“I don’t want your money,” I inform her angrily and perhaps a little loudly, considering Maria opens her bedroom door. When she is subjected to Taylor’s angry glare, she dashes back into her room.
“I love her,” I say without any remorse.
Taylor rolls her eyes. “You don’t even know the meaning of the word love.”
A year ago, I would have agreed with her, but there’s no doubt now. It took me a while to figure out why my heart would race every time Jenni entered the room, and how I couldn’t even eat without thinking about her, but there’s no confusion now.
After flashing a smirk at an irate Taylor, I head to my truck. I have a meeting at Destiny Records’ head office scheduled for this morning, and her eagerness to pay me off makes me just as eager to get a head start on my meeting.
“I won’t let you destroy her,” Taylor hisses under her breath.
I nod before I continue walking. I have no intention of destroying Jenni, so her mom has nothing to worry about.
Chapter Thirty
Jenni
Iwake up feeling better than I was the night before. My bed still carries Nick’s warmth, but I don’t need to open my eyes to know he’s gone. My body senses when he’s nearby. It’s not picking up anything right now. When I reluctantly open my eyes, my first thought is to snap them back shut. My mom is standing in my doorway. She looks angry.
“How long have you been sick?” she questions, her voice as stern as her lips.
Rolling over, I hide my face in the pillow. The last thing I want to deal with right now is another lecture. I begged Nick to keep quiet about our relationship because my mom can’t stand him. Actually, she kind off hates him.
When my mom huffs, I mumble, “I have a bug.”
I hear her heels click across the floor before she drops something on my bed. Curious, my head pops off my pillow. My brows scrunch when I spot a brown paper bag on my bed.
With my mom not giving me any hints, I scamper across the bed, grasp the bag and yank it open. My heart launches into my throat when I spot what is inside. “I’m not pregnant!” I inform my mom as my woozy brain struggles to calculate the last time I had my period.
The swirling of my stomach intensifies as my panic reaches a dangerous level.
Oh shit.
* * *
I use all three tests my mom bought. Every one of them returns the same result. I’m pregnant.
Holy.
Fucking.
Shit.
When I exit the bathroom, it only takes one look at the expression on my face for my mom to know the results. “How could you have been so stupid?” she yells, her blue eyes welling with tears. “I told you to stay away from him, and look what you go and do. He’s going to destroy you, Jenni.”
I shake my head. I love Nick, and he loves me. He won’t be happy we’re having a baby, but I'm sure over time, the idea will grow on him.
“You have to get rid of it.”
“No.” I glare at my mom, utterly mortified. I can’t believe she'd suggest I do such a thing. “I can’t kill a baby.”
She returns my glare. “I won’t let you do this! I won’t let you ruin your life like mine was ruined when I had you.”
Tears well in my eyes. I’ve always known I was a mistake, but hearing her admit it, makes it feel like she stabbed my heart with a dagger. “What’s so wrong with your life? You live in a stupidly large house; you have more money than you could ever spend, you—”
“What about love? I don’t have that.”
I freeze and shift on my feet to face my mom. Nothing but hurt and pain is etched on her face.
