LANE -
I stood on the front porch with Raegan and waited for the a*shole to arrive. Unfortunately, he pulled up at exactly seven p.m. He probably understood that I would have taken her out to dinner myself if he had been at all late, and there would be no second chances. Damn him.
She started to pull away when he came to a stop in my driveway, and I noticed that he made no move to get out of the car… probably another good move on his part. I tugged her back into my arms and tilted her chin to look up at me.
“You got my phone?” She nodded her head and I continued, “Call Jace if you need me. I’ll answer.”
“You two aren’t going to secretly follow us, are you?” she asked, smiling.
“Should we?” My stomach was flip-flopping and I didn't like the idea of her being alone with him—not even for a second. But there was absolutely nothing I could do to stop it.
“No!” she laughed. “Lane, this will be over fast. I’ll call you if I need anything.”
“I don’t like this.” I had to be truthful, even if it made her uncomfortable.
“I don’t either. I’d rather hang out with you guys any night.” Her voice was filled with melancholy, and I pulled her tighter into my arms and kissed the top of her head.
“This is only to talk about Braden, right? You’d tell me if it were something else?”
“Of course! I love you, Lane. Please know that.”
“I do. Now, show your douchebag ex how much you love me.” I smirked down at her, challenging her to do as I asked.
She complied with ease as her hands wound behind my neck and her fingers threaded through my short hair. She rose up onto her tiptoes and lifted her face closer to mine. I wanted her to take me. And yeah, I wanted Adam to see her doing it. Her lips crashed against mine and without words, she told me everything she loved about me and everything she would let me do to her later tonight.
I pulled back before she made me so hard I would have to hold her hostage for the rest of the night. Her cheeks were flushed and I grinned from ear to ear.
“Damn, I love you. Now, hurry along.” I swatted her ass and she giggled. “Come back to me as quick as you can.”
She skipped down the walkway, and I noticed Adam had the windows down on his car. I leaned over to view him eye-to-eye through the opening. “Drive safe,” is what I said. What I knew he understood I was saying was, “If you do anything to her, I’ll hunt you down and tear you apart, limb from limb.” And he knew I was damn well capable of it, too.
~~~~~~~
“Why are we at Uncle Jace’s house?” Braden asked from the backseat.
I pushed the car into park and unbuckled my seat belt. We had hopped in the car almost the second Raegan and her ex-boyfriend turned off my street. She had asked if Jace and I were going to follow them tonight, and I couldn’t say that the thought hadn’t crossed my mind a time or two today. But I was really only here for one reason.
“I need to hit the punching bag in Uncle Jace and Jaxon’s barn.”
“Oh! I want to come too!” Braden exclaimed. I reached back behind me and helped them unclip their straps.
“Can I go see Auntie Audrey and the baby?” Kate asked. I knew that she would ask that. I loved how easily Braden and Kate had become part of my extended family. Everyone had been so great with them and accepted them as if they really were their niece and nephew. I nodded my head at both of them. “Yay! I hope Auntie Em is over there. She’s so funny!”
At the sound of her name, Braden turned to look at Kate. “I like Aunt Em too. She’s pretty.” I couldn’t believe it, but he actually blushed!
“Boy, you’re too young for that,” I chuckled. These two could help any rotten mood I was in. I came here to pretend the sand bag was Adam’s face, but Kate and Braden were helping me calm down, little by little, all on their own.
“I’m gonna go with Kate, okay?” Braden requested. Guess Auntie Em was more appealing than punching a bag in the barn.
“I’ll walk you guys in.”
Jace and Audrey were lounging on the couch in their family room. Baby Jocelyn was perched in her dad’s arms, snoozing away. Audrey was stretched out across the couch with her head on Jace’s shoulder. She was so happy now, and that was all I had ever wanted for her. As Kate and Braden’s feet pattered across the hardwood, the two lovebirds looked over the back of the couch and smiled.
“Hey guys,” Jace called out.
“Come join us,” Audrey invited. Kate was the first to crawl up next to her and Braden wasn’t far behind.
Jace handed Jocelyn off to Audrey, and I knew it wouldn't be long before she was in either Kate or Braden’s arms. Jace stood and walked toward me.
“Beer?” he asked.
“You have beer in your house?” I laughed, because Audrey and Jace had never been drinkers. Insane, I know.
“Audrey buys it for y’all,” he said with a shrug.
“I’m good, thanks. I actually came for the bag.” I pointed down the road a bit, where I knew the big, red barn stood. On the inside of it, Jace had strung up different weighted punching bags. Sometimes it was nice to come here instead of the gym, especially if I had the kids with me.
“Let me change and I’ll come.” As he jogged up the stairs, I noticed he was still in his suit from work.
Kate and Braden had already settled in on either side of Audrey, as close as they could possible get to her. Audrey was naturally such a motherly person that children had always flocked to her. And she absolutely loved it. She was beaming and soaking in every moment. They all sat and listened to Jocelyn coo at them, while Kate and Braden giggled at her every noise.
“Damn, that’s cute,” Jace said as he reached the bottom step.
“Hey little man, you coming or do you really want to stay?” I called out to Braden.
“Can I stay here?” he asked while looking over the backside of the couch.
“You sure can. Watch out for the girls for me, okay?” He nodded his head and we bumped knuckles.
Jace and I jogged down the road toward the barn so we could warm up. We had been working out together for over a year now and had our routine down pat. He was a great sparring partner in the ring because he could take and deliver the hard punches I needed. Tonight, that’s exactly what I was desperate for. Otherwise, I might explode and end up hunting down Adam and pissing off Rae. I didn't need to think about those two off alone together. Jace already knew where she was, so thankfully he didn't have to ask.
By the time Jaxon strode in through the barn doors, Jace and I had already gone seven rounds. The only problem now was that I still craved more of it. And I wanted it to be Adam’s face that met my fist next, not a padded-up Jace.
“What are y’all up to tonight?” I panted, as I pulled the red gloves from my hands. Jace was doing the same and tossing his headgear to the side as well, trying to catch his breath.
“F*cking absolutely nothing,” Jax groaned. “Seeing as I just went to the store to buy chocolate and tampons, I should probably say absolutely no f*cking.”
“That blows,” I chuckled at his sullen state.
“Shouldn’t you be at home giving her that stuff?” Jace nodded toward the bag Jax had tossed to the ground.
“Yeah, but I’m gonna hide out here awhile. Quinn’s over and they’re watching sappy movies, just so they can make themselves cry.” Jax made his way to a mini-fridge and pulled out a beer.
“Seriously?” I laughed. “I’ll never understand chicks.”
We sat and shot the shit for a long while, and I hoped the clock was ticking along at rapid pace. I forced myself to not look at the time, but I hoped this dinner would be wrapping up soon.
Jace’s phone began to chime and he pulled it from his gym shorts. “You’re calling me, dude,” he said, puzzled.
“Shit, it’s her. Toss it,” I called out. I caught it mid-air and had it next to my ear in a heartbeat. “Need me to come get you, baby?” I asked into the line.
“I had a cheeseburger,” Raegan’s voice said quietly. “It came with French fries, so I ate a few of those too.” Her voice sounded sad, and I wanted to rip apart Adam’s throat for doing whatever the hell he had done.
“Rae, do you need me to pick you up?” I walked outside of the barn and into the cooler summer night air. My skin was already heating up in anger again.
“No, I’m fine. You said I could call you for any reason. Even if it was to tell you what I ate.”
“Well, I love hearing your voice.”
“What are you doing?”
“Punching Jace.”
She laughed and then asked, “Where are my babies?”
“You can’t keep calling them babies, you know that, right?”
“They will always be babies to me.”
“Where do you think they are? Fawning over the actual baby inside. I think at one point, Kate was holding her and Braden was simultaneously feeding her.”
“Those two! Get them away, before they start begging us for one,” she laughed, and I heard the stress begin to lift away.
“I’m down for practicing,” I murmured directly into her ear.
“Mmm,” she moaned.
“Where are you, babe? I thought you were supposed to be talking about Braden with him?”
She signed heavily and said, “I’m sitting on a bench outside of the restaurant. He’s on the phone inside on some business call. I don’t really care, I’m just ready to go.”
“Let me come get you.”
“No. I just want to talk to you, and then hopefully he’ll finish and we can leave.”
“I hope you aren’t falling for it.”
“Falling for what?”
“He’s pretending to be the successful businessman, trying to woo you with his money.”
“You know I don't care about that stuff,” she scoffed.
“I know you don’t, and that’s why I’m smiling. Because he’s pulling that shit with the wrong girl.” My grin was probably audible through the phone’s speaker and grew even wider when she laughed in response.
“He hasn’t even tried to talk about Braden tonight, Lane. He’s only trying to get back together with me. What is wrong with him? He has this wonderful, beautiful, brilliant son, and he’s just trying to get into my pants.” Her long sigh afterword spoke volumes.
I wanted to slam my fist and demand to know exactly how he was trying to get in her pants, but her grief told me now wasn't the time.
“I’m genuinely sad for him, Rae. I’ll never understand how a father wouldn’t want to be in his child’s life. And to miss out on a kid like Braden is truly tragic. I know it’s not what you’re wanting right now, but I know that I can be good enough for Braden. I can be the dad that he needs, Rae. I’ll make sure he knows how loved he is every day. Besides, I know that asswipe can’t teach Braden to throw a left hook like I can.”
A sniffle came through the line and she said, “You’re exactly what I’m wanting, right now and forever. For myself and for our children.”
The wobble in her voice told me the kinds of emotions that were running rampant through her right then, and the last thing I wanted her to do was cry. If she was going to cry, I didn’t want Adam the a*shole to try and comfort her… that was my job.
I cleared my throat, straining to get my own damn feelings in check. “So, tell me more about the times when you were a hot little waitress in Brooklyn, back before you met the douchebag. I bet you were trouble with a capital T.”
She laughed and I felt relieved that I’d helped clear the air for the moment. There was nothing I wanted more than to talk about our future together, but I just couldn’t do it with her so vulnerable around him. Any second now he would come outside and want to know where she had gone.
“I used to smoke,” she confided.
“Seriously?” I laughed. “That shit’s terrible for you, naughty girl.”
“Yeah, when I found out I was pregnant, I had to quit cold turkey. I was a complete bitch.”
For the next twenty minutes or so, we sat on the phone and told each other stories about our past that we hadn’t yet divulged in one of our many late-night, under-the-covers, post-sex chat sessions. I made her laugh and in turn, she made me fall in love with her even more.
“Rae, do you realize that you left me a little over two hours ago and yet you’ve spent almost a quarter of that time talking to me?”
“I always want to talk to you.” After a pause, she sighed and finally asked, “Okay, can you come and get me? I guess whatever he’s talking about is much more important than discussing Braden. We’re at that burger house on McDermott.”
“Of course, babe. I’m leaving now.” I grappled for my car keys and went back inside to tell the guys.
“Thanks. I’ll wait out front for you.”
Through the line, I heard Adam’s voice growl from the background, “What the hell, Ree Ree? You didn't even finish eating.”
“You were busy, and now I’m ready to go home. There isn't anything left for us to discuss,” she responded.
“Like hell,” he said. “Tell your guard dog I’ll bring you home when I’m ready.”
“Too late, your guard dog is already on the way, babe,” I shouted through the line.