Chapter 30 Clover
Clover
Ihad no idea what I expected from Parker, but it certainly hadn’t been that.
He was grumpy and protective and surly, but everything I’d seen made me think that, deep down, he was at least somewhat reasonable. My entire world was tilting on its axis, and here he was throwing a contract at me with stipulations so intense I wanted to scream.
Meadow had driven my car home, so I didn’t have a vehicle to leave, but I did have my phone. I sprinted down the road, and when I was out of sight, with none of the guys visible, I tucked down behind some shrubs and called a rideshare.
I didn’t want to go to Meadow’s and deal with her pitying looks when she realized how badly this pack had treated me, and I didn’t want to be there if the pack came looking for me.
The poor driver probably thought I was insane, given how hard I was blubbering and crying when he arrived.
“A-are you okay, miss?” he asked. “Do we need to stop somewhere? The hospital or the police?”
“No!” I replied a bit too quickly. “I’m fine, well, I’m not fine.
My boyfriend is a jackass, but I’m physically fine.
” None of them were technically my boyfriends, but that phrase was a lot easier than calling them the pack I had mind-blowing fuckies with, accidentally bonded, got knocked up by, and then got into a fight with.
The driver nodded, turning to look forward, but I could see him glance in the rearview mirror several times to check on me.
I had him head in the direction of one of the public beaches, so I could be miserable in peace, but halfway there, I changed my mind. “Actually, can we go to the airport instead?”
All I needed was my ID to get on a plane, and I had that in my purse. I had a few clothes at my dads’ house, and I knew they’d let me come home, no questions asked.
The driver gave me a quick nod before turning his attention back to the road. “Preference on which one?”
“Whichever is closest.”
“Sure thing.”
Roughly wiping the tears off my face, I picked up my phone and quickly rejected a call from Avery. In the few minutes I’d been in the car, I’d already had seventeen missed calls and texts between Logan, Hunter, and Avery. I hadn’t received a single one from Parker yet.
As far as I was concerned, he could take a long walk off a short pier.
I called Meadow and poured everything out. I’d mostly meant to call to tell her I was going back to Seattle, but the second I heard her soft voice, I’d broken. She learned everything.
“I don’t want to face them. I know it’s not the best idea to fly away from Logan again now that we know we’re bonded, but I survived last time and I can survive this time too.”
“I want to fling that asshole into the sun,” Meadow huffed. “Honey, you do what you think is best. Obviously I don’t want you to go, but I totally understand you need to for a bit. What can I do?”
“Nothing.” I sniffled. “I’ll be okay, I—”
“I love you.”
Another sniffle. “I love you too. I’ll call you when I get to Seattle.”
Logan would be willing to mail me a hoodie. That had helped alleviate my symptoms before—it probably would again. My clothes smelled like him now, and it was the only thing keeping me together.
Rejecting another phone call, this time from Hunter, I scrolled through my contacts until I found Poppy’s number.
“Hey, peanut,” Poppy greeted happily when he picked up. “How are you settling in?”
“Can I come home?” I asked, my voice watery, even though I was doing my best not to start crying again.
“What the hell is happening? You just got back to LA,” Poppy asked, his voice suddenly tense. Gone was the cheerful, easygoing tone—now he was pure concern and worry.
“I’m pregnant,” I said.
My father was quiet on the other end for a moment.
“How do you feel about that, so I know how to respond?”
I sniffled. “I’m not sure. What was your first reaction? Good or bad?”
“Shock more than anything. You already know we’d be more than happy for a grandbaby, we just weren’t expecting one for a few years. If you’re not ready, that’s okay too. We support you no matter what. Do you know who the father is?”
“Sort of.” A sob broke free. “It’s a pack—but one of them was a real asshole and I need to get away and clear my head.”
“You’re welcome here whenever you want,” he said softly. “We only made you go back to LA for your own well-being. Have you talked to Meadow about all of this? What did she say?”
“She said to do whatever I thought was best.”
“Okay, you’re coming straight home. We’ll help with everything.”
“I’m sorry,” I whispered, following the guilty compulsion to apologize.
“Don’t do that, kiddo,” he said firmly. “It’s not your fault someone’s treating you badly. You’re gonna come home, and we’ll figure out your next steps. How does that sound?”
“Really good,” I admitted softly.
I didn’t want to be strong or in control of everything. I wanted to rest. It was obvious now that my exhaustion over the last few weeks was because my little one was sapping all my energy. I needed some serious naps.
“You’re aware that Mike will riot if you try to help him once he knows you’re pregnant,” Poppy said dryly.
I laughed. “Oh God, yeah, he’ll be insufferable.”
Poppy chuckled. “You have no idea. We’re all going to be insufferable—but you’re going to love it.”
“I choose to withhold judgment on that for now,” I said with a small smile. “I’m almost at the airport. I didn’t grab a bag or anything. I just have my phone and purse.”
“I guess that’s another excuse to go on a little shopping spree—with our bank cards this time.”
“Dad, I can buy my own clothes. Plus, I’ve got plenty at the house that I left there.”
“Yes, but you’ll be needing new ones if you’re going to be growing,” he reminded me.
He had a point.
“I suppose,” I said. “But I’m already past four months, and I’m barely showing.”
My dad hummed. “Your birth mother didn’t show until much later too. I remember us all waiting for her to finally have a bump. Once you’re here, we can get you an appointment with an OB. The one who delivered you is retired by now, but I think the clinic she worked at is still open.”
I smiled, reassured that the woman who’d carried me had experienced the same mini-bump as me.
“Good. I had no idea—I thought I was rundown.”
“Babies take a lot out of a body, but you’re going to love them dearly, anyway.”
I groaned. “What the hell have I gotten myself into?”
Dropping the bomb that I was pregnant was bad enough, but sooner or later, I was going to have to tell my dads I’d accidentally bonded with a billionaire in California—and that one of his pack mates happened to be the asshole who threw a contract at me and might also be the father of my unborn child.