by Molly McLain
Over the next half hour, I tell him everything. Even my indiscretions with Bria, not because I’m proud of my behavior, but so he can see the full picture of why I elected to go along with her and Liz and why it’s biting me in the ass now.
“I’m a rider, Louie. I couldn’t give a shit less about anything else in this business other than getting on my bike and putting on the best damn show I can. But I have other aspirations, too.” I meet his eye, my jaw pulsing. “I want a family someday and I know that riding won’t be around forever to support that. You could say I got greedy, thinking the ProFit contract and this crap with Bria would bring a nice payout in the end, and maybe that’s true. But I did it with one thing—and one thing only—in mind.”
Louie hold my gaze for a moment and, fuck, if I don’t get choked up. “What’s that?” he asks and I close my eyes, trying to keep my shit together.
“Her name’s Taylor,” I rasp. “She’s been with me since the beginning, easily my biggest supporter, and, this weekend, I almost lost that.”
“Pretending you fathered someone else’s kid will do that.”
I give a wry laugh. “No shit.”
“So, now what?”
My gaze snaps up to his again, and he’s watching me closely, his expression nothing like it was when I first walked into his office. “I believe that’s up to you,” I say, clearing my throat.
“You’re the one in this mess, Wade. You tell me.”
Suddenly, I feel like I’m ten-years-old, being forced to implement my own punishment for breaking Mrs. Nelson’s window. “I want to ride, Louie. I didn’t bust my ass to get on top this season just to throw it all away, but I won’t do it on anyone’s terms but my own.”
“Seems you realized that a little too late.”
I stare at him, not sure how to take that statement.
“You need to get this shit straightened out. Whatever it takes.”
“I intend to. I already have my lawyer working on the ProFit contract and damage control with Liz.”
“Don’t quit ProFit.” Louie shakes his head adamantly. “Their only contribution to this mess is thinking you and Bria would sell more together than alone, and they’re not wrong. You two look great together.”
Dread rolls in my gut. The ProFit contract was what started this shit storm. Only seems appropriate to nip the problem right where it started.
“They have clout in the athletic community and, if you burn this bridge, who knows what other doors you’ll close in the process.”
“I don’t give a fuck about endorsements.”
Louie chuckles. “Yeah, you do. Hell, we all do. They pay our prize money every event.”
Of course they do. I hang my head and scrub my hands over my face. “At least I only have one more shoot for ProFit.”
“See?” My manager gestures as if it’s nothing. “You can handle that much.”
Not with Liz watching. Maybe I can convince Flint and Bria to reschedule and not tell her. Or maybe I can talk Taylor into coming to watch. It won’t stop Liz’s crap, but at least I’ll feel better about having a witness to the bullshit. And that way Taylor can see with her own eyes that it’s just a job.
“As far as riding in Phoenix this weekend, you know the rules about missing practice,” he adds, and I nod.
“Yeah, I figured as much.” I fold my hands together between my knees and stare at the floor. At least he didn’t boot me from the team. Yet.
“Lucky for you that a bunch of the guys came forward while you were gone to defend you.”
My head shoots up. “What?”
“Tito, Brandon, Trey…even Chase came to your defense.”
“McKinnon?” That makes no sense. “What’d he say?”
“I can’t tell you the details, but the gist was that you’d disappeared for good reason.”
I snort. “Are you kidding me?”
He gives his head a shake. “Nope.”
What the hell does McKinnon know about my reasoning? “So where does the lucky for me part come into play?” I ask, suddenly anxious.
“You’re the points leader, Colton. If I ground you on Saturday, I piss off the crowd and lose my ass.”
Jaw tight, I nod. It shouldn’t bother me that he’s letting me ride only because it’s good business, but it does. I’d hoped he’d give me a pass on principle alone, but beggars can’t be choosers, can they?
“Smile, man. I just gave you what you wanted, didn’t I?” he chuckles.
I swallow down the bitterness, and clear my throat. “Yeah. Thank you.”
“One more thing…” he says, as I stand to go. “You fuck up again and I might not be so nice. You’re good, but you’re not irreplaceable. You know what I’m saying?”
How the hell could I not?
- - -
Taylor
Considering I didn’t fall asleep until nearly four in the morning, it’s no surprise that I don’t roll out of Colton’s Maribel bed until after ten o’clock. I won’t make my afternoon class, but I emailed my professor earlier before I crashed. At least I have another week before finals, otherwise I’d be screwed in ways I can’t even contemplate right now.
I roll over and stretch when it hits me—my mom left my dad last night. And, in a way, I left my dad, too. No, I’m not going to cut him loose—I could never do that—but I’m not going to cater to him either.
The power behind that realization has me sitting upright in bed, shoulders pulled back. I’m not going to give up on my plan for him. I’m not going to give up on me and Colton for him, either. What I am going to do is give him is unconditional love. And a grandchild.
A slow smile spreads across my face, followed by warm tears. Damn, these pregnancy hormones and the emotional roller coaster they’ve sent me on. But Colton…bless him for talking me off the ledge. I’m positive that if he hadn’t answered his phone last night, I would’ve woke up to a completely different situation this morning.
Speaking of which…
I grab my phone and, surprisingly, there aren’t any messages from Dad. In fact, the only one is from Colton telling me he’d talk to me after his meeting with Louie, which, because of the time difference, he’s probably still in. I text him a quick picture of my sleepy face blowing a kiss, making sure to catch my nightgown—one of his T-shirts—so he’ll know that I followed through with spending the night at his place.
I just step out of bed, headed for the adjoining bathroom, when a cough at the front of the house echoes down the hall.
Panic rises in my chest and I freeze, listening carefully. Who knows I’m here? I parked in the garage just to avoid running into anyone, mostly to give my parents some privacy. Obviously, that didn’t work.
Grabbing one of Colton’s old motocross trophies, I creep toward the door, ears on high alert. Someone’s moving around in the kitchen. Water runs and a cupboard closes. Then footsteps start coming my way.
Shit, shit, shit.
I duck behind the bedroom door and hold the trophy above my head just as the intruder crosses in front of the crack between the door and frame.
Casey.
Oh, my God, of course.
I lower my weapon and step into view…absolutely scaring the crap out of her. She screams like I’m Freddy Krueger with a switchblade hand and backs up until she topples on the messed bed.
“Jesus Christ, Taylor!” she pants, her hand clutched to her chest. “What are you doing here?”
I can’t help it—I laugh. Hard. Like, press my knees together so I don’t pee my pants, laugh.
“You bitch,” she spats, and a pillow comes sailing across the room.
“I’m s-sorry,” I gasp, trying to get something out so she doesn’t call me more names. “I thought you were an intruder.”
“In Maribel?” She frowns. “You’ve been in the city too long.”
“Maybe.” Now I’m the one holding a hand to my chest, trying to catch my breath. “I can’t wait to tell Col.”
Her eyes
narrow to slits as she climbs off the bed. “Obviously, you’re talking to him again.”
“When wasn’t I talking to him?”
She props her hands on her hips and continues to look at me like she’s trying to figure something out, which, with Casey, is never a good sign. “He told me you were on the outs, oh, I don’t know, about a month ago.”
Why is she talking like that? “Well, we’re fine now,” I say, suddenly feeling exposed in a T-shirt that lands well past mid-thigh.
“I’m glad to hear it, considering.” She watches me like a hawk as I make my way to my clothes, piled on a chair by the closet.
An ill feeling starts to form in my stomach, but I tamp it down. There’s no way she’s figured it out. No way.
“I know.” Ignoring the accusation in her tone, I gather my clothes to my chest. “I would hate for things to be awkward at the wedding.”
“Why haven’t you told him?” she asks abruptly, and all can do is blink.
“I already told you I don’t want to deal with his crap.”
She doesn’t say anything for several long beats, just watches me with what I finally realize is disgust. “You’re not the person I thought you were,” she says quietly, and the whirling sensation in my belly rises.
“What do you mean?” I laugh, though I’m far from amused. The look on her face is intense. Frightening even. “Come on, Casey, you’re freaking me out.”
“The only reason I can figure you haven’t told him—the only reason you haven’t told anyone—is because you did the unthinkable.”
Oh, fuck. Oh, shit. She knows. She—
“You slept with one of his friends, didn’t you?”
Has no idea. “What?” I gasp. “God, Casey. I would never do that.”
She lifts a shoulder, then crosses her arms over her chest. “It makes sense. You come home from Vegas pregnant and barely talking to Colton. You’re almost into your second trimester and yet you haven’t told anyone the news. Not your best friend or your parents. You obviously don’t want anyone to know, and the only reason I can figure is because you’re ashamed.”
Anger boils up inside of me and I shake my head, cheeks hot. “No. That couldn’t be farther from the truth.” I could never be ashamed of having Colton’s baby. Ever.
“Then tell me where I’m wrong,” she laughs, and my defense goes on high alert.
“I don’t owe you an explanation.”
“Of course, you don’t, but you do owe my brother something.” She takes a step forward, her bottom lip suddenly trembling. “He’s been in love with you since he was sixteen-years-old. Yeah, he’s made a lot of bonehead moves over the years, but everything he does, he does with you in mind.”
“Cas…” I bite my cheeks to keep from overreacting, but I’ve never seen her this angry before.
“Call me overprotective—hell, call me a bitch—but don’t stand there and pretend you don’t know how he feels, because even a blind man can see it written on his face every time he looks at you.”
This is it. The moment I’ve avoided for a month now.
“I know how he feels,” I answer, my chin held high despite the waver in my voice. “For that reason and a hundred others, I would never hurt him by doing what you’re accusing me of.”
She raises an eyebrow and waits for more.
“The reason I haven’t told anyone, including Colton, about the baby isn’t because I’m ashamed. In fact, I’m quite the opposite.” I pause to swallow. “It might have taken me a bit to accept what that test at your mom’s said, but never because I was embarrassed.”
“I’d never guess,” she mutters. “Most expectant mothers can’t wait to spread the news. At least to those they’re closest to.”
“Yeah, well, most expectant mothers don’t get that way by sleeping with their childhood best friend either.”
Her eyes go wide and her mouth slacks open.
“That’s right.” I nod. “I didn’t sleep with one of his friends, Cas—I slept with him.”
Chapter Twelve
Taylor
“Holy shit.” Casey walks backwards to the bed until her knees hit the mattress and go out from beneath her. “That is so not what I expected you to say.”
“Obviously.” I’m not sure what I’m expected to say either. I’ve never been accused of something so malice before and, frankly, it’s more than a little unsettling. “We just talked on the phone and you never led on that you were so mad at me.”
“I wasn’t. In fact, it just sort of came to me yesterday. I was worried that there’d be tension between you two at the wedding.” She blows out a heavy breath. “I’m so sorry, Taylor. You two have never been through something like this before. I knew whatever happened had to have been huge.” Her voice cracks and I shift my gaze across the room just in time to see the first remorseful tear fall. “You never led on. Neither did he…”
“In a matter of an hour, everything we thought we knew about each other changed.” Funny how knowing more about one another had created that rift. “It took us both a while to regroup. There were so many questions…so many emotions.”
“Understandably.” She scrapes her teeth over her bottom lip. “You two have been through a lot together.”
“Even more now.”
She smiles softly. “You could have told me. I’m only a snappy bitch when it comes to defending my family, apparently.”
I laugh. “Yeah, I kind of got that impression.”
“Gah.” She shoves a hand into her hair and fists it. “I can’t possibly tell you how sorry I am.”
Nodding, I pace over and take a seat beside her. “I’m disappointed that you’d think me capable of something like that.”
“Nothing else made sense.”
“It never crossed your mind that maybe something had happened between me and Col?”
“I ruled that out, because, in my eyes, if you two crossed that line, that’d be the end of it. You’d have a ring on your finger and a white picket fence.”
I give a sidelong glance. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Like I said before—that boy loves you. I figured once he made that known, there’d be no going back.”
There’s no ring on my left hand, but there is no going back on what we did. I have the sonogram pictures to prove it.
“I knew you cared about him, too, but I wasn’t sure if it was to the same extent. You’ve done a pretty good job keeping whatever you feel for him locked up.”
“Just protecting myself,” I confess. “Guess you could say I’ve gotten really good at it over the years.”
“I’d say.” She sighs. “I shouldn’t be surprised, but hey…apparently my guesses in that regard are for shit these days.”
I snort and she bumps her shoulder into mine. “So, how did it happen exactly?”
“Which time?”
Her eyes go wide. “Oh, my God, there was more than one time?”
I nod, though that’s all she gets. She’s his sister, after all, and I’d rather keep the details about my time with Colton to myself. Little treasures that are just for us. “We were fighting about some drama he’s had going on with an endorsement, and it just sorta happened. Just as quickly as it started, it was over.” I spare her the part about Colton deciding to carry on a fake relationship with Bria, because I don’t know what he’s shared with his family and what he hasn’t.
“I came home from Vegas in a fog, and Col and I spent the next several weeks trying to figure out what the hell we’d done. We’d only just started to talk again when I took that first test with you. I wanted to tell him—my first instinct when anything happens is to share it with him—but this wasn’t something I could just spill over the phone.”
“No kidding,” she says, eyes wide and awe in her voice. “You had sex with my brother.”
I turn to face her and blink. “That’s usually how women end up pregnant.”
She shakes her head slowly, still looking at me like I’m some k
ind of wonder.
“Okay, you’re officially freaking me out.”
With that, she bursts out laughing and doesn’t stop until tears are running down her cheeks.
“What’s so funny?” I can’t help but laugh, too.
“I am such a bitch,” she giggles, swiping at her face. “Colton’s going to kick my ass when he finds out what I accused you of.”
“Casey, you can’t tell him.” My fingers curl around her arm. “At least not until I tell him the news.”
“Well, obviously.” She throws a hand in the air. “And I never did ask—does this mean you’re together? As a couple?”
“We’re giving it a try.”
A different kind of tears fill her eyes, and she pulls me into a tight hug. “I’m so happy for you.”
Me, too. But I’ll be a lot happier when I can tell him everything.
“One more thing: why are you back in Maribel anyway?”
I blow out a breath and glance at the clock beside the bed. “How much time do you have?”
She smiles sympathetically and takes my hand into hers. “You’re making me an auntie. I have all the time you need.”
- - -
Colton
“You talked to Louie for me?” I ask Tito as we push our bikes from the garage to the practice arena. The rest of the guys are already warming up, racing around the track while the setup crew works on the ramps. A few of the newbies grade the landings with rakes, and the bunnies--minus Bria, I notice—stretch out on the sidelines in booty shorts and sports’ bras. They could work out anywhere, but they choose to be a distraction every damn day, running the stands.
“He was really pissed when you didn’t show up on Sunday for recap. Figured it couldn’t hurt.” He frowns, brow furrowed. “It didn’t, did it?”
“Nah. Brandon talked to him, too, and believe it or not, so did Trey.” I’m not convinced there wasn’t some heavy personal motivation behind that move, but whatever he said helped keep me in the air.
“You’re shitting me.” My buddy chuckles. “Guess the guilt is getting to him.”