Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 107803 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 539(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107803 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 539(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
“I’m not falling apart.”
“No, you’re going out and getting drunk.”
He smirked. “Does that make you mad, Flower Child?”
The old nickname was back, and I didn’t want to admit how it felt like a stab to my heart. I reached for my purse and opened the truck door. Sliding out, I looked back at him. I wasn’t sure why the nickname had made me so upset, but all I wanted to do was scream. We were back to this.
When I couldn’t think of anything to say, I slammed the truck door and started for the steps that led to my apartment.
“Lilibeth!” Caden called out.
“Just go, Caden. Have your night out.”
I could hear the truck door open and shut, and I cursed.
When I got to the top of the stairs, Caden was directly behind me. I opened the door, slipped inside, and tried to shut it, but his foot was in the way.
“Are you telling your parents today?” he asked.
I sighed. “Yes. But I don’t want to tell anyone else until I’m past twelve weeks, just in case. As a matter of fact, I think we should wait for me to move in until then…just in case anything happens.”
“Should we wait until then to tell our parents?” he asked.
“I don’t care what you do, Caden.”
My mood had clearly soured, and a part of me wondered why. Maybe it was because Caden had used that stupid nickname. Flower Child. I almost wondered if he did it on purpose. If he called me the name he’d used when we were frenemies, maybe he could keep his distance again.
He’d removed his foot, so I took advantage and shut the door. I held my breath and waited for him to knock.
Instead, I heard him slowly descend the steps. A few moments later, the sound of his truck pulling out caused me to turn and lean against the door.
I closed my eyes and cursed inwardly. The way I’d just acted wasn’t like me at all. Why did I care if Caden went out and got drunk?
Maybe it’s because you can’t help but wonder if he’ll end up sleeping with someone? a little voice inside my head whispered to remind me of what he was capable of before we slept together.
Would he do that? After finding out I was pregnant?
Pushing away from the door, I exhaled and tossed my purse onto the sofa. “It’s none of your business, Lilibeth. He can sleep with whomever he wants. He owes you nothing.”
I headed toward my little kitchen and opened the freezer.
“Damn it. This is when I miss having Uber Eats.”
Turning on my heel, I made my way back to my purse, headed down to my car, and went straight to the grocery store to buy every pint of Ben & Jerry’s Cherry Garcia they had.
Caden
Week 8
I pulled up and parked behind my father’s truck. My heart felt like it was about to beat right out of my chest. I had no idea how they would react to the news I was about to tell them. A part of me wanted to wait for the twelve-week mark Lilibeth had mentioned, but I knew I couldn’t keep this from my parents. I wasn’t scared they’d be mad, more like disappointed.
Dropping my head back against the seat, I thought back to the times I’d slept with Lilibeth. I’d worn a condom every single time. Nothing had seemed wrong with any of them, but had I been paying close attention when removing them? No. I’d been too fucking caught up in how I was feeling. Or to be honest, how I’d felt about making love to Lilibeth.
Being with her had felt so fucking right.
I shook those thoughts away.
“Shit.” This wasn’t how I’d pictured my life. Yes, I wanted a family, and for years had always thought that family would be with Rachel. Since she’d left, the last thing on my mind was a family. Now I was going to be a father with a woman I was fighting my feelings for, and after just a few days spent together.
A humorless laugh slipped free as I shook my head. I grabbed my keys and got out of the truck. It was starting to lightly snow, and I made a mental note to check the weather before I texted Gatlin about going out.
I opened the front door and walked into my parents’ house. The familiar scents of home instantly took me back to happy memories. As I headed toward the kitchen, I smelled what I was pretty sure was beef stew, and my stomach growled. I paused when I heard a faint song, closing my eyes as Stevie Nicks’s “Leather and Lace” played. I knew what I would see when I walked into the kitchen. My mother and father dancing.
A mixture of happiness and sadness washed over me as I started forward again, leaning against the wall right outside the kitchen and watching as Mom and Dad danced slowly together. They were so lost in one another they hadn’t noticed I was there.