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“Funny,” Willow grumbles, throwing her a dirty look. “You remember that two-weeks’threat?”
“You have anything going on tomorrow, Willow?” Hudsonasks.
She peeks over at Stella. “No. Stella said I have the day off.” Her green eyes flash between the couple inconfusion.
“You do,” Hudson replies. “You’re probably going to be pretty bored, so I have good news for you. Dallas has to go out of town for work and needs some company. You feel like taggingalong?”
She bites her lip and shoves dirt around with her shoe, dirtying them up. “I have a busy day. I need tounpack.”
“Weird. You told me you were finished unpacking yesterday,” Stella says, exchanging a glance with Hudson, confirming this isn’t some last-minuteidea.
Willow shoots her a death stare. “I have baby books to finishreading.”
“Read them on the way,” Isuggest.
She sucks in a breath at the sound of my voice and finally acknowledgesme.
“As a matter of fact, how about you read them to me?” I goon.
My jump into the conversation has shocked everyone, including myself. Making an eight-hour round trip alone sounds like a fuckingnightmare.
Willow’s mouth presses together in a grimace. “You can’t beserious.”
“Sure am. I’ll bring the doughnuts. You bring the baby lit.” I grin. “I’ll be there ateight.”
Chapter Nineteen
Willow
I spentlast night drafting texts to Dallas that I neversent.
The keeping-my-distance plan I made at the first positive pregnancy test is backfiring in my face. I can’t stop myself from reaching out and clasping on to every hand he holds out even though I know he’ll do nothing but drop me at the end. My heart is begging for a repeat of that soul-to-soul connection weshared.
Dallas gets me in a way no one else seems to. He understands what it feels like to have your heart ripped out and torn to shreds. He understands the way love can throw you into a pit of denial. He wouldn’t come to terms that Lucy was sick until it was too late, and I couldn’t grasp that my boyfriend since high school had been cheating on me foryears.
Our hurt is the polar opposite. I know losing someone is nothing compared to a breakup. My pain doesn’t even register on the scale of his. His hurt snuck up on him, wearing him down on short notice, and I’m terrified he’ll drag me into the dark place withhim.
We run from the truth because it’s easier to live a lie than face the monster. I was content with living with my struggles … until that positive test. I won’t allow my babies to be raised by two broken people. One of us has to be strong, and I can’t do that with Dallas Barnes playing with myheart.
The doorbell rings at eight sharp. Like me, Dallas is punctual. You learn to be that way when you’re working with tight schedules and dealing with celebrities who have no regard for time. I’ve had to drag people out of bed, brush their teeth for them, and even buckle them up in their privatejets.
“I’m surprised you didn’t run off this morning,” he says when I open thedoor.
Me, too, buddy. Me,too.
Three red travel cups are stacked in one hand, and a white paper bag is clutched in the other. A pair of heels is tucked underneath his armpits. I reach out to help him with the cups when he slides past me to get into my apartment. I inhale his woodsy scent while following him into thekitchen.
He drops the bag on the counter and then holds up the familiar black peep-toe heels. “These belong toyou.”
The shoes I left at hishouse.
The ones I thought I would never see and didn’t care to see again. He’d be on my mind every time I slipped them on.Where did he keep them? Did Maven seethem?
I grab them from him and toss them onto the floor. “Thank you.” I take in all of the cups. “Someone joining us today?” I sound more disappointed than I should about having a third-wheeler on thistrip.
He shakes his head. “All I know about your morning drink of choice is coffee is a no-go, so I had to get creative and bringoptions.”
“By creative, youmean…”
