I walked around her and climbed the stairs to the second floor. I shoved a key in the door and pushed it open, but Victoria was on my heels. She skipped into the middle of the kitchen.
“Just let yourself in, Vic.”
“This is Annabelle’s place. Are you two friends?” Her eyes narrowed. “Holy shit. What’s going on? Does that box say bathroom?” Her mouth widened into an O. “You’re moving in here? No. Really?”
Fuck.
“Vic.” I closed my eyes. I promised Annabelle we’d get through the ultrasound tomorrow before we said one word to anyone. I would keep my promise. “I’m just helping a friend, that’s all. How do I know what the boxes mean?” I shrugged off her third-degree.
She folded her arms, unconvinced. “A friend, huh? How long have you two been going out?”
“We haven’t been.” I exhaled, finally dropping something truthful at her feet.
“Really? You expect me to believe that? Annabelle missed the last two book clubs. Is it because you two have been spending time together?”
“Vic, come on. Are you friends with her?”
She nodded. “Yes. We work next to each other. I see her more than I see Willow, probably.” Willow was Victoria’s cousin and had moved to Evans Mill to be closer to her family.
“Then, you should talk to Annabelle.” I walked out of the kitchen and jogged down the stairs to gather another load from the back of my truck.
“Wait, that’s it?” Victoria echoed above me.
“That it.” I piled three boxes together and scooped them against my chest. I marched past my friend and deposited them on the counter.
“Hmm. Something doesn’t add up.” She grinned.
“I haven’t seen you much,” I added. “What have you been up to?” I took a break to pour a glass of water.
“Work. Hanging out at Scrubby’s. You haven’t been in there lately. Josh says you’ve turned into a workaholic.”
I hadn’t seen many people for the past two months. Meeting and losing Annabelle had done a number on me.
“No. There’s been too much happening at L&L. I haven’t had time for Scrubby’s.”
“How’s your mom doing?” she asked.
“She’s good. Really good. Thanks for checking on her.”
Victoria sighed. “It still seems so hard to believe she’s living on her own. Every time I drive past your parents’ house it’s so quiet and—”
I took that as my exit cue. As soon as anyone brought up my dad, I shut down. “Unless you want me put you to work hauling stuff for Annabelle…”
“I do have to get back, myself. Coffees don’t pour themselves,” she groaned, sliding under my arm, as I held the door open. “But it looks like maybe I’ll be seeing you around here more often.” Vic winked.
“I didn’t say that,” I growled.
“You didn’t have to.” She skipped down the stairs, and I knew keeping our secret wasn’t going to last long. Not in Evans Mill.
Fourteen
Annabelle
It was the final meeting with the calendar committee. I thought about canceling early this morning, but I would only have to reschedule. The library was on deadline to get the final proof in to the printer on time. They had to start the fundraising portion of the campaign before the big holiday rush. The entire volunteer program at the library depended on the funds raised by this push.
It didn’t matter that Luke was moving into my apartment while I explained the layout of the calendar, or that I hadn’t cleaned out a single drawer for him. I was stuck in this meeting until we had the product I had promised everyone at this table. I had to deliver. It was the only option.
Cynthia Blake held a picture of one of the Evans Mill detectives in her hand. “Mr. December?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
We sat in a cramped conference room behind the library check-out desk. Every time I took a big breath, I inhaled the scent of books. There was no other way to describe it.
“All right. And this is the one for Mr. May?” She pointed to the florist who had a shop only a few doors down from my studio.
“I think Kyle did an amazing job.” I smiled. Everyone at the table didn’t need to know he was the one with the artistic inspiration for how to incorporate the flowers into his poses. The photos were beautiful. They spoke for themselves.
“Mr. November might be the favorite.” Cynthia glanced at me. I had to stop my immediate reaction. She was talking about Luke.
“Really?”
Molly muttered something about his abs under her breath. I was stunned at the way they had singled him out among twelve other gorgeous men.
“Are there any changes?” I asked.
Molly shook her head. “Not where Mr. November is concerned.” The other women around the table giggled.
I knew my cheeks grew hot and bright red.
I tried to gather up the proofs. “I’ll get these back to my studio and make sure the printer has the approved finals.”
Cynthia helped make a stack as I stuffed the proofs in my portfolio. “I don’t know if we can thank you enough, Annabelle.”
“It was a fun project,” I answered.
“I already know this calendar is going to out-perform any other we’ve had. The timing couldn’t be better.”
“Oh?” I stopped shoving the pictures together. It was silly that I was trying to hide Luke’s body from everyone. It was obvious they had already studied the details of his washboard abs.
“Yes. The library’s program is trying to expand. They want to bring on a part-time person to run the volunteers. With extra funds, I think we’re going to be able to make that happen.”
I smiled. “That’s great news.”
Cynthia and Molly nodded. “It is. Evans Mill owes you so much, already.”
“No. No.” I shook my head. “I wanted to do it.” When I took on the charity work, I didn’t have a clue what it would lead to. I certainly didn’t count on meeting a man like Luke. I didn’t think I’d have a one-night stand. I never thought the calendar would be the reason I was pregnant.
I paused in front of the door.
“Before you go, Annabelle.” Cynthia turned from me and stooped to the floor to dig through her purse.
I waited, puzzled about what was happening.
She stood, extending a card to me. “This is a small appreciation for everything you’ve done.”
“Oh no. You didn’t have to do anything for me.” It tried to wave off the card.
“We did. You put more time and effort than anyone of us expected. It’s a professional calendar because you stepped in. This is the least we could do.”
“Thank you.” I accepted the card.
The women around the table eyed me, waiting for me to open it.
I ripped into the envelope. There was a thank you card inside and out slid a gift certificate to Mia’s, the Italian restaurant.
“It’s just something small.”
“It’s great. Thank you.” I felt the beginning of tears in my eyes. Why did everything make me so damn sentimental?
Cynthia leaned in for a hug. “We hope you’ll think about working on next year’s project too, but we have a few months before we start on that one.” She chuckled. “But these things pop up before you even realize it. I think that’s June?”
I closed my eyes. I had been shooting the calendar for months. It was impossible to believe by the time next year’s began I would have a newborn. A brand new baby.
I grabbed my portfolio and rushed out of the conference room without saying goodbye. The women’s stares were suffocating me. There was no way they knew I was pregnant. They didn’t know I had slept with Luke, but the longer I stayed in there, it seemed more likely I was about to blurt it out.
Fifteen
Luke
“Last one.” I tossed an empty box in the back of my truck. I slammed the tailgate. I was ready to take the discarded cardboard to the recycling center when Annabelle pulled in next to me.
She stepped out of her car.
“You’re here.” She looked surprised.
“I was getting ready to go for a drive. I’m all unpacked.” I looked around in case Victoria was on another break.
Annabelle’s shoulders slumped. “I have so much work to do, but I’m exhausted. Maybe I should just take a nap.”
I jogged up the stairs ahead of her. “Recycling can wait. What can I do for you?”
She pushed open the door. I wasn’t ready for the tears or the gulp that came when she tried to inhale air.
“What’s wrong?” I tried to pry her hands from her face.
“You moved in to my apartment.” She sniffed.
“That’s what we decided.”
She melted into a puddle on the kitchen floor. Hell. I kneeled next to her. “What’s going on?”
Annabelle looked at me. Her big beautiful green eyes filled with tears. “I feel like I’m drowning.”
I put an arm around her shoulder and tried to support her against my chest. “You aren’t. I’ve got you.”
“You have no idea what it’s like. It felt like everyone at that meeting was staring at me.”
“They weren’t,” I assured her. Although, I couldn’t keep my eyes off her breasts. They were enormous. And now that I knew she was pregnant, there was something different about her. Her golden hair was shiny and her skin was perfect. “If they were staring, it’s only because you look like a damn supermodel right now.” I brushed a curl from her cheek.
She laughed. “I don’t think that was it. They-they like my work, Luke.”
“Isn’t that a good thing?” I was confused.
“This is exactly what I wanted. They love the calendar. They love the shots I choose. They even love Mr. May.”
“Oh God.”
She pushed on my chest. “Don’t let that go to your head. Cynthia Blake asked if I was interested in helping with next year’s calendar.”
“That’s great.”
She shook her head. “No. It’s not great. The shoot starts in June. I will have a baby. A brand new baby. How am I going to work? I can’t.” She shoved off the floor and walked away from me. I watched her from the kitchen floor, my arms folded over my knees. “And when people find out?” She moaned. “I’ll never be able to show my face at book club or the library.”
I rose from the floor. “That’s not true.”
She glared at me. “You’re not the one who is pregnant.”
I took a step back.
“And what is all this shit?” She whirled around. “Is that a gaming console hooked up to my TV?”
“It’s mine,” I answered.
She stormed into the bedroom. I followed after her.
“Oh my God. You put that on my bed?”
“Hey. That’s a quilt my grandmother made,” I answered in defense.
She inhaled. “It’s ugly, Luke.”
I ripped it off the mattress and piled it on the floor. “Better?”
She marched into the bathroom next and whipped open the medicine cabinet. I saw her jaw clench when she spotted my razor and shaving cream.
“Where else do you want me to put all my shit, Annabelle? In the secret escape closet?” This wasn’t the welcome I expected.
I thought we’d have sex the rest of the day. I thought she’d come home and strip down, ready to celebrate that we had decided to do this thing together. The woman in front of me wasn’t in the mood to celebrate anything.
She collapsed on the bed. “Nothing is the same. Nothing.”
I sat next to her. “No. It’s not.”
“I can’t stay here like this.”
I heard the desperation in her voice.
“I have an idea.”
She shook her head. “The last idea you had involved that hideous quilt. No. I have to figure this out alone. I’m being squeezed and pressured. I can’t think like this.”
I reached for her hand. “What you need is a night away from Evans Mill. We’re going to Denver tonight.”
Annabelle looked at me. “I can’t believe you would want to drive anywhere with me after what I said about your stuff. Maybe we should take some time. Alone,” she added.
“I promised I wasn’t going to leave you alone and I’m not. Come on. Put a few things in a bag and I’m driving.”
I kissed her on the forehead. “I’ll be back in twenty minutes. Be ready to go when I get back.”
Annabelle’s eyes lifted to mine. “What is running away to Denver for a night going to solve?”
“Everything.”
Sixteen
Annabelle
I checked my phone again. My bag was packed at the top of the stairwell. It had been thirty minutes. Didn’t Luke say he’d be here to pick me up in twenty?
I paced in the kitchen. I was embarrassed I had broken down in front of him. I had taken one look at his things seamlessly blended into my apartment and I freaked out. There was no other way to describe it other than a complete meltdown. I wasn’t prepared. I wasn’t ready for any of this.
And why was he being so nice to me?
My hands rested at my belly. Right. This was the reason why. His baby was here.
I finally exhaled when I heard his truck outside. I picked out the window over the sink. The bed of his truck was empty. He jogged up the stairs, grabbed my travel bag, and placed it in the backseat of the truck. I watched in awe of him.
He walked through the door. “Hey. I got your bag.”
“I saw.” I studied him a little longer. Why hadn’t he freaked out yet? What kept this man so cool and level-headed?
“Do you need me to put anything else in the truck for you?” he offered.
“No. I think that’s it.”
“Okay. Let’s go.” He motioned for me to follow behind him.
“What’s the plan?” I asked.
He grinned. “Do you like surprises?”
“Not really.” I was a planned and organized person. It was how I ran my life.
“Okay. No surprises. I’ll tell you when we get on the road.”
I locked the door behind us as we descended the stairs. I froze when I saw my friend Victoria out of the corner of my eye. She waved. She definitely had noticed Luke. Shit.
He held the passenger side door open for me. I slid inside.
“Victoria saw us,” I whispered.
Luke huffed. “Yeah, about that. We need to talk.”
I groaned, and waited for him to walk around the truck and start the engine.
“What is it?” I finally asked when we had driven past the last downtown road. “What does this have to do with Victoria?”
Luke pulled sunglasses over his eyes. “I ran into her this morning when I was unloading my truck. I’ve known Vic a long time.”
“Vic? Did you two date or something?”
“No. Nothing like that. It’s a small town. We went to school together. Studied together. Partied together.”
“Oh.” I watched as we rolled past the city limit sign.
“Anyway, I tried to throw her off, but she’s going to ask you if we moved in together. There wasn’t much I could do, but deny it. I know Vic and she didn’t believe a word I said.”
“Great,” I groaned. “That means she’ll tell Willow.”
“Yep.”
I let my head fall into my hand. I moved to a small town to gain independence, not to lose it.
“But after tomorrow, we can tell people, right?” Luke asked.
I looked up. “I don’t know. You still haven’t told me about Denver.”
“I booked us a suite.”
“A suite?” I wished I could see his eyes beneath the sunglasses.
“Five-star treatment. It’s a spa too. You can have a massage. Soak in a huge tub. Sleep in a huge king-sized bed.” He grinned. “And order as much room service as you want.”
“There’s a catch, isn’t there?”
He shook his head. “No catch. It took me a few extra minutes to make the r
eservation, but I think you will finally get a chance to relax away from town.”
I bit my lip. “You did this for me?”
“Of course. We can stay two nights if you want. Or longer. Deal with the apartment later.” His hand moved across the seat to mine. “I told you there was no rush. I meant it.”
“It does sound really nice. Do you think I could get a pedicure?”
“Anything you want.”
“I’m sorry I was so awful earlier.”
“I probably would lose my shit if you filled my bathroom with makeup.”
I giggled. “Really?”
“You already know how I feel about pink.”
“So what are your thoughts on having a daughter?” I teased.
There was silence.
“Luke?”
His face turned a shade of white I’d only seen on zombies in horror movies.
“Luke? Pull over. Slow down.”
He maneuvered the truck into a rest stop and put it in park.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
He stared straight ahead. “A daughter.”
I nodded. “It’s fifty-fifty, the gender. You understand that, right?” I wondered if he was blinking or even breathing. “Luke.” I grabbed his shoulder.
His head swiveled toward me. “Hold on.”
He unbuckled his seatbelt and scrambled out of the truck. I watched as he strolled away from the truck.
I folded my arms. It had finally happened. I knew what it took to make him come undone. All he needed to know was that we might be having a baby girl.
Seventeen
Luke
I checked us into the five-star suite and tipped the bellhop after the bags were delivered to our set of rooms. Annabelle stared out on the sprawling city and the mountains beyond in the distance.
“What do you want to do first?” I asked.
I wanted to hit the mini-bar and forget that I lost my shit on the road trip up here. Breaking down again in front of her wasn’t an option.
She gazed at the big bed. “Take a nap. But first maybe that bath you promised.”
Hard Love (An Evans Mill Romance Book 2) Page 6