Chapter Twenty-Four
We spent too much time at the boutique, so we just drove straight to the public beach that hosts this Fourth of July Festival.
We’re all in our new outfits from Hazel, whom I do love now.
She won me over with a new lingerie set.
If I can get a repeat of last night from Wyatt, it’ll make me love her more.
“Hey, Goddess.” Wyatt walks up to me, the rest of the Keaton men following him to come greet all the girls.
“Hey!”
“Did you have a good day shopping? You look stunning.” He looks me up and down in the red, white, and blue dress.
“Thank you.” For some reason my cheeks heat under his stare. Probably because I know what that stare means and what’s going to come later.
Soon enough, everyone else surrounds us, and he takes a step back. I’m tempted to just tell everyone right here, right now, so I can enjoy this festival with this man and not have to hold back from touching him all day.
“Where to first, ladies?” Gunnar asks.
Willow and Emma look at each other before both responding, “Fried pickles!”
Ooh, pickles sound delicious. “I’ll second that.”
Aubrey scrunches her face. “Yuck. I only liked pickles when I was pregnant with Lily.”
“You had the weirdest pregnancy cravings,” I tell her.
“So weird. That’s why we use condoms, my friends.”
Everyone laughs at her joke, but her statement makes me pause. Did we use a condom last night?
We had to.
For sure. We definitely did.
“Earth to Sophia.” Aubrey snaps her fingers in front of me.
“What? Sorry. Got lost in thought.”
“Do you want to come get fried dough with me?” She narrows her eyes, staring at me again in that way only your best friend can.
“Yes. I do definitely want that. Then I want a corn dog. And a sausage with peppers and onions.” I look around at all the options. “Oh and a blooming onion. Annnnnnd we can end with ice-cream.”
“Jeeze, girl. You PMSing?”
Wyatt saves me from answering. “She probably just didn’t eat today, like usual. She forgets lunch an awful lot.”
When Aubrey walks ahead to get Cooper, he leans into me. “Or maybe it’s the fact that we burned a fuck ton of calories last night.”
“I’d like to burn some more tonight. Preferably in the same way.” I chuckle.
“Good thing I grabbed some more condoms today.” He winks, then drops my hand and steps away as his brothers come over.
Leaving him, I run to catch up with Aubrey. “Is Willow singing tonight?”
“Yeah! She and Gunnar are going to do a few songs in about an hour. We have time to maybe cross two food items off your list based on these lines. What do you want to start with?”
“I need real food. How about a corn dog?”
“Last I checked, I don’t think corn dogs are a real food. At least that’s what we tell Lily when that’s all she wants to eat.”
“Corn dogs are totally a real food. And delicious. You let my girl eat whatever she wants. Speaking of, I thought Cooper would bring her tonight?”
“Oh the girls are with a sitter. Olivia is still too young, and Lily would be an absolute monster after a whole day out. We took her to see the fireworks in Hemlock Cove last week. She’s good,” she explains.
We get in line behind twelve other people, and my mouth is already watering, thinking of the greasy goodness coming my way.
Aubs and I sit with Wyatt and Cooper while we eat, and Cooper gives Wyatt the dirtiest looks.
It seems like he wants to jump across this table and hit him, the way his fists keep balling up.
On top of that, Aubrey keeps hitting his leg under the table and telling him to stop under her breath.
I’ll have to ask Wyatt about that later.
“Soph, Willow is coming on. Honor me with a dance?” Cooper asks.
“Oh, um, sure. You don’t want to dance with Aubs?”
He looks over at her. “I’ll save her a dance.”
“In that case, Aubrey, do me the honors?” Wyatt holds out his hand to her, and they both laugh. On their way by us, Aubrey sticks her tongue at Cooper.
He sighs heavily and runs his hands over his face.
“Everything okay?”
“Yeah.” We step onto the dance floor, and he pulls me in.
“No. I told that fucker to keep his hands off you. It was my one rule. The one thing I asked of him. And then I find out from Hunter that he moved you into his house after overhearing you and Aubrey talking at the inn about how he pursued you? I could kill him.”
“Woah. Easy there. You do know I’m an adult, right? One that can make her own choices.”
His eyes widen when I talk back to him. “Yeah I know, but everything you went through…”
“I’d have declined him if I wanted to. Which I did.
At first. But then I pursued him. Me. I wanted it.
He told me no about five times until he couldn’t help it anymore.
I’m an adult, Coop. Don’t be mad at Wyatt unless you’re going to be mad at me too.
” My hands press into his chest as we spin around the floor.
“Sophia. I’m sorry. I…”
“You’re an ass, just like I said you are?” Aubrey interrupts. “Sophia, go dance with your man while I teach mine a lesson in minding his own business.”
Happily, I step back and find Wyatt over on the edge of the dance floor.
“I’m sorry,” he says as I approach.
Sliding into his space, between his legs, I wrap my arms around his middle. “I’m good. But I’d be better if you’d come dance with me.”
My favorite lopsided grin appears. “I can do that.”
He tugs me toward the makeshift dance floor as Willow starts a cover of Slow Dancing in a Burning Room.
“You look beautiful tonight,” he whispers as his arms wrap around me and starts to swing me around the dance floor.
He’s a surprisingly good dancer. Something I will be taking advantage of in the kitchen.
I’ve always wanted a love that I could dance with in the kitchen. Isn’t that just every country girl’s dream?
“Thank you. You’re a sight for sore eyes yourself.” I let myself relax into his embrace, letting him lead.
“You saw me this morning.”
“Not as much of you as I would have liked.” I pout.
“Don’t worry. I have plans for you in that dress later.” He winks.
I can’t fucking wait.
After a few more songs, Aubrey pulls me away for more food, and I’m left leaving Wyatt behind again. I should just suck it up and tell everyone the truth. Who I am. Why I’m here. Who Wyatt is to me.
Aubs and I grab our fried dough and head over to the beach to find the family set up already.
Wyatt set up our chairs at the back of the group on the beach. Noticeably away from his family, far enough that we can sit together without all eyes on us. Although, I’m sure there will be a few.
Joining him with my fried dough, he hands over a strawberry lemonade he got for me. I can’t remember the last time I ate this much food, and I feel like I’m bloated enough to look pregnant.
The word causes me pause as memories of last night flood my brain. Especially after Aubrey’s comment about using condoms and PMSing earlier. Combined with Wyatt buying more condoms means that we were out…
Wyatt and I… after Rebels… we definitely didn’t use a condom.
Shit. Fuck. Nope. Nope. Nope.
“Hey, you okay? You look like you’re going to be sick,” the man in question leans over to ask.
“Uh-huh. Yup. I’m fine. Just tired,” I lie.
Mentally, I’m running when my last period was. But I can’t remember. Pulling out my phone, I open up my tracking app. Only instead of feeling safe, I don’t have a period logged since before everything happened with James. Nothing. Have I really not had my period?
Hope takes over. If I haven’t had a period, maybe I haven’t ovulated. Or wasn’t ovulating. I guess there’s no way to know for sure. But my app says the next expected period is in two weeks.
This is going to be the longest two weeks ever.
Wyatt reaches over and grasps my hand, pulling it down between our two chairs. “Are you sure? Do you want to go home?”
His voice is low, and he hasn’t stopped staring at me. Do I want to fill him in on my revelation?
No. Definitely not. Not yet. That would scare the shit out of him, and he’s got enough going on. No. I’ll wait until I know for sure.
Or wait until I know I have nothing to tell him.
I hope.
“No way. I’m excited for the fireworks.” I smile at him in an attempt to get him to be less concerned about my subtle shift in mood.
Luckily, the first boom sounds as pink streaks across the sky so his attention shifts with mine to the show above us. At least for the next twenty minutes.
My anxiety climbs with every boom. The fear of being pregnant etches deeper into my brain.
What will we do? What will he do? Will he run? He says he loves me, but will a baby change that? Oh God, what about Hugh and James? What if they find out?
My head is spinning by the time the grand finale starts. My palms are sweaty, and mine slips out of Wyatt’s that we’re trying to keep hidden.
Know what you can’t hide? A fucking baby bump. Stop spiraling, Sophia. You don’t even know yet.
I must have gotten lost in my own head because when Wyatt says my name, everyone is packing up their chairs and snacks. Hopping up quickly, I fold my chair and sling it over my shoulder. Immediately, it’s pulled off my shoulder and placed on Wyatt’s.
“I don’t know why you thought you’d carry that.” His hand rests on the small of my back, guiding me out of the crowd. “You must be really tired to have forgotten who you’re with. Rough night last night?” He winks.
“Sleepless night, no regrets.” Yet. “Ten out of ten, would ride again.”
“You two know you’re in a crowded space right?” Evelyn leans her head over our shoulders.
“Shhh. Don’t tell anyone,” I whisper with my finger over my lips.
She bursts out laughing at me. “Secret is safe girl, I get it.”
My feet feel like concrete walking to the car. I am actually really tired and can’t wait to crawl into Wyatt’s soft-as-a-cloud king size bed and sleep wrapped in his arms.
Walking out to the parking lot, we see a small crowd gathered around one of the digital traffic signs.
I’ve found you. You can run from me, but you’ll never be able to hide.
My blood runs cold, and I freeze to my spot as Keaton after Keaton runs into me.
“What is wrong with you, girl?” Aubrey asks, walking around the pile up.
I simply point to the sign, and she freezes alongside me.
Wyatt scoops me up in his arms and carries me to the truck, placing me in the passenger’s seat. “You don’t need to see that. I’ll be right back. I’m going to unplug the sign until they can reset it.”
Watching out my window, I see him disappear into the crowd as his entire family comes over to his truck to stand next to me.
Ripp is the first to reach me. “I’m so sorry, Soph. I didn’t see anyone here tonight.” He rests his arms on the open window, keeping the family at bay.
“He’s hacking. It’s why Hugh likes him,” I say simply. Ripp already knows that.
James could be sitting in a car watching this unfold or hiding in the mountains of Montana, hoping that his antics ruin my life.
He’s going to succeed. He’s going to ruin everything good I have here in Balsam Cliffs.