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I fi

gure ignoring him the best I can is the right way to handle things for now.

I fix him a plate of food, carry it to the table, and set it down in front of him.

He tips his head forward and makes a show of taking a big whiff. “You are such an amazing cook.”

I laugh as I make my plate and then join him at the small table in our kitchen. “I learned it all from your mom.”

He grins. “I love that you’re close with Mom. You always hear horror stories about wives hating their in-laws. I’m glad we don’t have that problem.”

I give him a closed-mouth smile. It’s true, my mom would’ve probably loved Wes, but she would’ve loved Jared too. It would be nice to talk to her about both of them, because she could give me so much advice right now. It’s not like I can go to Julie and seek out advice on which of her sons I should be with. She loves both of her boys. She doesn’t want to see one of them hurt any more than I do.

The rest of the dinner we make small talk, and I listen intently as Wes tells me about a big project he’s working on for his firm. I’m proud that he’s accomplished so much since we’ve been out of school.

Wes downs the last bit of his drink and then focuses his attention directly on me. “Okay, now that we’re done eating, are you going to tell me why you asked me to come here? I’ve been on pins and needles wondering what it could be since you called earlier today.”

I chew on my bottom lip. “There are a couple things that I want to talk to you about.”

“I’m all ears,” he says.

I take a deep breath. “I’ve been feeling really sick over the last month, and I thought it was stress or maybe some sort of adult form of mono, but when I went to the doctor today, he told me it was something else.”

He raises his eyebrows. “What is it?”

There’s no simple way to say this, so I’m just going to blurt it out. “I’m pregnant.”

Wes’s jaw drops open for a split second before a huge grin overtakes his face. “A baby? I’m going to be a father? Oh, baby, that’s such wonderful news.” He reaches across the table and takes my hand. “This could be just what we need to get us back on track.”

I lift one eyebrow. “You aren’t upset that this has happened after all the plans we made to wait for a long while before we had kids?”

“I know we talked about that, but I just knew back when we first started having problems that maybe if we had a baby you’d be able to forget about my jackass brother and focus on the family you could have with me if you just got over him.”

His words cause me to trip up a bit, and I rub my forehead as I replay what he just said in my mind. Wes has wanted a baby all along? “Wes, a baby doesn’t save a marriage.”

“Sure they do. Look at us. We’re back to talking—working through things together.” Wes smiles, and then his cheeks flush a bit. “I could see us falling apart, London. I would’ve done anything to keep you in my life. I didn’t want to lose you to the ghost of my brother—a guy who I knew wasn’t worthy of your love.”

I flinch and shove myself away from the table before I pop right up out of my seat. “That’s not for you to decide. My heart loves who it loves.”

“London, come on. Don’t get angry. This is a great thing for us. Look at this dinner you made—the baby is already bringing us closer together. Don’t let the fact that Jared is in town for a little while mess with that, because, trust me, he’s not planning on sticking around. As soon as that Ace White guy is found, Wicked White will go back on tour, and Jared will be going with them.”

I furrow my brow. “Just because he leaves to go back out on the road doesn’t mean that we wouldn’t have been able to make a relationship work. We did it all the time when he was on the road playing baseball.”

“That was short trips.” Wes opens his mouth to say something else but just shakes his head instead and takes a deep breath. “London, I can’t believe after all this time you’re still sticking up for him. I’m so sick and tired of him always coming between us!”

I flinch at Wes’s tone, and before I have a chance to say anything else, Wes fires at me, “What the two of you had is over. That night we tracked him down and saw him in the backseat with some random barfly . . . that was just a small taste of what life with Jared would be like for you. He didn’t have the groupies back then like he does now. He’s a rock star, and they’re known for being wild and fucking everything that walks. Why would you want him back, knowing all that? I don’t understand why you just can’t let him go. He doesn’t love you like I do. Can’t you see that I would do anything for you?”

I open my mouth to argue that Jared has changed, but I know that it won’t do any good. All Wes thinks about is the past. He’s not willing to even give his brother the benefit of the doubt that he’s figured out how to cope with his emotions.

Jared left me once and put me—all of us—through a lot, but I know when he apologized that he was sincere. More than anything, I want Jared and me to have a second chance at being together, but for my baby’s sake, I can’t. Wes is the right choice. He’s safe, and he’s what this baby needs: a stable father.

Wes shoves his hand into his hair and grimaces. “God, London. I can’t believe you still love him after all he’s put you through. Maybe when he finds out that you’re carrying my baby, he’ll finally figure out that he’s lost. That you’re mine.”

I swallow hard as I stare into Wes’s wild brown eyes. “Jared already knows about the baby.”

“What? How the hell does he know?” Anger rings through his voice.

“I stopped by your mom’s and he was there and I . . . well, I told him.” I leave out all the details of our conversation—how I chose Wes over Jared because of the baby. There’s no need to add even more insult to injury.

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