Chapter 24 #2
“That’s true. They won’t be roommates anymore either. Amos signed the lease to take over the trailer.”
“Then quit worrying about your brother. You made sure he had a place to stay until he got on his feet. He’s standing. Now, put yourself first for once,” Maren advises. “You deserve a hot, muscly, kinky tattooed guy.”
“How do you know he’s kinky?” Cara asks with a grin. “Did I miss something?”
Yeah, she didn’t see a plug fly out of his ass and him catch it like a baseball.
“He just looks like he would be. That cocky smile,” Maren replies.
I drain the rest of my drink. “No comment.”
“What happened to the sperm defense? Did you deplete his swimmer army?” Cara teases.
“He goes to the doctor tomorrow for the follow up test, but I absolutely wiped them out.”
I’m still not confident about what decision I’m going to make, but a weight lifts off my shoulders regardless as I laugh with my friends. Because I’ve gone from knowing I need to break things off to thinking…maybe not.
It’s evening by the time we get back into town from our road trip. When I stop to drop off Cara and Maren, I notice I’ve missed a call from Sutton and he left a text.
It’s a picture of his fertility test results, showing that he’s sterile, and one sentence.
Sutton
I want you bare.
I’d like to say I hesitated before replying but I didn’t.
Me
I’ll be home in a few minutes.
I’m not sure what’s going to happen with us, but that’s not an invitation I’m prepared to turn down.
Sutton
Me too. I’ll pick up dinner on the way.
Amos isn’t at the trailer, but I’m surprised to see Mandy walking up to my door when I pull into the driveway.
“Hey,” I call, joining her and unlocking my front door. “Is everything alright?” She looks upset.
“I’m sorry to bother you. I know Amos doesn’t live here anymore, but I was hoping you might know where he is.” She’s on the verge of tears. Her words take a moment to register. Amos told her he moved? What’s going on?
“Come in. Sit down. Did you two have a fight or something?”
“Not exactly. I thought things were fine. I—” She pauses and shakes her head. “He won’t answer my texts or calls. I need to talk to him. Do you know where he is?”
“Right now, he’s at work. I’m not sure what time his lunch break is, but maybe you could—”
“He found a new job?” she asks.
“No, he’s still at the distribution center.”
“No, he’s not. He quit a few weeks ago because he didn’t like one of the managers.”
What? That makes no sense. “Are you sure? He’s left for work every night at the same time and gets home late, if he comes home at all.”
She swallows and nods with a bitter smile. “He was with me. Until I found out...” Her voice cracks and tears fill her eyes.
If Amos was cheating, I’m going to kick him right in his narrow ass.
She swallows hard and tries again. “I’m pregnant.”
The floor seems to dip under my feet, and I sit down beside her. That was not something I was prepared to hear. “Pregnant? And it’s…”
“Yes, it’s his. I haven’t been with anyone but him.”
While I try to digest the news, I get up to grab her a glass of water and some tissues.
“Thank you,” she says, accepting them.
I’m struggling to get my thoughts together. A baby. Amos is going to have a baby. He can’t even take care of himself. Fuck, it doesn’t even look like he has a job now. He’s been lying about it. “I’m sorry. I’m just trying to wrap my head around everything.”
“I know. It’s a lot.”
“What did he say when you told him?”
“That’s what’s so weird. He was great about it.
He said he was happy that I wanted to keep the baby.
He promised he’d get a good job and that I could move in here with him before the baby was born.
Then he said he had to help Sutton with some stuff and left.
In the middle of the night, I get a text that he needs a break and that he’s moving out of your trailer.
Every message and call since then, he’s ignored. ”
I’ve always known Amos was immature. I knew he could be a jerk and take advantage of people.
But until this moment, I never thought he could be a genuinely bad person.
“I’m sorry. I don’t know where he is right now but he hasn’t mentioned anything about moving out. I’ll call you when he comes back here.”
She lets out a heavy sigh. “Thank you. If we’re done, I can live with that, you know? But if he’s bailing on the baby, I need to know. I need to be prepared to do this on my own.”
I’ve always believed that a woman should only have kids if she is financially prepared to be a single parent or at least have a backup plan in case that’s how things turn out. Because statistically, it’s a likely outcome.
“How far along are you?”
“I’m only nine weeks, so it’s still early.”
“Are you okay right now? I mean, do you have plenty of food, the prenatal vitamins and everything? Have you seen a doctor?” The questions are spilling out of me. These are things Amos should be concerned about.
“I’m good. I’ve been to the doctor. I have a good job. I’m not looking for him for money.”
“No, I know,” I reassure her. “I just want to make sure you have what you need.”
She gives a humorless laugh and wipes her eyes. “I need to know what the hell he’s thinking. I got this today. You can’t see much but a blob at this stage, but do you mind if I leave it for him?”
The sight of the ultrasound picture nearly brings tears to my eyes. This is really happening. That’s my niece or nephew. “Of course you can.”
Sutton walks in the front door and sets our dinner on the counter. He glances from Mandy’s tearful face to me, and raises his eyebrows a little. “Sorry, am I interrupting?”
“No,” Mandy replies, standing up. “I should go. I’ll just put this in his room.”
As she heads down the hall, I turn to Sutton. “You’re not going to fucking believe this.”
Before he can reply or I can explain, Mandy calls my name, her voice wavery, and I rush to Amos’s room.
The only thing remaining in the small space is the bed and it’s been stripped down. All his stuff is gone. I throw the closet door open to see nothing but some bare hangers.
I can’t believe he would do this.
“I guess that answers my question,” Mandy says.
Sutton stands in the doorway, taking in the scene.
“Did you know he moved out?” I ask.
“No, he was passed out in bed when I left for work this morning.”
I’m not even sure what to say. I’m so angry I can’t see straight, but that won’t help Mandy. I can’t reassure her that everything will be okay. At this point my faith in my brother is fading fast. All I can do is give her a hug.
She’s eager to leave and I don’t blame her, but we trade phone numbers and I make sure she knows she can call me if she needs anything.
I grab my phone as soon as she’s gone. Amos is out of his mind if he thinks he’s getting away with this.