Suzy tenderly caressed the face of the man she loved so much and was helpless to deny him the reassurance that he so desperately needed at this moment. “I’m just going home, Gray, I’ll be there when you finish here.” She could feel the relief rolling off of Gray in waves.
“Thank God. If you must go, please go to our house.” As she started to protest, he silenced her with a finger on her lips. “I bought that house for us; it is your home. I’ll be home in a few days and I don’t want to worry about you trying to navigate any stairs while I’m away.”
Suzy couldn’t find the strength to argue over this request. Gray’s lips took hers in a kiss so sweet and full of love that she felt her heart melt. At that moment, she didn’t think it was possible to love another as much as she loved him. She only hoped her heart would survive the fall-out if something happened.
Nick and Beth walked back up to them and Suzy was surprised when Gray told them what had happened with Reva. Nick swore violently, his face flushed with anger. “Gray, man, I know you aren’t going to just take her word for it. The woman is a nut and if she’s gotten herself pregnant, there is no way it’s yours. For one, I know you wouldn’t be that careless and she sure wouldn’t have kept that a secret this whole time. She’s ringing all of our damn phones off the hook daily for months and doesn’t say a word? She’d have taken out a banner ad right after she found out if that were true.”
Beth had moved close to her sister since recovering from the shock of Gray’s words. While he and Nick continued to discuss what was going on, Beth looked at her with a mixture of anger and sympathy. “Sis, how are you holding up?”
Suzy gave her sister a weak smile. “It is what it is, there is nowhere else to go but forward.”
“Is it very wrong of me to want to kick a pregnant woman’s ass?” Beth asked.
Unable to control her laughter, Suzy looked at her sister and held her fingers apart. “A little bit, but thanks for the thought.”
The men finally wrapped up their conversation and Gray pulled her close for one last bittersweet kiss. “I’ll call you tonight. I love you, baby.”
Suzy felt shy about saying the words in front of an audience, but she knew that Gray needed to hear them. “I love you too. Try to get some rest today.”
The breath left her body as he picked her up in his arms and deposited her into the seat. “I’m not taking the chance on you hurting yourself trying to get into my brother’s mini-van.” With a smirk, he looked over at Nick. “Nice wheels, bro.”
Nick’s simple reply of, “Piss off” had them all laughing.
Suzy’s heart broke as they drove away, and she looked back at Gray one last time and saw him standing there in the parking garage looking like the last man on a sinking ship. Was leaving him the right thing to do? Like him she had to go with her gut and that told her that he needed to be alone right now even if being in his arms was what she needed more than anything.
~~~
What a big freaking mess. There goes the woman I love who actually loves me back and here I stand in complete hell. Was it even possible to make a bigger mess than I have? My father always told us that our dick could lead us to our destruction if we didn’t watch ourselves. Well, no shit, Dad, no shit.
Gray stepped off the elevator and into his home. He walked into the bedroom not really knowing what he was seeking until he looked down at the bed still rumpled from Suzy’s earlier nap. As he collapsed onto it, her scent wrapped around him and he felt the first bit of peace that he’d felt since he’d held her in his arms earlier after they had made love.
He relived his conversation earlier with Reva. Gone was the conniving confident Reva and in her place was a clingy, needy, emotional basket-case. It had gotten to the point that he was actually starting to feel sorry for her before he’d left. Was this yet another act on her part or genuine? There was no denying she was pregnant, but was the child his? As he’d thought, and of course as Nick had pointed out, why would she have waited this long? He was the one who had contacted her to meet tonight, so was she ever planning to tell him? Sure, she still called constantly, but even she’d admitted that she hadn’t left a message concerning the pregnancy. Why would someone stalk him for months and not use the one weapon guaranteed to get his attention?