“But…” She looks at me longingly, and she’s suddenly not as attractive to me as she was last night.
Mick shakes his head, silently telling her this is the end of the road for this tryst. He closes the door before either of them can judge me for being the complete tool that I already know I am.
Heath leans against the closed door, scowling at me as the girl’s sobs can be heard through the wall while she’s getting dressed.
“What?” I ask as I attempt to discreetly pull my boxer briefs on.
“Are you serious?” he asks. “Do you really need me to tell you ‘what’?”
I toss the covers off of me, get out of bed and grab my jeans from the floor. I ignore his judgment and finish getting dressed.
“Garrett, do you even see what just happened here?”
“Of course I do,” I snap.
“You let your latest conquest leave here in tears, but not before another one stormed in and practically died from a drug overdose in front of us. Get your fucking shit together.”
“Oh, and you’re so fucking innocent. Stop acting like this crazy shit doesn’t happen with you too.” My response is weak and sophomoric. I’m an asshole.
Yet I still feel the need to defend myself in this ridiculous situation.
“And by the way, the girl who OD’d isn’t a conquest. I don’t think I even know her.”
“You don’t think?” he yells. “Seriously, dude, there is something very wrong with you.”
“Whatever,” I respond defensively. But there is something very wrong with me.
He bends down near the bed and picks up the paper that slipped from the girl’s hand. I watch as he scans it, wondering why he’s staring at it so intently.
“Who’s Sadie?” he asks.
“I have no fucking clue.”
“Well, this piece of paper says that you absolutely do know her.” An amused, yet disgusted grin spreads across his face. He reads the paper again and nods his head.
“Congratulations, Garrett. It’s a boy!” He tosses the paper my way, and I watch it float slowly to the floor.
I’m confused and scared and I can’t move.
Sadie?
Who the fuck is Sa—
“Well, Daddy, now do you remember who your baby mama is?” Heath no longer looks amused, and his voice now sounds angry, accusing.
“What the fuck are you saying?” My voice cracks and I sink onto the bed. A vague memory, an image of Sadie, enters my head, and I now realize who she is. Baby?
“Do you know her?” Heath asks, confused.
“I don’t know—” More memories flood into my head, and I remember a wild night a while ago when Sadie and a friend followed me back to the bus. I remember wanting to bang the both of them, but the only one who was interested in me was Sadie. Her friend was too busy snorting coke and popping pills. Sadie and I spent a few hours in this exact room while the other girl got so high, she passed out snoring in the lounge area. The friend was a hot mess and Sadie was just… hot… I think.
Baby?
He bends down to pick up the piece of paper from the floor. “Stop,” I say as he’s about to pick it up. “Just get rid of it.”
“What?” he says.
“Leave it. I’m sure it isn’t real.” I don’t even know why I’m saying this. I’m not even sure what it is or why there’s a baby involved.
He ignores me and pushes the paper into my hands. “Looks real to me, ass. And it has your name right here.” He slams his index finger into the paper and my eyes try to focus on what he’s pointing at.
“It says right here that you’re a father.”
I’m looking at what appears to be a birth certificate.
Name: Kai David Armstrong-Moore
Date of Birth: August 10, 2014
Mother: Sadie Leilani Moore
Father: Garrett David Armstrong