Chapter 31
Betting – can be stopped by an inappropriate chocolate stain
Aurora
J ett snatches the phone from me. “You’re done.”
I hold out my hand. “Give it back to me. I was in the middle of an email. A very important email.”
He shoves the phone into his pocket. “It’s New Year’s Eve. It can wait. You’re not working anymore.”
I roll my eyes. “It’s six o’clock in the evening. It’s not ‘New Year’s Eve’ for hours.”
“We’re having dinner with the band at the brewery.”
This is news to me. No one told me about a get together. Although, I haven’t checked my private messages all day.
“At six?”
“Dylan wants Virginia to be home at a reasonable time.”
Dylan the overprotector strikes again. “And you?” I raise my eyebrows. “You didn’t jump on the bandwagon to make sure I wasn’t out late partying on New Year’s Eve.”
Jett palms my neck. “You can party all you want, baby. But it’ll be in our bed.”
Heat rushes through my body and my panties dampen. “We can skip dinner.”
“Tempting but no.”
“Why not?” I pout.
He kisses my nose. “You’ve been cooped up in this house for days. If I don’t force you outside, your ass will be glued to your chair. You need to get out.”
“Have you seen outside? There’s snow and it’s cold.”
I’m not exaggerating. The weather here is not anything like San Diego where the last snowfall happened more than a decade before my birth.
“Good thing someone has some warm clothes to wear.”
Because our ‘little trip’ to pick up ‘some’ maternity clothes ended up with Jett buying me the entire store. I wish I was kidding. My bedroom, which I’m no longer allowed to sleep in, has become a closet for all my clothes.
“What about Bowie? We can’t leave her alone.”
“Nice try. She’s staying with Fender and Leia’s dog.”
“Fine. I’ll go change.”
Jett helps me to stand and leads me to the stairs.
“I can climb the stairs on my own.”
“I know. I’m being a gentleman is all.”
I snort. “Jett Peterson is no gentleman.”
“People can change.”
I hope so since I’m banking on Jett changing into the type of man who can fall in love with a woman. This woman in particular. Otherwise, my heart is toast.
Thirty minutes later I’ve changed into a sweater dress and am ready to go. When I walk down the stairs, Jett whistles.
“Damn, baby. You clean up good.”
I curtsey. “Thank you. You don’t look so bad yourself.”
Jett’s wearing a pair of dark jeans and a button-down shirt. The sleeves are rolled up to reveal the tattoos on his forearms. There’s something about a well-dressed man showing off hints of tattoos that revs my engine. Although, if I’m being honest, everything about this man revs my engines.
He kisses my cheek before tucking my hand into his elbow and opening the door. “Your chariot awaits.”
I frown at the golf cart. “It’s a five-minute walk. Why are we using the golf cart?”
“It’s slippery. I don’t want you to fall.”
“You might as well give in,” Leia hollers from next door where she’s climbing into Fender’s Hummer with her daughter Isla. “We’ll never make our reservation otherwise.”
“Fine. Whatever.”
Jett leads me to the golf cart and off we go. We drive behind Fender and arrive at Naked Falls Brewing in less than five minutes where we park next to Cash’s car.
Dylan climbs out of the car and helps Virginia out. I gasp when I see her.
“Don’t start,” Virginia groans. “I know I’m as big as a house.”
Dylan growls. “You’re not fat. You’re growing our baby.”
“I had to fall in love with a giant.”
Leia joins us. “It’ll all be worth it once the baby’s here.”
“Let’s go inside before we freeze to death out here,” Dylan says.
Virgina rolls her eyes. “It’s not freezing out here but what do I know? I’m merely a vessel for this baby until it’s born.”
Dylan takes her arm and leads her to the door.
I glare up at Jett. He holds up his hands. “What did I do?”
“If you get as protective as Dylan, I’m killing you in your sleep.”
“I wouldn’t dare,” he murmurs before kissing my forehead.
“I’d hide the kitchen knives anyway,” Cash says.
Indigo slaps his stomach. “Do not encourage Jett.”
Fender grunts and Leia rolls her eyes. “We need to go inside before Isla freezes to death.”
“I’m not cold, Dad.” Isla stomps to the door.
We gather inside in front of the hostess station. Miller and Elder, the owners of the brewery, are greeting guests this evening. When they spot us, Elder immediately steps forward and motions toward the stairs.
“Come on.” He herds us up the stairs.
“What’s going on?” I ask him once we’re on the upper floor.
“The tourists are out in droves tonight. I didn’t want anyone to catch sight of you.”
Cash claps him on the back. “Thanks, bro. We appreciate it.”
Cash isn’t kidding with the ‘bro’ thing. They are actually brothers. Half-brothers to be accurate. It’s a long story but basically, Cash found his birth father and the discovery led him to find six half-brothers. All of whom live in Winter Falls.
“I’ll keep the out-of-towners downstairs, but you’ll have to share this area with locals.” Elder leans close. “And by locals, I mean the gossip gals.” He nods to a table where the five elderly women are seated with two men who appear to be watching something on a phone.
We gather at a large table in the corner. Elder slaps some menus on the table before departing.
“Five, four, three,” Indigo counts down.
“What are you counting down for?”
She points to the other side of the room where the gossip gals are making their way toward us. “They’re here.”
“Happy New Year,” the gossip gals greet in unison when they arrive. They’re wearing bright pink t-shirts with the words Drop it like it’s hot printed on them above a picture of a disco ball.
“Happy New Year,” Cash greets. He’s the spokesperson for the band. There’s a reason the band is named Cash & the Sinners after all.
Sage addresses Virginia. “Is there any chance we could measure your belly?”
Virginia’s eyes widen as she slowly inches away from her. “Um…”
Dylan growls at the women while placing a protective arm around his pregnant fiancé. “You are not betting on the size of my woman’s belly.”
Geez. Jett wasn’t kidding when he said these women will bet on anything. Baby names I get. The size of a pregnant woman’s belly? No.
“Okay.” Sage switches her attention to me. “What about you?”
I place a hand over Little Bean. “In your dreams.”
“Come on, neighbor,” Feather coaxes. “I’ll make it worth your while.”
I’ll play. “How?” I ask.
“How what?”
“How will you make it worth my while? Are you going to drive to the next town to buy me pickles in the middle of the night? Or maybe answer the phone for me? How about doing my laundry for the next year?”
Petal giggles. “Feather doesn’t do her own laundry.”
Feather’s lips purse. “I do too.”
Cayenne leans close to the table. “Which is why she showed up to our coffee klatsch with a big ole chocolate stain on her pants,” she whisper shouts.
“I can’t help it if I sat on a piece of chocolate right before I left the house.”
“Ah ha. Chocolate. Sure,” Clove says.
Feather crosses her arms over her chest. “I did not lose control of my bowel movements.” She glances around at her friends who are all avoiding her gaze. “I own an ice cream shop. I was experimenting with different types of chocolate in the ice cream.”
“And the chocolate just happened to end up right where—”
Feather slashes her hand in the air to cut Sage off. “Enough. Since I’m not appreciated here, I’m leaving.”
She storms off and the gossip gals rush after her.
The second they’re out of view, I burst into laughter. “This town is a hoot.”
Virginia laughs with me. “Did they honestly think Mr. Overprotective would allow them to measure my belly?”
I point to Jett. “This one isn’t much better.”
Virginia groans. “Oh no. I better go to the restroom before this little one makes me pee my pants.”
“I’ll go with you.”
Jett and Dylan stand. I wag a finger at them. “No. You’re not going with us. We’re perfectly safe on our own. Besides, you’ll get recognized downstairs and then I’ll end up having to work to spin the whole PR thing.”
They don’t appear happy, but they sit back down. I grasp Virginia’s hand and we hurry away before they change their minds.
“I think I really did pee my pants laughing,” I admit once we’re at the restrooms.
I enter the stall and work my leggings down my legs. I should have worn pants. It would have been quicker than trying to peel these leggings off.
I finally manage to sit down to pee. Phew. Made it. But when I finish and stand, I notice the toilet bowl water is red. I check the toilet paper. Blood. It’s blood.
Panic slams into me with such force I have to grab hold of the toilet roll holder to stop myself from sliding to the floor.
“Virginia!” I shout.
She groans. “I’m hurrying as fast as I can.”
“Hurry faster. I’m in trouble.”
“What’s wrong?”
“I think I’m losing the baby.”
Oh god, no. I can’t lose Little Bean. I love her already. She’s my world.