He couldn’t deny that. “The baby will bring us closer and I’ll—” What? “—adjust,” he said finally. He prayed it would happen. Either way, he was in this for the long haul. He only wished he could tell her what she wanted to hear, needed to hear, to make her feel better at that moment, but he wouldn’t lie to her. He wasn’t in love with her anymore. He was desperately in love with someone else.
“The baby will grow up with parents who what? Sleep in different rooms?” she continued.
He knew she was referring to his sleeping on her couch. “It’s temporary. I’m not ready...and you’re not ready. Emily, give it time.”
She was expecting too much. He was struggling to keep his patience, but after everything in the past two weeks—finding out he was going to be a father, giving up his life in Brookhollow and the woman he loved—she had to give him some time to adjust, to get his footing.
“Time won’t help. We’re in love with other people. Time won’t change that.”
He paused. In love with other people? His gaze locked with hers. “Greg?” he guessed.
“And Bailey,” she said.
His mouth gaped. She had seen them together at the airport. “That’s over,” he said quietly, the words ripping a hole through his chest.
“But it shouldn’t be if you love her.”
If only things were that simple. He wanted to argue, but he couldn’t. “All that matters now is the baby. I’m willing to put everything else aside to make this work, and I need you just as committed,” he said, sensing her resolve weaken.
She was still in love with Greg, so she wanted to go back to him? No way would he let that happen. He, not some other man, was going to be there for his child. Taking her hands, he pleaded, “Emily, think of the baby.”
She nodded. “I am.”
Relief flowed through him.
“Ethan, the baby’s not yours.”
Dead silence filled the air around them as he let her hands fall back to her lap. He reached for the seat beneath him. “What?” She couldn’t mean that.
“The baby is Greg’s.”
“But you said...”
“I’m not even six months pregnant yet.”
Ethan stared through the windshield of the car. “If you’re saying this because you want Greg back...”
“My due date is December 26, not November.”
“I don’t understand.” Was she seriously telling him that she’d lied to him, dragged him to Miami...?
Emily touched his arm. “I was scared, alone, I didn’t know what to do. You were always so safe, strong...”
“Reliable....” he said, the realization sinking in. She’d lied. She’d used him. The baby wasn’t his. “I can’t believe this.” In the short time he’d thought he was going to be a father, he’d embraced the idea, turned his entire life upside down to put the baby ahead of all else.
“I’m so sorry, Ethan.”
“Why are you telling me now?” He’d been in Miami a week. What could possibly have happened to change her mind?
“I couldn’t do this to you. Not after seeing you with Bailey. Watching you give up your job, your apartment and Brookhollow was all hard enough, but I thought maybe somewhere in your heart you still loved me. I didn’t know you’d moved on. I was willing to go through with this, thinking it was ultimately something you wanted. To be with me and start a family. Not too long ago, that was something you did want.”
So she was going to sacrifice her own happiness to give this baby a life she knew would be safe, secure and a home that, despite everything, would be filled with love. “This is a lot to take in, you know. I...”
“I know, and I’m truly sorry, Ethan. But I can’t go through with all of this knowing that you are in love with Bailey.”
“I told you that’s over. I can’t just leave. You’re alone here.” Even if the baby wasn’t his, she’d come to him for support. He couldn’t just leave her now. He’d been willing to make sacrifices for this child, and his or not, he was ready to follow through.
“I’m not alone. I have great friends...and I spoke to Greg today. We are going to talk. He wants to be involved....”
“But...”
“I don’t love you, Ethan.”
She didn’t love him. The baby wasn’t his. He was free to go. Back to his life in Brookhollow. Back to the fire hall. Back to Bailey.
Still, a sense of guilt made him argue. “I’ll stay, Em. If you want me to stay, I will.”
“No. Go home, Ethan. I’ve broken your heart one too many times. I won’t do it again.”
* * *
BAILEY ENTERED THROUGH the front door of Dreamline Travel after work that day. She’d made up her mind. She was booking a trip to Venice. The shop’s renovations were still being completed; it was the perfect time to take a few weeks off. The truth was, being in Brookhollow without Ethan was taking its toll. Every time she drove past the fire hall, she expected to see his Jeep parked out front. When she passed the football field behind the high school, she had to remind herself he wouldn’t be there. A week without him felt like an eternity.
He’d texted her twice—once to say he’d gotten settled, the second time to tell her he’d gotten a new job at a Miami fire hall—but she hadn’t answered either one. She was happy for him, but she couldn’t bring herself to respond. As much as he claimed he was simply doing ‘the right thing,’ she couldn’t help but wonder whether this was as tough on him as he’d said. After all, up until a month ago, he hadn’t been completely over his ex.
She climbed the old wooden stairs to the second floor where the travel agency had its office and went inside.
Patricia Klein, the owner of the agency, smiled as she entered. The phone was cradled between her cheek and shoulder and she held up a finger indicating she’d just be a minute.
Bailey nodded and scanned the row of travel brochures along the wall. The beaches of the Caribbean, the magical world of Disney and the mythical appeal of the ancient ruins in Greece beckoned from the shelves, but nothing made her second-guess her decision. Years before, her mother had told her countless stories about the Venetian Isles and the beautiful scenery of the Italian city. In recent weeks, she’d been hoping that maybe she wouldn’t be taking the trip alone, but now... She refused to put it off any longer. She would do Venice alone—sleep in late, stay up even later, drink fantastic wine and take in the sights at her own pace. All alone.
“Bailey, hi,” Patricia said, setting the phone back on the cradle.
“Hi, did you get my message last night?”
“Yes, I did. Sorry I wasn’t able to get back to you, but it’s been a crazy morning. That was Victoria, confirming the details of the flight to the Bahamas...again.”
The morning after the wedding the couple was headed for their two-week honeymoon in the Bahamas. Bailey suspected their vacation would have a much different feel than hers.
“No problem. I was just hoping you would have a few minutes today to see what’s available for me.”
“For Venice, right?”
“Yes.”
“Date of departure?” Patricia typed the search requirements into the fields on her screen.
Yesterday. “The day after tomorrow—September 3.” Now that she’d made the decision to go, the only thing keeping her in Brookhollow was the wedding. Once she made it through that, she wanted to be on her way.
“Labor Day.... Hmm, that may add to the cost of travel, being a holiday and all, but let’s see what comes up.” She drummed her long acrylic nails on the desk as she waited. “Sorry, my computer is slow today.”
“That’s okay, I’m in no rush.” The only other thing she had scheduled that day was the wedding rehearsal.
“Will you be attending the Mason-Dawson wedding tomorrow?” Patricia asked.
“I’m in the wedding party.”
“Oh, how nice. I love weddings. I’m planning to close the office tomorrow at noon to attend the ceremony at the church. Luke and I went to Boston University together,” she said, scanning the screen. “Ah, here we go. Looks like there is a flight out of New York on the third at two o’clock in the afternoon. Let’s see if there’s a flight to New York out of Newark....”
Bailey held her breath as she waited. At this point, she didn’t care. If she had to drive to New York with her suitcase strapped to the back of the bike, she would. She just needed to get out of town to clear her head for a while.
“Wow, you are lucky.”
Hardly. “There’s a flight?”
Patricia nodded. “At 10:00 a.m. You have a bit of a stopover but...”
“That’s fine. I’ll take it,” Bailey said eagerly. Reaching into her purse, she rummaged around for her ID and MasterCard to book the registration.
“Great! Number of people flying?” Patricia asked.
Her enthusiasm faltered slightly as she was forced to answer, “I’ll be going alone.”
* * *
“OKAY, CAN WE run through this one more time?” Victoria asked the exhausted wedding party at nine-thirty that evening. The bride-to-be was wide-eyed, unlike the rest of the group.
“Somebody take that coffee cup from her,” Jim muttered, leaning back to rest his head against the second pew in the Catholic church, where the ceremony was to be held the following day at one o’clock.
Mrs. Dawson and Mrs. Mason had already decorated the pews with large white bows, and the sections were labeled “family of the groom” on the left and “family of the bride” on the right. On the altar sat large flower arrangements and the unity candle was displayed near the podium. The wedding music sat on the piano, where only an hour before Melody Myers had rehearsed with the church’s pianist. The details of the forty-minute ceremony alone were overwhelming.
Bailey yawned and checked her watch. They’d been rehearsing for over two hours. She’d been under the impression that there was supposed to be food involved. After all, this had been presented to her as a rehearsal dinner.
Her stomach growled loudly. “Victoria, I think we’ve got it. I’m starving.”
Victoria reached into her open purse on the podium, and tossed Bailey a protein bar. “Here, try this. I’ve been living on them for days.”
“Victoria, sweetheart, I think we have to let everyone go or we won’t have a wedding party tomorrow,” Luke said through his own yawn, reaching for the coffee cup and gently removing it from her hand. “And no more coffee. You need to sleep tonight.”
She pouted, placing her hands on her hips. “Don’t you want things to go smoothly? Whose side are you on?”
Luke kissed her forehead. “Yours. Always yours. I’ve learned my lesson about going up against you,” he teased. “Okay, everyone. You heard Bridezilla—up on your feet.”
The chorus of groans was silenced by Luke’s promise of food. “One more run-through, then all you can eat at Joey’s, on me.”
The wedding party grumbled their way to the back of the church. Bailey took her place next to Luke’s cousin Bryce, behind Jim and Rachel, the best man and the maid of honor. “Remind me again how I got roped into this. I’m not even family.”
“Trust me, Luke’s invite to be part of this surprised me, too,” Bryce said, running a hand through his wavy dark hair.
The cousins looked a lot alike, except Luke was fair. Bryce owned the only law firm in town, though rumors had circulated years before that he’d actually failed the bar exam twice before finally passing. However, having been the subject of inaccurate gossip herself not too long ago, Bailey was learning to turn a deaf ear to the whispers keeping the town abuzz on a daily basis.
The wedding music played, and Jim and Rachel led the way down the center aisle in the church, arm in arm, keeping time to the music. Bailey and Bryce followed. “So Bailey...”
“Shh, no talking,” Victoria scolded, several feet behind them.
Eyes straight ahead, facing forward in a stiff, controlled march, Bryce lowered his voice to barely above a whisper. “So I was wondering...since we’re both in the wedding party...and since Ethan’s gone...”
Bailey winced. Sensitivity was not part of Bryce’s character. Probably one of the reasons he was a success as a lawyer. “Yeah,” she whispered.
“Well, I thought we may as well go together to the wedding.”
Charming. How could a girl say no to such a heartfelt date request? Though she would have if she suspected Bryce had any real romantic feelings behind his stoic, last-minute suggestion. But she knew there was nothing to worry about. No hearts would be involved or broken after this one date. She was safe.
“Sure, sounds like fun.”
“I’m not promising fun, but I’ll get you home safely afterward, and I’ll keep my hands to myself.”
Bailey laughed for real for the first time in days. “That’s the best offer I’ve heard in a while. Thanks, Bryce.”
“Shh...” Victoria hissed behind them.
Bryce was right. Fun might be a little too much to hope for the following day. She knew for certain it would be a challenging one for her on many levels. But she had to get through it and she would.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
THE BRIGHT MORNING sun shone through the lace curtains of Bailey’s bedroom window as she rolled over, tossing the blankets aside. Checking the clock on the bedside table revealed it was just before ten o’clock. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d slept in so late, but she was grateful for the restful night after the lack of sleep she’d been getting that week. Stretching, she flung her legs over the side of the bed and made her way to the bathroom, where her bridesmaid dress hung on the back of the door. The warm breeze blowing through the open window promised a perfect wedding for Victoria and Luke.
Bailey studied her reflection in the mirror. Despite how she was feeling, she had to put on a brave face. She needed to be there for her friends on one of the most important days of their lives.
Forty minutes later, showered and her hair dried and pinned in loose waves around her shoulders, she slid into the tight dress. It shouldn’t have surprised her that it no longer seemed as tight. Her lack of appetite lately was at least good for something. Hurrying, she zipped the back with ease. The wedding party was meeting at the church for “before” shots with the photographer forty-five minutes before the ceremony was scheduled to start at one o’clock.
She applied a little more makeup than usual, then forced a smile on her pale pink, glossy lips as she dialed the number for the local taxi company. Bryce had left her a voice mail earlier that morning to say he was running behind and would she mind meeting him at the church. She didn’t. In fact, she was starting to regret agreeing to be his date for the evening. She planned on leaving as soon as she could, still needing to pack for her trip the next day. A trip that was feeling more like an escape than an experience she’d looked forward to for years.
While she waited, she wrapped her present for the couple. An old black-and-white photo of Main Street taken in the sixties with Legend’s Sporting Goods visible in the center. She’d found the photo in one of her grandmother’s albums. It was one of those perfect early-morning winter shots when no footprints or car tracks had yet destroyed the smooth, white dusting of snow on the ground. Everything was still and peaceful. She’d borrowed the photo, had it restored and framed, thinking it would make a great wedding gift for Victoria and Luke. The old store held a lot of meaning for the couple.
The sound of the taxi’s horn sounded in her driveway a moment later through the open living room window. Grabbing the gift, she went to her front closet to get her shoes.
She stopped dead in her tracks.
Her shoes we
re still at the shop.
She groaned, checking the time on the mantel. Twelve o’clock. She might be a little late for the photos, but surely Victoria would prefer that than having her bridesmaid walk up the aisle barefoot.
The taxi horn sounded again, and grabbing the present and her purse, Bailey dashed outside barefoot, locking her door behind her.
“I think you’re forgetting something, miss,” the taxi driver said, glancing at her feet as she climbed into the backseat.
“I know—shoes. We’re going to pick them up now.”
* * *
“ARE YOU SURE about this, Emily?” Ethan asked, as they waited in the ticket-counter line at the airport Saturday morning. “I mean, I can stay...”
“We’ve talked about this,” Emily insisted. “You’re going back to Brookhollow. And you may as well get back there today so you won’t miss Luke and Victoria’s wedding.”
The line moved and the ticket clerk on the end waved them over. “Do you have a reservation?” she asked.
“No, but I was hoping to catch the next flight to Newark,” Ethan said, excitement rising in his chest. He was going home. He was no longer committed to Emily. But one look at her nervous expression had him asking, “Seriously, are you sure?”
“Ethan, I’m not letting you back in my apartment, so unless you want to sleep on the streets tonight, and I don’t recommend that in this city, you better get home.”
“I may be sleeping on the street anyway. I don’t have an apartment anymore, remember?”
Emily gave him a sheepish look. “I’m so sorry. I totally blame this baby brain and these uncontrollable hormones for all of this mess.”
“Okay,” the clerk said, “it looks like the next flight leaves in three hours. It is already full, but if you’re willing to fly standby, we can get you on it if something opens up. The next one after that is tomorrow at noon.”
Ethan hesitated, his gaze locked on Emily. Guilt washed over him at the relief he felt at the turn of events. While he was definitely battling disappointment that he wasn’t going to be a father, he knew it would happen someday, the right way, with the woman he loved. Bailey. “I’ll take the standby.” He couldn’t wait a second longer to get back to her.
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