Chapter 11
Chapter Eleven
It had been five days since Max decided to buy the house, and because they had been super busy making plans and buying furniture, Hailey was beyond ready for a fun night. Right now, she was at Chloe and Tanner’s house for girls’ night, and Hailey was excited to be there. They were having Mexican food and virgin margaritas, and the only thing that would make the night perfect was if Sloane and Billie were here.
“Did I hear that you guys bought a house?” Ashlynn asked.
“Well, Max did,” she corrected. “It’s all happening so fast, and I’m amazed at how everything’s falling into place!”
“Maybe you can host the next girls’ night,” Jade suggested. “You know, if you’d like.”
“I’d have to ask Max, but I can’t imagine he’d mind.” Smiling, she added, “Although, he might turn it into a painting party or something. There’s a lot of work we want to do on the house. It’s in great shape, but we want to put our personal stamp on it.”
“How exciting!” Chloe said as she handed her a margarita. “You’ve had to deal with a lot in the last two months; I don’t know how you’re handling it all and still smiling. You’re lucky to have a guy like Max to go through it all with. I know we’ve said it before, but…we all love him.”
“It’s true,” Jade said as she placed a platter of chips and guacamole down on the table and winked at Hailey. “But we’re not here to sing Max’s praises all night. This is girls’ night and we wanted to welcome you to our little group and ask what it is we can help with!”
Putting a handful of chips on her plate, she chuckled, “Really?”
“Oh, definitely,” Ash agreed. “Although, considering we’re all pregnant…”
Jade loudly cleared her throat.
“Or should I say, most of us are pregnant, anything that requires heavy lifting will automatically be passed on to our husbands.” After helping herself to some chips, Ash continued. “Heavy lifting aside, what can we help you with?”
“You’re already doing it,” Hailey said with a grateful smile. “I’ve been so wrapped up in job hunting and drama with my parents and moving and missing my friends…it feels great to just go out and relax.” She took a sip of her virgin margarita. “Ooh…this is good!”
“Okay, so…I have to ask,” Ash began cautiously. “You and Max. How are things going? I mean, we know he bought a house and you’re moving in with him, but…are you just going to be roommates? Dating? Co-parents? Are you sleeping together like friends with benefits?”
“Ash!” Chloe cried out, clearly horrified. “What on earth? Some things are private!”
“Oh, good grief,” Ash murmured. “Knock it off.” Then she faced Hailey. “This is a no-judgment zone. You don’t have to guard what you say because we’re like a vault. No one outside of this house will ever know what we discussed.”
“Seriously?” she said with a small snort. “The Donovans are notorious for their gossiping skills! That’s how most of you found out I was pregnant in the first place!”
They all laughed, but…not a lot.
Ashlyn looked a little uncomfortable. “Okay, so we’re gossipy. I get it. But not about something like this. What’s going on with the two of you is going to have everyone speculating and there’s going to be gossip whether you want it or not. I’m just trying to get ahead of it because I don’t want to say something that’s not true, and I want to tell people to shut the hell up if they have it wrong.” She shrugged. “We may be cousins, but now that you’re here, you’re an honorary sister and you can ask anyone—we look out for each other. Even against other family members.”
You could have heard a pin drop.
Nervously, Hailey slowly took a bite of a tortilla chip, and it was easily a full minute before anyone spoke.
“If Max asked again, would you marry him?” Chloe asked as she sat down beside her.
Since they all already knew about his previous attempts at asking her to marry him, she supposed this wasn’t the worst conversation to have.
“I get the fact that you don’t have to marry him,” Ashlynn stated. “And you certainly shouldn’t let anyone force you into saying yes—even if you do need health insurance—but if he got romantic about it, then would you marry him?”
Silently, she nodded.
“I knew it!” Ash said triumphantly, before taking a heaping scoop of guacamole with her chips.
“Has he even hinted that he has deeper feelings for you?” Jade asked. “Or have you mentioned how you feel about him?”
Their conversation from the sexy treadmill day came to mind.
“I can’t help that I have insecurities. I know they don’t have anything to do with you specifically, but…I have to work through them, okay? I can’t just turn it off, but I want to try, Max. With you. For us.”
“We hint, but neither of us have admitted to having deep feelings,” she said primly, choosing to study her plate of chips and not looking at anyone. “I know we’re wildly attracted to each other and lately, we’ve been getting along great.”
“But…” Ash prompted.
“But…” She groaned, already hating what she was about to say. “This isn’t real! We’ve been forced into a situation and I’ll never know if this was meant to be or if we’re just making the best of the awkward circumstances.” Shrugging, she added, “My last relationship was a disaster, and it totally messed with me and my ability to trust anyone. I think Max is probably just making the best of it because he’s a good guy.”
Beside her, Chloe quietly spoke. “Is that what your head is saying, or your heart?”
Good question.
“We all have situations where we have this…knee-jerk reaction. Like we can’t even help it,” Chloe went on. “Maybe you need to take some time and try to separate these situations. Like…are you reacting to Max or your ex?”
“I…I don’t know. I’m not sure I can do that when I’m right there in the middle of it with Max. Especially once we move in together.” Swallowing hard, she shook her head. “Can we…can we talk about something else? Please?”
“You’re right,” Chloe said. “Sorry. This is supposed to be a fun night and we’ve turned it into a therapy session.”
“I didn’t,” Ashlynn mumbled. “I was trying to get the dirt. You turned it into therapy.”
“Okay, everybody play nice,” Jade said wearily before apologizing to Hailey. “You’ll get used to us. I swear.”
That made her chuckle. “You know, it’s times like this I really hate that I can’t have wine.”
“I mean…one glass won’t hurt,” Jade casually suggested.
And that just made her laugh a little more. “Um…right now, I feel like I could use an entire bottle!” They all laughed. “And as good as these virgin margaritas are, they’re just not helping me relax the way I really wish they would.”
“Wait until Chloe serves the chicken enchiladas. They’re practically a religious experience,” Jade assured her. “Then we have ice cream and brownies for dessert!”
“If Billie were here, she would have made chocolate-filled churros,” Chloe called out as she went to the oven to check on dinner. “She’s been messing with the recipe and really perfected it! Next time we do Mexican, I’ll make sure she makes them!”
“Ooh…sounds delicious! You know what I’m loving most about tonight?” Hailey asked no one in particular.
“What?”
“You guys are foodies and you clearly all cook! Sloane doesn’t cook. Like anything. And most of my friends don’t either. Every girls’ night was at a bar, pub, restaurant, or takeout. I kind of love the idea of everyone making stuff and contributing to the meal…and sorry that I didn’t tonight.”
“Pfft…I didn’t tell you, so you’re good,” Jade said, grinning. “We just wanted you to come and hang out and relax with no responsibilities. What’s Max doing tonight?”
“He’s having dinner with his dad.” She smiled just thinking how sweet she thought it was when he told her.
“Hales, come on,” Ash said with a smirk. “That’s like the cutest thing. How can you not be a little in love with a guy who goes to have dinner with his dad rather than selfishly taking the night for himself?”
“I know, right?” And yeah, she giggled. “He told me, and I swear my heart just melted a little. Sometimes it’s like he’s too good to be true!”
“That’s how I felt about Reid. He was a nice guy, super-hot, and a firefighter!” Ash explained. “I wanted to hate him, but I couldn’t!”
“Why would you want to hate him?”
“Ugh, don’t ask,” Chloe said when she came back to the table. “It’s a dumb story.”
“He told everyone about my underpants!” Ash cried before looking at Hailey. “We were in high school when it happened and then he moved away. But when he moved back a few years ago, that was my chief memory of him, so…I hated him.”
“She was wearing Olaf underwear,” Chloe loudly whispered. “You know, from Frozen ?”
“Oh my God! That’s awesome!” Hailey replied, trying hard not to laugh and failing miserably.
“The point is, as much as I tried not to like him, he just kept doing things that made it impossible to stay mad. Good guys exist. I got one.”
Nodding, Chloe agreed. “Me too!” She sighed happily. “No matter how much I pushed Tanner away, he just let me work my stuff out and waited patiently.”
“And I don’t have to tell anyone how incredible Levi is,” Jade chimed in. “After my ex walked away when I got pregnant, I swore I’d never trust another man again. But Levi got past all my defenses and…” She stopped and groaned. “We’re doing it again!”
“What? What are we doing?” Chloe asked.
“We’re focusing on Max! Ugh …stop it! Where are the enchiladas? I need to shove something in my mouth so I stop turning the conversation back to…not fun girls’ night stuff!”
“It’s okay!” Hailey said, patting Jade’s hand. “Really. I kind of like learning about you guys and your relationships, and believe it or not, this is helping a lot. It’s making me see that I’m not weird for being cautious, and that not all guys are creeps.”
“Some are,” Ash said with a frown. “But this is a small town and everyone knows who the creepy guys are. And Max isn’t one of them.” She took another scoop of guacamole. “And that’s the last time I’m going to say that tonight, I swear.”
“Trust me, it doesn’t matter if he’s Billie’s brother-in-law,” Jade told her. “If he wasn’t a good guy, we all would have warned you—even knowing you’re pregnant.”
The oven timer went off, and Chloe jumped up. “Enchilada time!”
They all stood and began making room for the tray of enchiladas and refreshed their drinks. “They smell delicious,” Hailey said. “Max and I have been doing a lot of cooking together, but we haven’t tackled any Mexican dishes. You’ll have to give me the recipe!”
For the next few minutes, they talked about favorite foods, recipes, and how they divvied up cooking responsibilities when they had family get-togethers. “It takes a village, right?” Chloe joked.
It was such a comfortable atmosphere and she was already loving the new dynamics and hoped she’d find her place and fit in.
They were her family, so she already knew she technically fit in, but now that she was living here, she wanted to be a part of it all and not just on the fringe.
“What’s been the biggest adjustment since moving here?” Ashlynn asked. “This is obviously a total one-eighty from living in Florida.”
“It is, but the obvious thing is the job situation. Where I lived, there were gyms and yoga studios all over the place! I never had to actively search for one because if you drove in any direction for five minutes, you found one. I’m a little freaked out about it, but I guess I’m going to just have to take the part-time position up at Summit Ridge and maybe work at the coffee shop part-time. It’s not ideal, but…”
“Did you ever talk to Billie about it?” Jade asked.
“Um…not really. I’m sure we talked about it at some point, but the last few weeks have been kind of a blur, so…it’s possible.”
“You really need to sit down with her when she gets back,” Jade said firmly. “Trust me. The girl has a real knack for figuring business stuff out and making things happen.”
“Is she involved in the bar thing?” Chloe asked. “The one our dad and Max and John are all going in on?” Then she paused. “Wait, is that still happening? With Max buying a house, is he still going to be part of the bar project?”
Hailey held up her plate as Chloe served everyone. “My dad has offered to donate construction costs and a crew as his way of investing,” she explained. “They talked about it a lot when we were down in Florida packing my place up.”
“Okay, so it’s still on,” Ash said before thanking Chloe for serving her. “I think Marcus is actually behind the whole bar thing. Like…he’s the one handling the financial planning part of it and investing. It’s kind of cute how he’s getting that stick out of his ass and doing stuff for other people.”
“Ash! That was a terrible thing to say!” Chloe said with a tsking sound.
“Oh, please. We all know it’s true. Marcus was another example of…well…okay, not a great example. Never mind.”
“Wait…why?” Hailey asked. “What’s the deal with Marcus? He seems very nice and Max speaks highly of him.
Ashlynn took a big bite of her dinner before she answered. “He and Billie dated years ago, and then broke up. When he came back to town, he was a major jackass to her. We all told her not to give him another chance. And for a little while, we thought they were well and truly done. Only…”
“Only he was persistent,” Chloe continued for her. “He kept saying he was leaving, but then he kept coming back. He redeemed himself in a major way and he and Billie are so happy now, so…I guess some jerks can turn into great guys.”
“Doing it again…” Jade murmured.
“Right! We need a girls’ night topic,” Ash agreed. “Ooh! I’ve got one! What on earth am I supposed to do when the baby has the hiccups?” Laughing, she shook her head. “I was sound asleep the other night with my belly against Reid’s back, and the baby had the hiccups! Woke us both up! Is there anything I can do to help?”
“Um…I don’t think so,” Jade said. “It’s just something natural and as long as he—or she—eventually stops, there’s nothing you need to do.”
“Okay, whew! I thought I was screwing something up!”
After that, conversation turned to the different stages of pregnancy, how everyone was feeling, due dates, and birthing plans.
All the stuff that Hailey hadn’t even started to think about.
But instead of beating herself up about it, she sat back and enjoyed her dinner while listening to the spirited conversation.
And made a mental note to make the appointment with the OB-GYN in town and to buy some books on pregnancy.
All in all, it was a very informative night that left her with a lot to think about—and not just regarding the pregnancy, but with Max too.
Could she open her heart and mind and see him without comparing him to anyone in her past? Could she let herself be happy and believe that there was a genuine future for the two of them? Things were in a really good place between them right now—so good that she shouldn’t be doubting it or looking for trouble.
Which wasn’t her strong suit.
Still, if she really tried to leave the past behind her, she could open herself up to something truly amazing.
Love.
It would be very easy to fall in love with Max. She was halfway there already. The only thing stopping her from truly being there was herself and her fears and anxiety.
And maybe it was time to overcome them and believe in herself.
And Max.
It was almost eleven and Max was mildly concerned that Hailey wasn’t home yet. Most nights she was in bed by eleven, but he had to remind himself that she was probably just enjoying a night out with the girls.
“It doesn’t mean I can’t miss her, though.”
And that was the biggest surprise. He genuinely missed her. He’d gotten so used to the way they made dinner together and sitting and talking with her while they ate. Not that he’d eaten alone tonight, though. When Hailey mentioned girls’ night, Max had taken that time to go over and have dinner with his dad.
“I’m so glad you called!” his father said when he showed up earlier with takeout from the steakhouse. “I know you suggested going out, but I’m kind of beat. I’ve been spending a lot of time working with Ronan on some plans for the bar, and then I also helped him and Reid with a few demo jobs.”
“Dad, you’re not supposed to be doing that kind of heavy work,” Max reminded him as he set the food out on the table. “I get that you’re feeling better and stronger, but you don’t want to overdo it.”
“Oh, don’t worry. I didn’t do any of the heavy stuff. I mainly pushed a broom around.” He grabbed a couple of bottles of beer from the fridge and put them on the table before sitting down. “So, how are things going? I haven’t seen much of you since you got back from Florida with Hailey. Is she settling in?”
“I think so,” he said carefully as he sat down. “She hasn’t found a full-time job, so that’s got her down, but there are some part-time ones she’s considering.”
“That’s got to be hard for her. But how are things going between the two of you? I thought for sure you would have been engaged by now.”
That makes two of us…
Max served them both as he considered his words. “Hailey isn’t quite ready to take that step. I’ve asked her, we’ve talked about it, and…”
“She keeps telling you no.”
“Exactly.”
“And how does that make you feel?”
“Like crap,” he said with a little more sarcasm than was necessary. “I’m crazy about her—actually, I’m pretty sure I’m in love with her—and we’re having a baby, and…I don’t know, I guess I just thought we were on the same page. We’re compatible in almost every way, but she’s just not interested in marrying me.”
“But she’s moving in with you?”
He nodded.
“Are you just…buddies? Roommates?”
He groaned. “Dad, I’m really not comfortable talking to you about this. Let’s just say we’re something like friends with benefits right now.”
“And you don’t like it.”
That made him laugh. “I’m a man who has a beautiful woman who wants to sleep with me. That part I like,” he said with a hint of amusement. “The more time I spend with her, though, the more I want. I want us to be a couple. I want us to be more than two people who live together and sleep together. I want…” Shaking his head, he paused.
“What?” his father gently asked. “What is it you want?”
Max’s shoulders sagged. “I want it all. I want her to feel for me what I feel for her. I want her to fall in love with me and trust that we can make this work. Unfortunately, I’m so afraid of spooking her that I’ve stopped trying to convince her to marry me. She’s admitted that she’s afraid and that she’s trying, and I told myself to just be patient, but…it’s difficult. Every time we’re…you know…intimate…I think, ‘Is this it? Is this the time she’s finally going to realize we’re meant to be?’ And I get my hopes up and ultimately end up disappointed.”
“That’s understandable, but you deserve to be heard too. I get that you don’t want to spook her, but there are two of you in this relationship and if you don’t openly communicate with each other, nobody’s going to win.”
“Easier said than done. Trust me. I tried. I thought I was saying all the right things and proving to her I was all in, and it just seemed to push her away.”
His father studied his food for a moment before picking up his fork. “Have you thought that maybe then she isn’t the girl for you?”
“Dad, we’re having a baby together!”
“And I get that, but that doesn’t mean you’re right for each other. You put a man and a woman together who are sexually attracted to one another, and you can get pregnant. That’s simple biology. It doesn’t mean you’re destined for happily ever after.”
“Oh my God. You did not just say that!” Laughing softly, Max shook his head.
“What? What did I say?”
“Happily ever after? Seriously? I don’t think people think like that.”
“That’s where you’re wrong. People do think like that and it’s what most of them want. Being alone is…it’s awful. I know some people thrive on that sort of thing, but I know I’m not one of them, and I don’t think you are either.”
“I used to think I was okay with it…”
“Until you saw what it could be like with someone you truly care about. Trust me. There’s nothing like it.” Pausing, John solemnly nodded. “It was like that when I met your mom. I still remember the moment I knew…” He paused again and Max could hear the raw emotion in his voice. “We were at a little Italian restaurant in Richmond, and it was someone’s birthday. The whole place sang ‘Happy Birthday’ and the look of pure joy on your mother’s face just…if I close my eyes, I can still see it so clearly.”
“Dad…”
When his father looked up at him, his eyes shone bright with unshed tears. “She was so beautiful and she had the biggest heart of anyone I’d ever known and I thought…I want to spend my life with her. I want that joy and laughter and light with me forever.” He let out a shaky breath. “I just wish our forever lasted longer.”
Max felt himself getting choked up. “Me too, Dad. Me too.”
They ate in silence for several minutes before his father spoke again.
“Don’t wait, Max. Tomorrow isn’t promised. I get that you’re trying to be respectful, but…” He shook his head again. “You know Hailey better than I do, but I hate the thought of you living your life afraid of being true to yourself, that’s all.”
After that, they talked about sports and the new house, and all the plans Max had for it. It was a good night, and it reminded him how wise his dad truly was.
So he had gone home with plans to tell Hailey how he felt—he was in love with her and he wanted to marry her and even though he was willing to wait, he couldn’t hide how he felt any longer.
Only…she wasn’t home when he got there.
Now it was eleven-fifteen, and he wondered if he should call Chloe and see if everything was okay. But no sooner had he taken his phone out than he saw the headlights from her car pulling into the driveway. Max let out a long breath and finally relaxed. The house felt too quiet without her. That was something that hadn’t bothered him when he stayed here while his brother and Billie were on their honeymoon. The dogs were wandering around and were good company, but it wasn’t the same as being here with Hailey.
“Hey!” she said when she walked in the door and spotted him. She was smiling and looked the most relaxed he’d seen her in weeks. “Did you just get home too?”
He walked over and helped her with her coat. “No, I got home around nine and was just sort of wandering around.”
“How was dinner with your dad?”
It was crazy how much he loved that even though he could tell she’d clearly had a great night, she was asking about his first. “It was great. We haven’t had a night with just the two of us in a while, so…he seemed to appreciate it.”
“Once we move, we should make it a weekly thing where he comes for dinner,” she said as she walked over to the fridge and grabbed a bottle of water. “We always had weekly dinners with the entire family. My parents had us all over every Sunday. It was typically chaos, but it was a great way to catch up on what was going on with everyone.”
“Your cousins do that and whenever Billie and Marcus are the ones hosting, they include my dad. It’s been a bit of a change getting used to being around so many people. Our family is small and for a lot of years, Marcus wasn’t around, but it’s nice.”
After taking a sip of her water, Hailey just looked at him and smiled.
“What about you?” he asked. “How was girls’ night?”
She continued to smile as she walked into the living room and motioned for him to follow. The dogs all perked up when she walked into the room and jumped onto the couch to be with her.
I get it, guys…I feel the same way too.
“It was amazing,” she gushed as he sat down beside her and the dogs. “I get that these are my cousins and we’re already close, but we’ve never had a chance to just hang out without it being a big family event. Chloe made these amazing chicken enchiladas—and yes, I got the recipe—and we drank virgin margaritas, and it was just so much fun!” Her head fell back against the cushions as she sighed happily. When she turned her head and looked at him, she was still smiling. “And it was really very cool knowing that we’re all pregnant together. Well, except Jade, but she’s already had two kids and knows a ton about being pregnant. I feel like I learned a lot tonight.”
“That’s awesome!”
“But I also learned that I have so much to learn,” she told him. “I guess I never realized just how much happens to your body and…Chloe gave me a book to read. It’s supposed to explain everything you should expect while you’re expecting.”
“Doesn’t she need it?”
Shaking her head, she sat up a bit. “Apparently, Tanner has his own copy and they’ve been reading it together, so she said this was her spare. I told her I could just order my own copy from the bookstore, but she insisted I take it. So, guess what I’ll be reading for the next seven months?”
That made him laugh. “Well, then I’ll try to be like Tanner and get a copy and we can share notes. How does that sound?”
“Sounds like a plan.”
And they stayed like that—just looking at each other and sharing smiles. It was such a simple yet perfect moment and Max was so tempted to just say how he felt, but Hailey yawned and stretched and her eyes began to close.
Tomorrow , he thought. I can tell her tomorrow .
Standing, he moved closer and gently shooed the dogs away. “Come on, sleepy girl. You look ready to fall asleep.”
“Mmm…this couch is very comfy. I’ll just rest my eyes for a minute,” she said sleepily.
At that moment, Max didn’t even think twice. Bending down, he carefully scooped her up into his arms. Her eyes immediately flew open, but then she rested her head on his shoulder and snuggled closer.
“Why are you always so good to me?” she whispered.
Again, this could be the perfect opening to tell her how he felt, but he didn’t. “You make it easy,” he softly told her. “And I enjoy taking care of you.”
She hummed as she tried to snuggle even closer. He slowly made his way up the stairs to her room—well, it had sort of become their room—and gently placed her down on the bed. Moving around, he took her shoes and socks off before grabbing one of her nightshirts from the dresser. It was awkward getting her undressed and then into her pajamas, and she slept through most of it. But when he finally had her all situated and under the blankets, he couldn’t help but stop and look at her. He was caressing her cheek when she hummed again and whispered his name.
Bending forward, he placed a soft kiss on her forehead. “Goodnight, beautiful girl.” His words were spoken so quietly he was sure she didn’t even hear them.
“Love you, Max,” she said in the same hushed tone, and Max swore his ears were deceiving him.
Was it possible that she really was in love with him? Was this part of the whole trust issue she had and her subconscious allowed her to say it finally?
There was no way for him to know and it would be wrong to wake her up and ask her if she meant it because…well…she probably didn’t even realize she’d said it.
“So I’m still stuck waiting,” he murmured.
The yawn was out before he could stop it, but instead of crawling into bed beside her, he needed to let the dogs out one more time and make sure everything was locked up. And when he was done, he’d come back and gently pull her into his arms and hold her all night while silently hoping she’d say those words to him again.