Chapter Nineteen
I HAD DONE nothing but toss and turn, unable to sleep, my thoughts consumed with my situation and how to handle it. So far, I’m doing nothing but making a mess of it. My grandfather always said I was impulsive and needed to think things through before running headfirst into something.
But did I listen?
Flipping the covers off, I got out of bed and walked to the window, staring out into the night, my eyes drawn to the sky. Here, unlike my home in Philadelphia, the sky was so clear, the stars so bright, with no city lights to taint it. I loved it and could look at it forever and the nature surrounding me; it was spectacular with all the mountains. I was itching to explore every single inch of it.
A walk. That’s what I need—a walk to calm my mind, and then maybe I could get some sleep. I worried about my baby and what all this stress was causing; I needed to be more mindful of my pregnancy. Going to the dresser to grab something to wear, I stopped in my tracks as I heard a giggle coming from Kaven’s room.
Surely, I heard wrong. He wouldn’t bring a woman right next door to me, would he? With my heart in my stomach, I moved to the door that separated our rooms, putting my ear against the cool wood. “You like that, don’t you, baby?” a woman’s voice purred.
My hurt turned into blood-red rage at the sounds I heard that could only mean one thing, after telling me I was wrong, and he wanted to work things out! I was going to kill him!
So, without hesitating, I threw the door open with a bang and marched into the room snarling, “You got one hell of a nerve—”
“What the hell, Hadleigh?” Valley shouted, as the naked woman kneeling on the floor in front of him screeched and fell backward.
I threw my hand over my mouth in horror at my mistake as Valley stood in front of me with a shocked expression on his face, the girl on the floor looking at me like I was crazy as she scrambled to her feet and grabbed her clothes, probably thinking I was some deranged girlfriend.
My feet backed slowly toward the door with an apologetic smile on my face. “I’m sorry, Valley, I thought...” I mumbled in embarrassment, my eyes going where they shouldn’t, raising an eyebrow and thinking all men were not the same.
Seeing the focus of my eyes, he realized what I was seeing. “Holy hell, Midnight is going to kill me!” he growled and moved toward the bed, grabbing a blanket.
I took a step back, my mind racing. “Umm, see you tomorrow?” I said before hurrying into my room and slamming the door shut, leaning against it and looking up at the ceiling, my face beet red with embarrassment. Okay, that was going to make things awkward with Valley the next time I saw him.
The silence in my room felt deafening. My pulse pounded in my ears as I slid down to the floor, hugging my knees. “What just happened?” I whispered to myself, half laughing, half crying. My mind pictured the look on Valley’s face, a mix of surprise and something else—was that amusement?
I couldn’t help but giggle despite my mortification. “Way to go, Hadleigh,” I muttered. “Walking into a scene right out of a bad comedy.” I thought about Valley’s expression again, and the giggle turned into a laugh. The more I thought about it, the funnier it seemed, until I was laughing so hard I had to put my hand over my mouth to muffle the sound.
The laughter was cathartic, a release of all the pent-up tension. When I finally calmed down, I felt lighter, almost giddy. I knew things would be awkward with Valley, but maybe this ridiculous moment was what I needed to settle my mind for a bit. Maybe tomorrow I’d find a way to laugh about it with him.
I climbed back into bed, a smile playing on my lips. For the first time in days, I felt like I might actually get some sleep. It’s amazing what laughter can do for the soul, no matter how embarrassing.
DAMN, I WAS tired. I hated guarding the gate all night, but Patch had laid down mine and Valley’s punishment and we were damn lucky it wasn’t a beating and only grunt work. Valley and I had worked out he would take the day and I would take the night since I didn’t want him spending time with Haddie.
Just as the sun rose from behind the mountains, I saw Valley heading toward the gatehouse and I walked out to meet him, ready to get inside and find Haddie so we could talk. “Thanks for telling your girl that you had gate duty,” he snapped as he got closer.
“Why? What happened?”
“It’s going to piss you off,” he warned me.
“Just tell me what fucking happened,” I snapped, already getting mad, and I hadn’t even heard the story yet.
“I brought Tracy back to the room for a late night special and Hadleigh busted into the room just when it was getting good, thinking it was you in the room,” he informed me.
My jaw tightened at the implication of what he just told me. “What exactly did she see?”
“This isn’t my fault,” he argued, telling me all I needed to know. “I wasn’t exactly expecting company!”
“She saw you naked?” I bit out, jealousy making me want to kill him where he stood. He was already on thin ice with me over Haddie.
“How could I have avoided it?”
“By locking the goddamned door before starting your bedtime special!” I snarled. “Or how about not bringing a woman back to your room to fuck when you’re supposed to be looking out for Haddie?”
“Listen, man, it happened, and you need to get over it,” he said, moving around me. “And for the sake of my sanity and our friendship, will you figure this shit out with her?”
“She’s pregnant,” I murmured at his back.
He turned on his heel, his face shocked. “What did you say?”
“She’s going to have my baby,” I replied, running my hand down my face. “She’s known about the pregnancy for months and said nothing and, to top it off, she’s refusing to marry me.”
Valley leaned against the gatehouse, still stunned. “Wow, how’d it happen? I mean, I know how it happened, but you’re not one to risk getting a woman knocked up. You sure it’s yours?”
“It’s mine, I don’t doubt it, and she just makes me get carried away and nothing else matters when I’m with her,” I admitted. “And the cherry on top... My brothers and Mama know.”
“Yesterday?” he asked, eyebrow raised, and I nodded. “Mama is over the moon, I bet.”
“Yeah, I haven’t seen her that happy since before Kezia died.”
“That about killed her,” Valley said, looking thoughtful. “About killed me too.” Valley and Kezia were dating, and he’s never gotten over her death. I don’t think Valley will ever commit to anyone. His heart died right along with my sister. Valley gave himself a shake and asked, “So daddy, how are you going to make her come around and commit to you?”
“That, my brother, is a good question. Haddie is hard-headed and getting her to listen isn’t easy,” I chuckled, to lighten the mood.
Valley laughed and said, “If you could see how pissed off she was last night, man, she was fit to kill. She wants you, brother, that’s for sure.”
“I’ll admit I like that temper of hers and I plan on making good use of it later on.” My eyes looked toward the clubhouse. “I’m gonna go get Haddie and have some coffee before I fall asleep on my feet.”
As I started up the hill, Valley called behind me. “I hope everything works out for you two, and soon.”
I threw my hand up in answer and kept walking, the very same hope in my mind.