I glanced up at him to see his reaction, and he looked like he was going to be sick.“Is…is Ryan Henry’s father?” he asked in a broken whisper.I swallowed and looked away from him. Tears blurred my vision, but I fought not to let them fall.“Yes,” I admitted.“My God.” Jason sounded stunned and a more than a little hurt. “Jesus, Sam, why didn’t you ever tell me?”I wrapped my arms around my torso and hugged myself tight. “I was heartbroken and confused. Embarrassed. When he left without a word, I couldn’t face it. I wanted to forget all about that night, but then, I wound up pregnant. By that point, I was too humiliated to admit it was him, so I made up the whole story about hooking up with someone else. I’m sorry, Jason, I really am, but I was scared and I didn’t know how to handle things.”A tear escaped the corner of my eye. I quickly wiped it away, but I couldn’t look at him.I felt like I’d just ripped open my chest and pulled out my heart. This secret was one I’d held onto for
Ryan“Things seem quieter, sir. No one has seen or heard from Bill since you left the city.”I let out a sigh of relief, glad for some good news for once. I was sitting in my study, talking on the phone with my head of security, Marcus, back in New York.“Thank God. Maybe that means I was right in thinking he’d back off if I was gone. If he’s got no target to go after, he has no motivation to continue his harassment.”“It appears that way, sir,” Marcus replied. “We’ll, of course, keep an eye out, and if we receive any hint that he’s active again, I’ll contact you immediately.”“Thank you, Marcus. Yeah, keep me posted.”Hanging up the call, I sank back into my chair and turned my gaze up to the ceiling.If Bill was no longer a problem, that was one less thing for me to have to think about and stress over.Reaching up, I pinched the bridge of my nose, fighting back a headache that threatened to overtake me.Suddenly, the house’s doorbell rang, shattering the quiet that had settled aroun
SamanthaMy mind was still reeling later that night as I drove over to Jason’s house. Henry was sitting in the backseat, distracted by his stuffed dinosaur I’d let him bring along, and so there was nothing to occupy my thoughts except for Ryan.I needed to get him out of my head. It was a dangerous place for him to be.“Mama? When we get to Uncle Jason’s, can I play with Rolo?”I looked up into the review mirror so I could see Henry. He was gazing at me with his big, blue eyes, which were so identical to Ryan’s that it made my chest ache.“If Uncle Jason says it’s okay,” I told him, my words squeaking a bit.Henry’s face lit up with an excited grin.Rolo was Jason’s bulldog, and Henry considered him his very best friend. The two were very cute together, but even the prospect of an adorable boy and puppy dog playdate couldn’t ease my anxiety.By the time we reached Jason’s house, I was trembling.I managed to get out of the car and unhook Henry from his booster seat. He ran ahead of me
RyanI wasn’t certain if I should even go to my tux fitting, as there was a good chance that I was no longer Jason’s best man, but on the off chance he forgave me enough to keep me in the wedding, I drove downtown to the rental shop.It wasn’t until I’d parked that I realized the tux shop was right across the street from Sam’s bookstore. That wasn’t the most surprising thing waiting for me, though.Jason stood on the sidewalk, hands in his pockets, glowering at me as I got out of my car.“We need to talk,” he said.I just stopped myself from rolling my eyes. How many times had I heard that phrase since arriving in town?“What is it?” I asked, moving to stand in front of him. “Come to tell me you’re kicking me out of your wedding?”He clenched his teeth, and I couldn’t decide if he wanted to actually talk to me or just punch me in the face and get it over with.“I should kick you out,” he snapped at length. “I should tell you I never want to see you again, but that’s harder to actually
SamanthaThe store was busier than usual, but I wasn’t complaining as I hurried around restocking shelves. It kept me busy and distracted, which was all too welcome at that point in time.I was rearranging one of the middle table displays when I heard the store bell ring for about the fifth time in less than an hour.Smiling, I turned to greet the new customer, but I tensed and frowned when I realized it was Ryan.He looked at me with a determined expression as he practically marched toward me.“Sam, I need to speak with you,” he said in a low tone..I glanced around the store, taking note of my other customers before telling him, “I’m sorry, sir. As you can see, it’s a rather hectic day today. Do you need help finding a book?”“You know that’s not why I’m here.”I shrugged. “Showing up at my place of work to demand a conversation on my employer’s time? Sorry, no can do. I’ve got a little mouth to feed, remember?”He clenched his jaw and appeared to want to argue the point, but to my
She had to be the most stubborn, most infuriating woman I’d ever met.It was early evening, and I was still stewing from my encounter with her earlier that day at the bookshop.I paced through my house, a glass of bourbon in my hand that I’d been nursing for nearly half an hour at that point.I couldn’t stop thinking about our conversation, or the fact that I’d almost kissed her again.She’d have let me if we hadn’t been interrupted. I’d seen it in her eyes. There’d been blatant desire and want swimming in her gaze.I knew it was a bad idea for us to become entangled with each other at all, yet with each encounter we had, I seemed to grow more and more obsessed with her.I couldn’t seem to stay away from her.Along with my growing desire and fascination with Sam was irritation and frustration that she had refused my offer to help her buy the bookshop.She’d dismissed my assistance so easily that it actually had pricked my pride.Whatever the cost of the shop would be barely a dip in t
Samantha“Three, two, one, shoot!”I lifted my shot glass and tipped it back into my mouth. The tequila burned as it slid down my throat. I shivered before sticking the lime into my mouth to suck.“Woohoo!” Mandy exclaimed, already well beyond tipsy. “Another round!”Letting out a laugh, I grabbed her hand, tugging her away from the bar.“Let’s take a breather,” I said. “We don’t need you passing out before midnight.”Mandy blinked at me and nodded. “Oh! You’re right! Thanks for looking out for me, Sam.”I led her to a table and sat her down before turning back to get her some water from the bar.The other bridesmaids made their way over to the table to gather around her, but Jessica stayed back and met me as I reached the bar. She was part of the bridal party as well, though it wasn’t surprising.We lived in a small town, after all. Everyone was pretty much friends with everyone.“How’re you feeling?” she asked me with a grin.I chuckled and sighed. “I’m good. It’s been a while since
Ryan I felt oddly angry as I glared at Samantha.It hadn’t taken long upon arriving at the bar to realize the women were there as well.They hadn’t noticed us at first, and Jason and I had broken off from the rest of the bachelor party to sneak up on the ladies and surprise them.My eyes had been locked on Sam.I hadn’t been able to tear my gaze away from her, but as we drew near, I could hear what she was saying.She’d rather be celibate than ever sleep with me.Ouch. Why did that sting so bad?She spun around and looked at me with wide eyes.“Jesus, Sam,” Jason declared, though I could hear mirth underneath his scolding tone. “Do you have absolutely no filter? Super classy.”Her face turned bright red, and her eyes darted around nervously.“I-it was a joke,” she muttered, averting her gaze from me.“Bullshit,” Jason scoffed.Sam licked her lips and scratched at her cheek. The awkwardness in the air was palpable.Deciding to take some pity on her, I said, “I want to talk to you. Alo