20. Scarlett
The car was a dream, because of course it was. I’d never experienced anything like it. It was so incredibly sleek and luxurious. I started out super cautious, backing down the drive and easing onto the street. By the time we were on River Road and heading towards the highway, I still hadn’t got up to twenty miles per hour.
Until Rhett said, “What are you, eighty years old? Floor it. You want to know what it can do.”
I still hesitated.
“You gonna get yourself to all the appointments and shit for the babies, going twenty miles an hour? It’ll take you two hours to get any fucking where.”
Huffing out a breath of annoyance, because I knew he was right, I pressed down a bit harder on the accelerator.
As I merged onto the highway, the powerful acceleration pinned me back against the plush leather seat. My knuckles went white gripping the steering wheel, but I forced myself to relax and trust what the car could do. The speedometer crept up smoothly, barely a whisper of wind noise even as we hit seventy miles per hour.
“Oh fuck. It’s absolutely amazing.”
“Thought you’d like it.”
As we neared the exit for my house, I glanced over at Rhett. “I, uh... I was hoping you wouldn’t mind staying for a bit? We should probably talk some things over.”
He met my gaze and nodded once. “Sure thing. How about you stop at the main square and I’ll grab us some coffees to go from the cake shop?”
“Okay.”
How a man could look so hot just walking down the street was a mystery to me. Was it the tailored shirt? The snug jeans? The perfect ass?
Letting out a sigh, I dragged my gaze away, fingers tapping on the steering wheel as I chewed my lip. Rhett Rivers, playboy billionaire, turned…fucked if I knew what this was.
It was kind of weird how easily he’d seemed to accept the sudden and dramatic change in our situation. He was probably thinking it was weird how easily I’d gone along with all of his arrangements. And yeah, he wouldn’t be wrong about that. Most of the time I felt like I was in a Gravitron, spinning so fast I couldn’t catch my breath or form a coherent thought. Having someone just sweep in and take care of everything was like a dream.
I wasn’t na?ve enough to think this meant he was reforming his playboy ways. Rhett was still an arrogant, cocky asshole who enjoyed pushing my buttons far too much. I let out a sigh. Imagine thinking, or hoping, that the playboy billionaire might have hidden depths. Stupid.
He came out moments later with two large coffees and two white paper bags. Fucking excellent, because the cakes from Poppy’s were to die for. “What did you get?”
“A little bit of everything, since I wasn’t sure what you’d like.”
“All the above, please and thank you.”
He chuckled and leaned back in the seat, draping his arm casually along the back of my seat. Rude of him to smell so good, I must say.
I pulled into my driveway and cut the engine. Then we just sat there in silence. Fuck, this was not going to be easy. “Come on. Let’s do this.”
“After you.” His usual cocky smile was gone, so at least he seemed prepared. As I unbuckled my seatbelt and climbed out of the SUV, I knew I had to brace myself for one long, complicated conversation. And right now, I had no idea how that was going to go, which had butterflies rioting in my belly, making me feel a bit sick.
Because whether we liked it or not, our lives were now inextricably intertwined. For the next eighteen years, at least.
At the front door, Rhett handed me the keys. “I’ve got a set as well, but I won’t ever use it without checking with you first.”
Well, that was a good start. We walked through the house to the living room. Of course, there was no furniture, so Rhett said, “How about we sit outside?”
“Yeah, nice.”
When he pulled up the blinds that covered the back windows of the living room, I almost shrieked. “A swimming pool? What the fuck?”
He laughed at that. “What kid doesn’t like a swimming pool? Come on, there’s a nice spot here in the sun.”
I followed him out and sat down on the wide, shallow stone steps that led down to the pool area. A fucking swimming pool. He sat on the step next to me, close enough that I could feel his warmth, and dropped the bag of cakes in my lap.
“It’s crazy to think our kids are going to swim in there. Maybe play catch over there on the grass. Go down there to the pier and fish in the river.” God, that made me feel so weird. If it was weirding me out, what must Rhett be thinking? Possibly not the best way to start this conversation. Okay, here goes. “I’ve had a bit longer to get used to the idea of becoming a parent. The twins thing is a shock, obviously. But it’s all fresh news for you. Less than a week old.”
“Yeah.”
“How’s that going?”
He shrugged and didn’t look at me. “It’s a lot.”
I waited for him to go on, but he didn’t, so I guess it was on me to push it. “Are you…happy, sad, scared, indifferent?”
He shrugged again and still didn’t look at me.
It was the not making eye contact that got me, making me feel stupidly emotional. “Rhett, please. It’s really important that we can talk openly with each other. You can be honest with me.” I couldn’t read the look he shot me. His expression was completely blank.
“Right now, it just doesn’t feel real. I saw those images on the ultrasound and it just…didn’t mean anything to me. I don’t know what you’ll make of that, but you asked, so…” He turned away again, taking a sip from his coffee cup.
I did ask, so it wasn’t fair to get mad because I didn’t like the reply.
“My name suits me.”
“Huh?”
There was an edge of bitterness to his voice when he said, “Rhett.”
I frowned as it took me a moment to figure out what he meant. “As in, you don’t give a damn?”
“Exactly.”
“I see.” Fuck.
“Now it’s your turn to be honest. Do you really think I’m the stable family guy you need, Scarlett?”
Fuck no. Anything but. “Um, I don’t know.”
“Yes, you do. You’re one of the smartest people I’ve ever met. Can you see me being a good role model? Responsible? Mature? Reliable? Or that having babies will somehow miraculously change who I am as a person?”
“I guess not.”
“Me either.”
“So what are you saying, exactly? That you don’t really plan to have a hands-on role with the babies?”
“I guess that’s what I’m saying, yeah. It’s just that I’m not cut out for it. It’s better to get that out in the open now, so no one feels let down later on down the road.”
What had I been expecting him to say? That he couldn’t wait to co-parent with me? That he was dying to get down in the trenches with me? That he was already in love with our babies? Yeah, maybe that was what I was expecting. Or at least hoping for. Not very fair or reasonable of me, I guess.
“What are you thinking now?” His voice was low, strained.
I chewed my lip, considering my words carefully. “It’s my decision to have these babies, and my decision to keep them. I know it’s going to be really fucking hard, but it feels absolutely right to me. So that’s what I’m going to do. On that basis, I think it’s unfair of me to ask anything of you that you aren’t ready or willing to give of your own free will.”
Was that a little sigh of relief? Maybe I was going to cry.
“I appreciate that and honestly, I think it’s for the best. But I can promise you that whatever you need, you’ll have.”
Except a dad for my kids, I guess. I almost said the words out loud, but bit them back at the last minute.
“Materially, at least.”
A light bulb flashed in my mind. “So, is the car and the house your way of easing a guilty conscience? You still get to feel like you’re doing your bit?”
“Yeah, probably. It’s something I know how to do, so it’s easy.” Then he surprised the fuck out of me by saying, “I’m sorry I’m not a better man.”
Now I reeeally wanted to cry. “You can only be who you are.”
We lapsed into silence after that, because what the fuck else was there to say?
Because I needed to do something with my hands, I pulled a cake out of the bag. Mud cake. Fucking excellent. “Mmm, this is really good. Do you want some?”
“Sure. Especially if it makes you moan like that. Have some more, why don’t you?”
I held out the bag for him to take a piece, with the obligatory “Jackass.”
And we were back. I gotta say, it felt kinda good. At least now we knew where we both stood.
“Okay. Time for a slight change of topic. I know it’s only been five days, but have you been able to get started on, um, you know, finding any info on my birth mother?”
“Not yet. I’ve got the lawyers looking into options for petitioning the courts. And I’ve hired a private investigator to dig into what information she can find through the agency.”
“Ah, okay. Well, that’s a lot in a few short days, thanks.”
“No problem.”
“I think I’m not going to get away with not talking about it to my mom and dad. They may know something, anything, that could point us in the right direction.”
“Right.”
“If I start asking those sorts of questions, they’re going to want to know why.”
“Makes sense.”
“Uh huh. When I tell them it’s because I’m pregnant, they’re going to want to meet you.”
“Ah, I see.”
“So you’re fine with that?”
“What, exactly?”
“Family dinner at the Wrights.”
“Oh, sure.”
“Wow. That was easy. Thank you.”
“It’s weird when you’re polite to me. You should stop.”