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Rachel pushed up from her seat, hovering just long enough to shake his hand and then plopped back down, her expression still tight. “Rachel Graham.”
“Sister?” Noah asked, glancing from Rachel to me and then back again.
I smiled and shook my head. “No, just very old friends.”
Rachel grinned. “Who are you calling old?”
Noah chuckled. “Well, I’m glad you have some company. I won’t stay long. But I wanted to stop in and see how you are and to tell you that you’re not allowed to come back to the office for the next six weeks. At the least!”
“Noah, that’s really not—”
He silenced me with a hand. “No arguments. I’m ordering paid time off for you to rest up and heal.”
“Fine,” I relented with a sigh. The doctors hadn’t technically given me a time frame for when I would be back to normal. It was clear that I’d gotten lucky. I hadn’t seen the photos from the accident, but from the pieces I’d gathered from my various visitors, it wasn’t pretty.
Noah glanced at Rachel and then at me, seeming to weigh his words. “How’s the baby?”
I dropped my hand to my stomach. “Good, but the doctors want to keep me for another night to monitor everything. But so far, no signs of any problems. I had an ultrasound a little over an hour ago.” I smiled at the memory of hearing the fast heartbeat and seeing the images on the screen. Rachel had been at my side, clinging to my hand as we waited for the technician to find the baby. I was grateful for her support, but there was a nagging voice and sinking feeling reminding me that it was supposed to be Jack there, holding my hand, telling me everything was going to be okay.
Noah smiled over at me. “Good. I’m glad to hear it.”
“How’s everything at the office?”
Noah shook his head, still grinning. “You don’t need to worry about it.”
Rachel laughed. “She’s gonna worry about it.”
Noah stood and buttoned his suit jacket. “I’ve got it under control, Holly.”
I knew he did, but I yearned for the distraction. Work had been my saving grace over the past few months. Obsessing over Jack and moping after the breakup was a lot harder to do with fifty-hour work weeks and constant meetings, consultations, and deadlines. Without it, I was at the mercy of my own nagging mind and all roads seemed to lead right back to Jack.
Noah headed toward the door. “Call me if you need anything. Okay, Holly?”
“I will. Thanks again, Noah.”
He smiled and then tugged the door open. “It was nice to meet you, Rachel.”
She nodded and he left. Once the door was closed behind him, she turned to me. “Good lord…he’s even more gorgeous in person.”
“Told ya.” I smiled.
Rachel blinked the stars from her eyes and then shifted in her seat, bringing her legs up underneath her. “It’s obvious that he cares about you.”
“He’s just a nice guy, Rach. That’s all.”
“Uh huh…keep telling yourself that, but I know you well enough to know that denial isn’t your strong suit. You need to make a choice here, Holly. Which way are you going to go?”
My eyes squeezed shut. “Rach, please, no more. Not right now.”
She sighed. “At least talk to Jack. What you’re doing is just…”
“Just what?” I asked, shifting my gaze to her.
“It’s wrong, Holls. I love you, but you’re being a bitch.”
I reared back as though she’d slapped me. Rachel rarely cursed and she’d never called me a bitch before.
“I’m sorry, girl, but you need a reality check here. Everyone else seems to be content to walk on eggshells and not upset you, and I love you and don’t want to upset you either, but I can’t watch you do this. I can’t stand by as you throw your whole future away because you’re scared.”
“Who said I was scared?”
“Duh! You think I’m that stupid? You pushed Jack away before he could leave you, before he could hurt you. But look at where you’re at now—alone, getting ready to have a baby, and these walls you’ve been building between you guys are only getting thicker.”
Tears swelled up in my eyes. “No. I don’t want to be alone, Rach. This isn’t really my choice. I said yes to Jack. So many fucking times. He wanted to go to Germany and I said yes. I put everything on hold to be with him. Then, he asked me to marry him and I said yes again. He wanted to come back to Holiday Cove, buy a house, plan a future. I said yes over and over and over again. But when it came right down to it, I found out I’d been betting on the wrong horse all over again.” The tears slipped past my lashes, hot and fast. I didn’t even bother to wipe them away. “I didn’t want to break up with Jack, and I certainly don’t want to raise a baby as a single mom. None of these things were in the plan. I picked up the pieces after my divorce, built a business, learned to be alone, and then bam! Like lightning, here’s this beautiful man who seems too good to be true. I put everything into our relationship and what did I get out of it? A broken engagement and once again, a broken fuckin’ heart. No, I’m not scared, Rach, I’m fucking angry. I’m sad and I’m frustrated. Got it?”
