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Gossip in a small town should be ignored more often than not. I learned that lesson after my fifth-grade teacher almost quit her job based solely on spiteful hearsay. That doesn’t stop the rumor I heard earlier from playing on repeat.
I whirl on my heel and pace to the tall oak that marks the hiking trail’s entrance. Dust kicks up from my frantic stride as I turn to retrace my path for the ninth time. My skin is slick and balmy, which has little to do with the nerves eating at me.The July heat hasn’t relented even as dusk casts shadows across the woods.
A twig snaps to my left and I pivot to see Jacob Evans—the one I’ve been waiting for in more ways than one.I rush forward to fling myself at him. Fresh pine blended with lingering traces of motor oil and fraying patience welcomes me.
My arms struggle to encircle his torso as I soak in his sturdy warmth. Jake is already broad and muscular, far larger than the boys I just graduated with. His steady pulse drums beneath my ear and soothes me. I breathe him in again while trying to silence the doubt pestering me. Everything is going to be okay.
“You came.” Stark relief raises my voice to an embarrassing pitch.
“Said I would.” Meanwhile, his tone is flat and stiff.
The brittle response sets off an alarm in my brain. Denial and desperation have me clinging tighter to him. It’s only then I realize he isn’t returning my embrace. Toned arms that rarely hesitate to haul me in stay glued to his sides.
I step back from the false comfort of his presence to do a quick assessment.Only three years separate us, but Jake appears older than twenty-one right now. There’s an underlying tension thrumming from him. His rigid posture matches the stony expression avoiding my gaze. The dark features I could trace from memory are purposely guarded.
Only his eyes reveal emotion.A barely contained storm swirls in those blue depths. Jake must feel my imploring scrutiny and bites off a curse from his clenched jaw.
“Please tell me it’s not true.” I lift trembling fingers to my lips.
He averts his stare further from mine. “Afraid I can’t do that.”
Fire blasts under my skin as understanding dawns. I lunge at him, bunching his shirt in my fist. “You cheated on me?”
No wonder he was willing to wait until I was ready to lose my virginity. The good guy act was just for show. He’s really an asshole in disguise, getting action elsewhere.
“Didn’t fucking cheat.” The icy retort might as well be frozen shards stabbing at my flesh.
I scoff to hide the pain. “How else do you explain getting Morgan pregnant when you’re dating me?”
Jake pins me with a glare, but his face remains an impassive mask otherwise. “It happened before we started seeing each other.”
“And she just found out about the baby?” Disbelief drips from my snarky reply.
“Guess so,” he drawls.
“That would make her four or five months along. She should’ve noticed her missing period much sooner.”
He shrugs. The motion is jerky, much like the rest of him. “Don’t ask me.”
My fingers clench the fabric still in my hold. “Are you sure the baby is yours?”
“I’ll get the test done, but there’s no reason for me to assume she’s lying.”
None of this makes sense. Heat begins to collect in my eyes.His indifference is worse than this unpleasant detour. He’s already shutting me out, minutes after confirming what I swore was fake news. Too many thoughts and emotions pummel me at once. I’m more confused than anything. Answers would be appreciated.
“But when…? How…?” It seems that I can’t form a proper sentence. “You told me this is exclusive between us. That you’d wait until I was ready.”
Jake dips his head in acknowledgment. “Already said we are, or were. I slept with her in March. It was just once. Hadn’t talked to her since until she texted yesterday.”
That’s a lot to digest, but my mind snags on a single word. “Were? As in, past tense?”
The defeated grimace pinching his expression is telling. Then he’s withdrawing further behind the blank walls he thinks I can’t see through. “This is over between us, Harper. I have to do what’s right for Morgan and the baby.”
It feels like my chest is caving in with that declaration. I could gasp or scream or wail, but that won’t accomplish a damn thing. It’s not as if I expected him to stay with me while another woman has his child. I did think he’d be more upset about it, though. For my benefit if nothing else.
That’s precisely why I pound my fist against his sternum. If only I could break through and shatter his hardened resolve. Just for a moment to prove he gives a shit about me. A sob rips from my tight throat and I thump him again. It’s silly to be this upset over something I never had. That doesn’t stop a lone tear from escaping, though.
“Knock it off, Pitchy. What’s done is done.” He pries my fingers from his shirt, releasing me without care.
