Chapter 4
CHAPTER FOUR
SAVANNAH
Blake Walker.
That was his name.
Blake Walker.
The father of my unborn child.
My heart is thundering inside my chest as I stare at the screen, still trying to wrap my head around it.
It took everything in me to gather my wits and focus on my job once he left the classroom. I’m still not sure how I managed to do it. The whole morning was a blur of events as I was counting down the minutes until I could get the kids off to the cafeteria for lunch and get a few minutes to myself.
And now I had it.
After all these months, I finally had a name to put to the man who changed my life in one night.
I often thought about him since I found out I was pregnant. I even went back to that bar a few times in hopes I might run into him, but of course he never showed up. Why would he? The main reason why I agreed to our little arrangement was because I was sure he was just passing through, and I wouldn’t have to see him again.
I wondered what I’d do if I knew his name.
Would I be able to find him? How would he react? Would he want the baby? Would he ask me not to have it, or would he want to be involved?
There were so many questions. So many possibilities. And only one reality.
Until today.
Until he walked into my classroom and changed everything.
With shaky hands I grab my phone and press the call button. I hold my breath as the phone rings in my ear for what seems like forever until my best friend picks up.
“Sav?” Becky asks, a trace of worry in her voice. “What’s going on? Are you okay? Shouldn’t you be?—”
“He’s here,” I whisper softly.
There is a pause for a heartbeat. “He? What are you talking about? Who’s here?”
“ He’s here, Becky!” I hiss, all the uncertainty and fear I’ve been pushing down since I saw him is bubbling to the surface, and there is no holding it back any longer. “The guy I hooked up with. He’s here. In Bluebonnet Creek.”
“Your baby daddy?” she yells so loudly I have to pull the phone away from my ear. “Shit! How? When? Where? I don’t understand. Didn’t you say that he was just some random guy you met at a bar?”
“That’s what I thought, but he’s here. As in he lives here.” My fingers curl around the phone to the point of pain as the panic rises inside my chest. “What the hell should I do, Becky? What if he thinks I did it on purpose? What if he thinks I tricked him in some way? What if he doesn’t want my child? But what if he does? Or worse, what if he tries to take my baby from me? He can’t do that, right?”
The words spill out of me in a rush, and with each question I can feel my throat constrict tighter, making it hard to breathe, until the only thing I can hear is the sound of my thundering heart echoing in my eardrums.
“Sav? Take a deep breath for me, okay? You’re having a panic attack.”
My eyes water as I suck in a gulp full of air.
“I d-don’t know wh-what to d-do,” I wheeze out.
“Breathe. I just need you to breathe. This isn’t good for the baby.”
I nod, forcing myself to slowly let the air out of my lungs, and breathe in once again, slower this time.
In and out.
In and out.
Slowly.
Steadily.
“I don’t know what to do, Becky,” I say softly, once I’ve regained some of my composure.
“We’ll figure it out. Where did you see him?”
“School.” I run my shaky fingers through my hair. “He dropped off his kid for school, and, well…”
My phone starts buzzing with an incoming call. I pull it away and check the screen.
Mr. Miles.
“Shit, I’m sorry. I have to take this. I’ll call you later.”
“Sav, you can’t leave?—”
“I’m sorry, but I really have to answer this. There was water in my bathroom once again this morning. I’ll call you later, bye!”
I don’t give her a chance to protest before I disconnect the call and answer my phone. “Hi, Mr. Miles, did you get a chance to stop by my place and take a look at that leak?”
“Hey, Savannah,” Mr. Miles says, his gruff voice making the hair on my nape rise. “Can you come to the cottage?”
“I— What happened?” I ask, my fingers gripping the phone tighter.
“You were right about the pipe. It must have burst completely since you left because the whole cottage is flooded.”
The whole cottage…
“Flooded?” I shake my head. “No. That’s impossible. There was only a small puddle when I left.”
My home.
“I’m so sorry, Savannah. We’ll get it fixed, but the damage…” He lets out a long sigh. “Can you leave work early? Grab your stuff.”
Grab my stuff. Because my home is flooded.
Maybe he’s exaggerating? Maybe it isn’t that bad, and it can be fixed. It’s only been a few hours since I left.
“I… Y-yeah. I’ll be there.”
Hanging up the phone, I quickly grab my stuff and go to the admin office to tell them I need to leave early. Thankfully, they’re really understanding and manage to find a substitute teacher quickly, so I leave before lunch is done.
My fingers are gripping the steering wheel, my knuckles completely drained of color. I try to keep to the speed limit as I drive back home. My mind is reeling with all the possible scenarios, each one worse than the last, making the knot in my throat grow tighter.
The moment I take a turn onto my street, my gaze snaps to my house. There are a few cars parked in front of it, so I pull up to the curb, quickly unbuckle my seat belt, and get out just as Mr. Miles steps out on the porch with another man.
I hurry toward them. Mr. Miles looks up when I climb the steps and offers me a sad smile.
“I got here as soon as I could,” I say in a way of greeting.
“I’m so sorry this happened, Savannah. We’ll help you gather your things.”
My throat bobs as I try to swallow the lump down. “It can’t be that bad?”
“I’m afraid so. George went to look at the bathroom and determined the pipes were old and rusted. The whole thing needs to be replaced, along with the floors, since they were damaged from the water. While that happens, you can’t be here.”
He wants me to leave?
“How long will that take?” I run my shaky fingers through my hair, feeling completely lost. “Where should I go in the meantime?”
I couldn’t just pick up my things and leave the place that’s been my home.
There is no missing the pity in Mr. Miles’ eyes. “It’ll probably be a few months. Based on the first look, they’ll need to replace the whole piping system in the house before we can fix the damage to the floors and walls. And that takes time and money.”
“B-but…”
He couldn’t be serious.
But he was. I could see it on his face. There was no changing this.
Mr. Miles places his hand on my shoulder and gives me a soft rub. “Did you sell your grandmother’s house?”
“I…” I shake my head. “No.”
“Then, that’d be a perfect solution. I always wondered why you didn’t ask to move out after Poppy died. God rest her soul.”
That knot is back in my throat, tighter than ever.
There was a reason for my decision, but he didn’t need to know that. Nobody did.
“C’mon”—he places his hand on my back and gives me a fatherly pat—“let’s get your things.”
I let him lead me into the place that was my home. They weren’t joking about the damage to the cottage. The place is wrecked. There is water all the way to my ankles, and you can see the hardwood floors already lifting at certain parts.
I direct Mr. Miles to the kitchen to grab some of the stuff I have there, while I make my way to the bedroom, which looks the worst since it’s the closest to the bathroom. The water also entered my closet, destroying some of the stuff I had stashed in boxes on the floor. Thankfully, most of it is salvageable, so I work quickly to pack everything.
It takes us a good hour and a few trips to my car before it’s full.
“That’s it.” Mr. Miles closes the trunk and dusts off his hands.
All my stuff—my whole life—could fit in one car.
I don’t know why, but that realization makes me sad.
“It’s going to be okay.” Mr. Miles shoots me a soft smile. “I’ll keep you updated on the repairs, but if you’d rather stay at your grandma’s house permanently, let me know.”
Did I have a choice?
God only knew how long the repairs would last. It could be months. And I had a baby on the way. A baby that would be here soon and needed a place to call home.
The day I found out I was pregnant I promised myself I’d do better. That I would make sure my baby had everything I didn’t, and that started with a home. I couldn’t go breaking my promises before he or she was even here.
As the reality of the situation dawns on me, the anxiety starts building inside my chest. My heart races faster, the furious thumping echoing in my eardrums as my vision turns blurry, and I sway on my feet.
“Savannah, are you okay?”
I blink a few times, clearing my sight, and nod. “Fine. It’s just been a long day.”
The older man gives me a soft smile. “Try to get some rest. It’s not good that you’re working so hard when you’re pregnant.”
I let out a humorless chuckle. As if I had a choice.
“I’ll be fine. Don’t worry, but I think I won’t be coming back.” My hand settles on my stomach as I look over his shoulder at the house that was my home for the last few years, giving it one final glance. “This baby is coming soon, and I have to prepare everything. Moving back doesn’t make any sense.”
Mr. Miles nods. “I would imagine so.” He lets out a sigh. “It’ll be hard to find a tenant as good as you. I’ll call you the next time I’m here so I can return your deposit since none of this was your fault.”
“Thank you. I really appreciate it.”
And I did. Baby stuff was expensive, and I’ve been trying to save as much as possible to order what I’ll need. I guess it was a good thing that I still haven’t bought anything since it would have probably been destroyed today. A small blessing really.
With a promise to talk soon, I slide in my car and suck in a long breath before grabbing my water bottle and taking a long pull. Only when I feel slightly calmer, do I start my car.
The drive to my grandmother’s place is short. It was one of the plus sides when I originally rented it. Grams was getting up in age, and I wanted to be close by so I could get to her quickly if she needed me. Not that she appreciated it. That woman was stubborn as hell.
The corner of my mouth tips upward, and a jab of pain pierces through my chest. It was bittersweet thinking about her. Grams was the woman who raised me. My only family. It felt like there was a gaping hole inside my chest the day she died, and nothing could fill it.
That was the reason why I hadn’t stepped foot into her house since she died. It just hurt too much.
But now I don’t have a choice.
Bluebonnet Creek was a small town, and the housing market was even smaller. Besides, I didn’t have money to spare. Not with the baby on the way.
My fingers tighten around the steering wheel, and I suck in a sharp breath, my old silver Volvo slowly coming to a stop.
“You can do this, Sav,” I say to myself as I kill the engine. Willing my fingers to open the door, I place one foot in front of the other as I get out of the car and look at the house.
The two-story craftsman style house that’s been my home for the better part of my life has definitely seen better days. I’m not sure if it was money, or the fact that Grams was set in her ways, probably a little bit of both, but even to an untrained eye, I could see all the things that needed fixing.
The paint was worn off, and the shutters were rusty. The flowers my grandmother loved so much have all dried out, and I was pretty sure the whole front porch would need replacing.
Just thinking about all of the expenses made me sweat.
This was so not in my budget.
But I didn’t have a choice, did I?
It was either this or sleeping in the car.
There is a soft flutter in my belly. I drop my hand against my stomach, rubbing at the place where I could feel that flutter. Not a kick, not yet, but the pregnancy book I was reading said that it could be the baby moving. Or gas.
“I’ll make this right, Munchkin,” I whisper to the baby. “I mean if all these people on the internet can renovate a house on their own, why couldn’t we? You will have a home to go to once you’re here. I promise.” Taking a step toward the house, I say with more conviction, “I promise.”
And it was a promise I meant to keep no matter what.
I knew all too well what it was like not to have a place to call home.
For the first eight years of my life, I moved around more times than some people moved in their whole life. Mom would uproot and move us every few months, the change usually went hand in hand with whoever her boyfriend was at a time.
But I wasn’t my mother.
I refused to be like her.
Not now, not ever.
“Miss Parker!”
The hairs at my nape prickle at attention at the sound of the familiar voice. Slowly, I turn around to find Levi Walker rushing toward me, and behind him is none other than his father.
My baby’s father.
And if it’s to be judged by the look he’s shooting my way, he wants to murder me.