Total pages in book: 34
Estimated words: 33887 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 169(@200wpm)___ 136(@250wpm)___ 113(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33887 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 169(@200wpm)___ 136(@250wpm)___ 113(@300wpm)
Nugget of News: Whenever they were in New York, they stayed with us. No dis to Tom and Mika, but they were back and forth to Phoenix often, and for Tom, all over the globe when he was calling tennis matches. Though, I didn’t quite understand why they didn’t stay with Jamie, however, I figured it had a lot to do with Chloe wishing to keep tabs on how Hale was doing after he’d opened that box.
Not to mention, Chloe adored that room. It was modern and spacious and had an insane view.
But my stomach bottomed out when she said that.
I wasn’t sure I’d regain use of it when Hale chuckled and called in return, “That’s not ever going to be a problem.”
Suddenly feeling numb with panic, I vaguely noticed the weird look Chloe shot him before Judge pulled her into their room, calling his goodnights, and Hale, his hand to the small of my back, guided me into ours.
He closed the door behind us and went directly to the walk-in closet.
I stood immobile, thinking mention of a nursery was the perfect segue.
Just put it out there. It wasn’t your fault, it wasn’t his. It happens. It’s life. It’s actually a miracle. And you both need to deal and then plan.
Even after giving myself this mental pep talk, the reason I slowly became unstuck and followed Hale to the closet, and once there, I simply started to disrobe and didn’t say word one about my pregnancy, was twofold.
One, that night he got news his father did something beautiful and kind (again), and I needed to give him space to deal with it.
Sure, he seemed okay about it.
But it was important to be sure he was okay before laying another big, emotional issue on him.
Two, if he felt anything other than what I felt—elated that we made a baby together, no matter if it was unexpected (and truthfully, in our relationship, too soon)—I knew myself. I knew I’d never forget that reaction. I knew it’d fester inside me. It might even change the way I felt about him.
We would bounce back. Our love was strong. Fierce. I believed in us.
But it would always be there.
That said, I knew he didn’t want children, so I also knew that could happen.
Wait.
No.
The reasons I started getting ready for bed without broaching the topic was threefold.
The last one being I was chickenshit.
“You okay?”
Hale’s question made me jump and turn to him, hoping I was hiding I was doing it guiltily, and knowing I failed when I saw his brows draw together at witnessing my body starting.
“I’m fine,” I told him, and it wasn’t a lie…as such.
“Do you still have that headache?” he asked.
“No, it’s gone.”
“You don’t get headaches very often,” he noted.
“No,” I agreed.
“Something stressing you out?” he pressed.
Yes!
I shook my head, and still wearing my slacks, but having stripped off my blouse so I was only wearing a bra up top, I moved from my side of the closet to his.
I got close and put my hand to his bare chest (he was similarly attired to me, only jeans, it looked good on him, it also felt good).
I looked up into his beautiful green eyes.
Tell him, tell him, tell him! JUST TELL HIM!
That was what was screaming in my head.
What came out of my mouth was, “I’m just thinking about what might be going down with Tom and Mika.”
The disquiet faded from Hale’s face, his lips tipped up, and he curled his hand around mine and brought my fingers to his mouth for a quick kiss.
He didn’t let them go, but flattened my hand back on his chest and said, “Mika is about creativity and passion and art and bohemia and being herself, not giving a fuck what anyone thinks about her. Tom hides it well,”—that brought a full smile to his mouth—“but he’s conservative and traditional. He’ll want his ring on her finger and the wedding certificate signed and sealed, declaring her his as pertains to the laws of the land. They’ve been living together for a while now. This is totally about them announcing their engagement.”
Still retaining hold of my hand, he slid his other arm around me and kept talking.
“It seems spontaneous, and I’m sure Mika can be spontaneous, but Tom really can’t. Kayla got a call weeks ago from him asking about your and my schedule for this weekend and requesting she make sure she didn’t schedule anything for Saturday afternoon or evening. I’m sure he, or Teddy, did the same with everyone else.”
Teddy, by the by, was Mika’s PA.
Hale wasn’t done sharing. “It was supposed to be a surprise, but Kayla let it slip when Javi and I were going over our calendars for the next couple of months.”
I temporarily lost my guilt at being a wuss in order to be miffed.