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“What if he wants to be a part of this baby’s life?”
“Yeah—exactly. Then I have to be accommodating, and I don’t know if I want to do that. What if he turns into another Casey?”
“So what, you’re just going to ghost this guy?”
“No. I’m just not going to be available when he wants to get together. He’ll give up and move on. It’s not like we had this great romance or anything.”
Another pang—right to her heart—as she uttered the words. Because she could imagine having had a great romance with Pete. He’d been kind and considerate, yet just bossy enough in the bedroom, that it was easy to envision what that could have looked like long term.
But she’d tricked him, and she didn’t imagine he’d forgive her for that. He seemed too honorable. Must be that military background.
“Don’t you think he has a right to know he has a baby on the way?”
Even with how little she knew Pete, she knew he would not be pleased knowing he had a child in the world that was going to know nothing about him.
The thought made her tear up, and her friend, noticing her watery eyes, quickly backtracked.
“If you think it’s best, I support you a hundred percent.
“I don’t know if it’s best,” she said through her tears. “I just know it’s what I have to do.”
“I got your back, girl. Now, let’s get your ultrasound scheduled.”
Chapter Four
Maverick
“How was your date last weekend?” Derrick asked when he stopped into Flannigan’s for a drink and dinner.
“A fucking disaster. I don’t know why I’m even on that dating app. I just need to meet a woman the old-fashioned way.”
The devil on his shoulder snorted.Yeah, cuz that’d worked out so well last time.
Actually, it had gone great. It was just the waking up and finding her gone with no way of contacting her that had sucked.
He’d been coming back to the bar every Tuesday night for the last four months hoping to run into her again. Of course, he never told his brother that was why.
Derrick chuckled. “So, it’s safe to say you’re not asking her to the lake for the Fourth then.”
Their parents had rented a six thousand square foot ‘cabin’ in the Catskills on a lake for two weeks, so he and his brothers were spending the holiday weekend there with them.
“More like hiding from her. I tried being polite at the end of the night. Shook her hand, didn’t even hug her, and wished her well. I thought I made it pretty obvious I wasn’t interested in a second date. I mean, she has a PhD; I didn’t think I needed to spell it out for her. But she hasn’t stopped texting me, and when I didn’t respond she freaking private messaged me on social media!” He shook his head. “I’m not cut out for this shit.”
“I’m sorry, man. It’s rough out there. But the first thing you need to do is change your social media to Maverick instead of Pete—”
“It already is.”
“Or stop telling women your real name.”
“Or just stop dating altogether.”
“Nah, you’re not a quitter,” his brother replied with a grin as he wiped the bar in front of Maverick. “The right woman’s out there. You’ll find her.”
Yeah, provided she doesn’t sneak out in the middle of the night never to be heard from again.
He made a noncommittal noise, and Derrick asked, “So, just you for the Fourth, then?”
“Yeah. Nick is going to the Cape with friends, and the Navy won’t give Nash enough time yet to come home.”
