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"Ree Ree?" I stepped toward her with my arms open. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
I didn't apologize often—rarely ever—but for Reese, I would. She was the only person on earth, other than the little girl swimming around in my belly, who I loved.
But she held up her hand, warding me off.
I stopped in my tracks, watching helplessly as tears slid down her cheeks. "Just leave me alone."
Backing away to respect her wishes, I retreated to the doorway where I'd watched her and Mason fall apart to begin with. But that wasn't enough for her.
"Go . . . away," she screamed.
I scurried around the corner and pressed my back to the wall just out of sight of her. Then I slid down until I was sitting on my butt, and I listened to her weep into her hands. Hugging myself, I just sat there, feeling like crap and rubbing my belly for my own comfort.
Reese had gone above and beyond for me; I never should've broken her rules.
Then again, we probably wouldn't even be in this predicament if she hadn't come to Florida in the first place.
I'd had everything planned out. A few of my things were discreetly packed, money had been tucked away, and my escape plan was complete. As soon as I graduated from high school, I was going to leave Bradshaw and Madeline Mercer for good. I was going to be free.
But then Reese had run into trouble. Her loser boyfriend at the time—another bastard, of course—had tried to kill her, and she'd needed a safe place to stay until everything blew over and he was put behind bars for good.
I had snorted when I'd heard that one. Safe place? Here? Whatever. But my mother had already made plans with her sister—Reese's mom—and Reese ca
me to the Mercer home to stay with us whether I approved or not.
Well, I didn't approve. I didn't want sweet, innocent, fun-loving Reese anywhere near my father. I somehow talked Mom into making her stay in the loft above the garage, so at least she wouldn't be sleeping under the same roof as him. And then I delayed my plans to leave. I was probably the worst kind of safeguard between her and Bradshaw Mercer ever, but I wasn't leaving her alone with that monster.
So I enrolled into the local community college with her, and took classes with her, and I kept dating Alec, the egotistical asshole I'd had a summer fling with. I totally didn't plan for her to meet Mason and fall head-over-heels in love with him. And I didn't plan to get knocked up with Alec's kid. And I most certainly didn't plan to get shot by Reese's psycho ex-boyfriend who finally found her. But I'd been through a lot of shit I'd never planned on happening. So I had to evolve and deal with what I got.
By the time Reese moved back home to Illinois and took Mason with her, Alec—who turned out to be the typical bastard—had dumped my ass, and my parents had demanded that I quietly get rid of the little embarrassment I'd created with him.
But that's one thing I hadn't been able to do. I'd never thought of having kids. I'd never wanted to be a mommy. I was too fucked up for that kind of shit. But now that there was a baby growing inside me, nothing else mattered but taking care of her. I was not going to hurt my child, a little piece of complete innocence I was supposed to love and nurture. I refused to become my parents. I was going to devote my life to this kid and make sure nothing bad ever happened to her.
So I had forgone the abortion my mommy and daddy had tried to pressure me into. Instead, I ran to Reese, begging her to take me in. It was too bad I'd already exhausted most of the money I'd saved for my escape. I could've helped Reese and Mason with some of their financial worries, but I wasn't used to saving, so I had nothing.
Sitting on the floor in the hallway of their apartment as I listened to Reese weep, I wondered why she didn't just boot my ass out now. It seemed like every time I'd ever tried to help her, I'd screwed the whole situation up and only ended up hurting her more. Me and helping someone other than myself just didn't mix. I'd always been too concerned with conveying a certain image so no one would ever know my secrets to worry about anyone else, and now that I did care, I was a complete bumbling idiot about it.
I don't know how long I sat there, listening to her sniffle and blow her nose over the mess I'd caused, but it gutted me. My hands began to tremble as I rubbed circles over my stomach a little faster. My throat went so dry it burned.
When the front door came open, I jerked hard in surprise, making the baby inside me start too.
"Reese?" The worry in Mason's voice was evident as he shut the door. "What's wrong?"
I scooted sideways on the floor just enough to peek around the corner of the hall and into the kitchen. Mason fell to his knees in front of Reese and gathered her hands into his, pressing them against his mouth.
Fresh tears welled in her eyes. "What do you mean, what's wrong? You . . . you left."
Air whooshed from his lungs and his mouth fell open. Shaking his head adamantly, he said, "No. No, I didn't leave you. I would never leave you. Christ, Reese. I'm sorry." He scooped her into his arms and hauled into his lap so he could cradle her close. She burrowed against him and buried her face into his shoulder as he kissed her hair.
"I didn't mean to upset you. I just . . . I was so mad I couldn't see straight. If I'd stuck around a second longer, I would've said something to her, and I knew that would upset you. I was actually trying not to distress you."
She nodded her head against him but didn't look up as she sobbed. "I didn't . . . I didn't know if you were ever coming back."
"Sweet Pea." He tucked her even closer and pressed his cheek against her temple. "I would never leave you," he repeated. "I was coming back. I was always coming back. I just needed to cool off. I love you, Reese. You're everything to me. I'm sorry."
"Don't ever leave like that again."
"Okay." He kissed her temple, then her cheek, working his way to her mouth. "I promise. Never again."
