Chapter 30
Chapter thirty
Red Rag Top
Maverick
I’d figured she was pregnant, but knowing for sure now… Fuck.
Did this change things? Of course, it did. But how much?
She’s gettin’ rid of it.
My stomach clenched at the thought. I hadn’t lied to Chey when I’d told her I wouldn’t judge her for her decision. It was her body, her life. But the idea of giving up such a precious gift—Stop. It ain’t like it’s yours.
What would people think of us if she were to keep it? I could only imagine what they’d say. I’d never much cared what others thought, and while I knew Cheyenne didn’t either, dealing with that would be a whole other level of hell I don’t think either of us were prepared to deal with.
Especially with us being so new—whatever “us” was. I still wasn’t quite sure.
She’d gotten me to talk. She’d pulled me out of the darkness. She’d seen me at my lowest, my worst, and she hadn’t run. She’d planted wildflowers in the darkest parts of my soul and brought me back to life.
I cared about her, that’s for sure. Deeply.
Truly. And I wanted to explore whatever connection we had more.
Regardless of what she decided. Hell, I’d take care of her and the baby too.
I wanted to tell her that, but how did I say that without making her feel like I was pressuring her to keep it? A baby that wasn’t even mine.
It’s not my place.
I paced the deck. I wondered what her ex would say. She’d not mentioned much about him other than the cattle prod incident. Would he want her to keep it? Would he convince her to take him back?
My heart clenched at that and I bit back a curse. An ember of possessive rage bloomed in my chest. I didn’t want to let her go. I would if I had to, but—fuck. I clenched my fists at my sides.
“I called him.”
Cheyenne’s weak voice stopped my heart for a moment. I whirled to face her, taking her in. She leaned against the doorframe, like she was too weak to hold herself up. Tears shone in her turquoise eyes, her bottom lip trembling as she tried to hold in the brunt of her sobs.
I moved to her, reaching out a hand to pull her to me, but I let it fall. What if she changed her mind and didn’t want me touching her?
“What’d he say?” I asked, fear clawing at my chest, my throat. My voice trembled as I spoke. I wondered if she heard it.
The strength she held herself together with crumbled right before my eyes, her face falling, her eyes dimming to dull pits of despair. “He…” Her words dissolved into cries as she curled into herself, burying her face in her hands.
Fuck it. I pulled her into my arms, running a hand softly through her hair.
I soothed her, gently rocking her back and forth.
I don’t know how long we stood there like that.
It could have been a minute or a few hours.
All that mattered, all I cared about was her.
I’d stay there all damn night if I needed to. If she wanted me to.
“He…uh…” she looked up at me, tears pooling in her eyes before slipping down her cheeks. “He threatened me…if I…if I k-keep it.”
Rage bubbled up in me. Who the hell did he think he was threatening her?
“Fuck him.” Any man who had the fucking nerve to tell a woman to get rid of their unborn child wasn’t a fucking man at all.
They were a coward. I tilted her face up, forcing her to meet my stare.
“Don’t let his words affect your decision.
You do what you think is best. For you. For that baby. Not him. Fuck him.”
Another broken sob escaped her. “He… all b-b-but adm-mitted burning d-down the trailer. I’m…I’m scared, Maverick.”
I sighed, pulling her tighter into my arms. “I won’t let him touch you or that baby.”
“Maverick.”
“I won’t,” I said, resolve hardening in my chest.
She looked up at me, sadness swimming in her gaze. “I know, Mav. But I…I can’t do it. I can’t deal with this fear. I just…I can’t—” Her shoulders shook as a new wave of sobs took over. I held her through it all, even as defeat settled like a weight in my stomach.
It wasn’t fair. I had no right to feel this way.
To feel like I had any claim to this unborn baby.
I can’t even explain why I felt like that.
Maybe because I knew just how horrible it was to lose something precious.
It wasn’t the same, but losing Ellie Mae, having her sweet, innocent life ripped away and ended… well, it just wasn’t fair.
And that baby didn’t do no wrong. Wouldn’t even get the chance to. Just like Ellie Mae.
I held her there until her sobs turned quiet. Until her shoulders stilled and her sniffles ceased. “I’ll take you,” I said quietly, my voice sounding hoarse as it cut through the silence. “If this is what you want, I’ll take you.”
She looked up at me, a frown on her face. “I couldn’t possibly ask that of you.”
“You ain’t. I’m offerin’. Ain’t no way in hell I’m lettin’ you do this alone.”
“Mav, I—”
I clutched her chin between my thumb and forefinger. “Let me do this for you, Chey.”
Her eyes watered, tears brewing as her bottom lip trembled. But after a moment she nodded, the next word coming out as little more than a broken, lifeless whisper. “Okay.”