they say? Calvin is a good man; we raised him up to take care of those he loves. And honey, he loves you.” Grams leaned back in her chair. “We all love you. You're family.”
Zoe leaned forward in the chair, clamping her arms around her waist as she wept. Grams' weathered hand rubbed up and down her back and Pops murmured, “You need to stop that mess, now. You have that baby to take care of. Don't go getting your nerves all torn up over something you can't do a damn thing about. Straighten up girl and eat your dinner before you get it all salty with your blubbering and can't eat it.”
She sniffled and wiped at her face again before nodding. “Thank you.”
“Well,” Pops groaned as he got up from the chair, his hips grating as he came up. “Now that that's over and done with, I'm heading on out of here to watch some Matlock.”
Zoe inhaled the bowl of chicken and dumplings and Grams moved quickly to refill it. “Eat.”
“Thanks Grams. I remember Calvin bringing these to me before.” Zoe was taken back to the couch in her little house, crying over her father and her stomach twisted. The baby responded in kind, rolling and fluttering in protest.
“Good old comfort food.” Grams’ mouth pursed for a moment and she blew out a breath. “I talked to Layla. That girl had no right sending Derek up after you. Too much stress for you and the baby. I gave her a good talking to. She's in her room pouting it off. It'd be good if you and her talked, I think. She's the one feeling the sting more than the rest of us. She feels as though it's some kind of betrayal and I can't get it through her thick head that it's not. She got so excited when Calvin came home and she hoped they could really rekindle their relationship, you know. Then came you and he was wrapped all up in you...and now you're pregnant. Layla is for lack of a better word, jealous. The girl would be green if she wasn't so damn brown. What she don't get is that just because Calvin loves you it don't mean his love is limited. Love is limitless. But she's seventeen and what are you gonna do? She lost her parents and Calvin all at the same time. I can't get through to her. She's so damn hard headed.”
Zoe nodded. “I understand in a way, I guess. I can understand losing parents. I'll try to talk to her.”
“She doesn't understand why Calvin would be okay with it. She's different than he is, honey. Got a different temperament.”
“I can understand that. I didn't know how y'all would react. I feel like trash...” Her shoulders slumped and she sighed.
“Nah, no such thing. It was what it was.”
“I'm going to go talk to her. Thanks for the food, Grams.”
“Of course, baby.”
Zoe smiled as she walked through the living room. Pops was already asleep in his easy chair, Matlock was blaring at full blast. As she shuffled down the hallway, the sound of music came to her ears and she sighed, awaiting the confrontation she was sure to find. Her knuckles rapped against the door. “Layla? Can I come in?”
No response. She knocked a little louder. No response.
With a sigh she turned and moved down the hall, peeking her head into the living room, where Grams had abducted the remote control and was watching Food Network. “She's not answering.”
Grams' mouth pursed and she stood from the couch. “Oh, I don't think so. I didn't raise no rude ingrate.” She pushed past Zoe and marched down the hall, her knuckles firm against the door. “You open this door Layla Marie, you hear me?”
No response.
Grams twisted the knob and let herself into the room. “Well, I'll be damned!” she spluttered. “She's gone!”
“Gone? Where could she have gone?” Zoe's stomach clenched.
“I don't know, but that girl knows she's not to walk the streets without letting me know. I'm getting ready to go upside her head in a minute. Let's go. We're gonna find her. We're goin' commando. Ain't that what you kids say?”
Zoe giggled. “Commando?”
Grams nodded, slipping her house shoes on. “You know, undercover. Commando.” She picked up a broom beside the door and Zoe's eyes widened.
“Let me get my shoes, Grams.” Moving quickly, she pulled her sneakers on.
Grams still stood by the door, palming the broom quietly. “We're kinda like Thelma and Louise, ain't we?”
Zoe smiled. “Sort of.” She followed Grams out to the old truck and crawled in the passenger seat before buckling her seat belt. “Any idea where she could be?”
Grams shook her head. “Ain't too many places to be in this town. She's messing around with some boy I think, bein' real quiet like about it.”
“Any idea who?”
“I have my suspicions, and if it's so, I'm gonna tan his hide.”
“Oh?” Zoe's eyebrow rose as they rumbled down the street. “Who?”
“I got a sneaking suspicion it's a friend of Calvin's.”
Zoe ran through his friends in her mind. All of them were way too old to be messing with a 17 year old girl. “Oh, man.”
“Mmhm. I can't prove it, but I'd like to bust his ass, if I can.” Silence stretched between them. “Think she'd be at the beach?”
Zoe shook her head. “You know, we could try calling, Grams...”
“What? And tip her off to our commando mission? No indeedy, feed the needy!”
Zoe stifled a giggle in her hand. “Well what do you have planned?”
Grams tapped a grizzl
ed finger against her lips. “Well, we could scope the beach.”
“Okay. I don't see many kids out there in November, but I could be wrong. They could have a bonfire.” Zoe shrugged. The scent of salt air tickled her nose and she breathed deep. “Mmm… I missed that smell.”
“Nothing like it in Colorado, huh?”
“No. Thanks for inviting me to come home for Thanksgiving, Grams.”
“Of course, girl. Let's keep our eyes peeled.”
“Oh, I have an idea, Grams... I could text Tim and see if he could look out too.”
“Mmm, I'd rather you didn't.” Her mouth pursed and Zoe looked at her curiously.
“Why not?”
“Cause I think that's the one she's messing with.”
Zoe sat back in the seat and blew out a breath. “Oh, shit.”
“You're telling me. That boy better hope he behaves. Not that we would put him up on charges, but it would be a hot mess for him. Layla is headstrong as hell, but we don't need that mess right now. She thinks she's grown, but she ain't.” Grams sighed. “I was seventeen when I married Pops, but times were different then, Zoe. I – I just feel like I can't fail her.”
Zoe groaned. “I never thought... Layla and Tim? Wow.”
Grams chuckled. “Well, most folks would've never said you and Calvin, but here you are, ain't you?”
“Are we going to drive around town ‘til we find her?” Zoe muttered half an hour later after they had searched the dunes and most of the streets.
Grams sighed. “No. Text that boy. Tell him if he knows where she is that she better be home at 11:30, or I'll tan his butt.”
“I can do that!” She pulled her cell from her pocket and shot him a quick text. Moments later he responded.
T: No clue where she's at.
Z: You sure?
T: Yeah, I'm damn sure. Why?
Z: She's mad at me and ran off.
T: I'll keep my eyes peeled.
Z: Thanks.
Zoe sighed. “He says he has no idea, Grams.”
November Foxtrot (Rhythm of the Heart Book 2) Page 4