25. Travis
25
TRAVIS
T ravis stopped beside Anna’s car and shifted into park. “Sorry about the detour. You could have been home already if you’d waited for Anna.”
“It’s fine. Your cracker stash saved me.” Bella tossed the box into the back seat and reached for the door. “Will you stay and have lunch with me?”
“Anna is here,” Travis said. If Bella didn’t want to be alone, that base was covered. Still, a part of him hoped she wanted him to stay.
“She’s working on her social media content. That’s what she does every Sunday afternoon.”
He should let her go. He should keep the distance between them and quit wishing for things that weren’t meant for him.
But he was weak when it came to Bella, and he couldn’t deny her anything she asked. “Okay.”
He followed her inside. Anna’s place was filled with whites and pastel colors. The open windows brightened every corner.
Bella’s heels clicked on the floor as they stepped into the kitchen. A casserole dish covered in foil sat on the granite-tiled island.
“Looks like Anna had leftovers,” Bella said as she uncovered the dish. She inhaled a deep breath and hummed. “Italian chicken. Anna is such a good cook. I’ve learned a lot from her, but I’ve also gained five pounds.”
Travis found the plates and grabbed two. “You’re probably supposed to be gaining weight.”
He hadn’t commented on her weight before, but her doctors had mentioned she was on the verge of malnourishment during her hospital stay. She’d been little more than skin and bones two months ago, but she’d been careful to eat at every meal she could since finding out about the pregnancy.
Bella scooped potatoes, green beans, and chicken onto a plate. “My doctor said I’m almost on track for a healthy weight for the pregnancy. The morning sickness has eased up too which should help me keep up.”
Travis watched Bella as they ate. Her smile was bright as she talked about helping Anna with wedding plans and cleaning out a shed with Tammy while he was in Seattle. All traces of the scared woman she’d been when she woke up in the hospital were gone.
She didn’t mention any more memories, but was that a good thing? Every day she didn’t piece together her old life was another day he spent sinking deeper and deeper into her grasp.
Who was he kidding? He was a goner with or without her memories. It just might be easier to let her go if she did it sooner rather than later.
The phone in Travis’s pocket rang, and he pulled it out. His brother’s name lit up the screen, and he silenced it.
“Do you need to take that?” Bella asked.
“Nope.” Travis almost had the phone shoved back into his pocket when it rang again.
Travis swallowed a growl. His brother never called him, so there was a chance it could be important.
“Sorry,” he said as he lifted it up.
“Go ahead,” Bella said as she gathered their empty dishes.
Travis’s stomach rolled as he answered the call. “Hello.”
“Mom is driving me crazy, and Dad is almost as bad. Were they like this when you were here?” Greg asked.
Travis’s grip on the phone tightened. “It’s not their normal life, and they’re frustrated.”
“This isn’t my life either, and they’re acting like they’ll cut me out of an inheritance if I leave.”
Pressure built in Travis’s chest. His dad had made a good living managing a chain of gas stations, and there was plenty of money and assets to dole out when they passed.
Travis didn’t want any of it. Money didn’t have the same hold on him that it did for his parents and brother. He’d rather be on his own and free of their manipulations. “Do you really need an inheritance? Why do you care?”
“Free money when those two kick the bucket? Yeah, I want it. It might scratch the surface of what I deserve.”
It was time to get out of this conversation. The urge to say everything he really thought about his parents, his brother, and an inheritance threatened to spill out. He didn’t want a penny from his parents, dead or alive.
“I’m kind of busy. Did you need something?” Travis asked.
“When can you come back?” Greg asked.
“I’m not coming back. You’re on your own.”
Greg huffed. “Thanks for nothing. I had to cut my family vacation short for this. Vanessa is furious.”
There it was—another log thrown on the already blazing dumpster fire. “Sorry, but you can work from anywhere. I have two jobs, and I can’t exactly respond to medical emergencies from the west coast.”
“I forgot. You’re too good for us now that you have a certificate degree,” Greg mocked.
“Don’t get upset. Your law degree is still king. I’m sure you can hire someone to take care of Mom and Dad.”
Greg sighed. “Fine. I’ll find someone. Thanks for nothing.”
The call ended quickly, and Travis put the phone away.
Bella stood at the sink washing the dishes they’d just used. “Is everything okay?”
Rubbing his hands over his face, Travis searched for the right words. “My brother is complaining about our parents.”
Bella dried her hands on a towel and turned to prop her back against the counter. “I… Tell me if I’m overstepping my bounds, but you mentioned why you have a strained relationship with your parents, but why don’t you like your brother?”
There it was–the question he’d been dreading. She had no idea she was asking him to tell her about the most embarrassing moment of his life. After all she’d shared about herself, it felt wrong to hide the truth from her.
“Can we sit?” he asked.
“Sure.” Bella led the way to the living room and fell onto the couch. She quickly tucked her knees onto the seat and covered her legs with her long dress. “We don’t have to talk about anything you don’t want to talk about.”
Travis sat beside her and rested his head back on the couch. Staring up at the ceiling instead of looking at her might make it easier to talk about.
“My fiancée left me for my brother.”
Bella gasped. It was the exact same reaction everyone had when they found out.
“It’s fine. It obviously wasn’t meant to be, and I’m glad we never got married. It was just the wake-up call I needed to stop putting my family first when they never cared about stepping on me to get what they wanted.”
“Travis, that’s awful. Why would anyone do something like that?” Bella asked.
“I brought her home to meet my family, and apparently it was love at first sight when she saw my brother. Well, when she heard he was a successful attorney. She said she wanted the smarter brother.”
Bella scoffed, but the sound didn’t hold the irritation she intended. She was so undeniably sweet that even her frustrations didn’t sound menacing.
He let his head roll on the back of the couch until he faced her. The scowl she wore wasn’t the least bit intimidating, but it was clear she was fired up about his brother and ex.
“I can’t believe they did that to you,” Bella said.
Travis hadn’t been able to believe it either at first. After plenty of time had passed, he realized he’d given Vanessa too much trust when she hadn’t earned it. There had been little red flags, but he’d ignored them. Since then, he’d been afraid to risk making the same mistakes again.
Now, he was free falling for a woman he most certainly couldn’t have. She was unavailable in every way, even if she didn’t know the extent of her prior commitments. She didn’t remember half of who she was, and definitely didn’t remember whose baby she carried.
There had to be some lucky man out there looking for Bella. If it were him, he wouldn’t rest until she was back in his arms.
Bella’s delicate hand reached out and rested on his arm. Her skin was light and soft, but everywhere she touched scorched him to the bone.
He looked up from her hand into the green eyes that held him captive. A lock of her sandy-blonde hair fell in front of her face, and he tightened his hands into fists to keep from reaching for her.
“She missed out on the better brother,” Bella whispered.
His jaw tightened as he swallowed. “You don’t know my brother.”
“I know what he did to you, and I know you would never hurt someone like that.” Her grip on his arm tightened. “I know you , and you’re the best man I’ve ever known.”
His breaths came quicker as he fought the urge to lean in. He scrubbed a hand over his face, trying and failing to stop thinking about her. “Bella.”
“I know. I know I shouldn’t care about you like this, but I do,” she said quickly. “I can’t help it. I can’t just tell myself that I don’t want you.”
Travis groaned and stood quickly. Pushing his hands into his hair, he tried to forget her words–tried to tell himself that they would both be sorry they gave in when she remembered her old life and had to leave.
His chest was hollow and cold. The one woman in the world who thought he was better than his brother or worth fighting for was the one woman he couldn’t have.
Straightening his shoulders, he lifted his chin and faced her. “I need to go.”
Bella stood in a rush, and the skirt of her dress swayed around her legs. “I’m sorry. Don’t go. I shouldn’t have said that.”
“No. It’s not that. It’s… I don’t even know. We want the same thing, but we’ll both hate ourselves if you end up remembering you already love someone else.”
“I don’t remember anyone else. I don’t want anyone else.” Her voice shook as she stood her ground, facing him like a warrior determined to rush headlong into battle.
Travis breathed through the turmoil building inside him. “What if we give it a time limit? It’s been two months. If you haven’t remembered anything in two more months and you still want this, we’ll see where things go between us.”
It was a stupid compromise. He wanted her now. Two months would only make him want her more.
She sniffed and tucked her chin. “I understand if this is too much for you. Who would want to raise another man’s baby? Who wants a pregnant girlfriend?”
“Stop.” Travis held up a hand. “That’s not what this is about, and you know it. I don’t take those things lightly, but that’s not why I think we should wait.”
“Because you think I’ll leave?” she asked.
“Because I know you’ll leave if you remember,” Travis corrected. It was the dark cloud looming over all of his days. He never pressured her to remember, but it was what she needed. She needed closure at the very least.
Bella slowly shook her head, leaving her gaze locked on him. “I don’t want to leave.”
Man, she was determined to make this unbearable. She wouldn’t give in, and neither would he. He knew what it was like to lose someone, and Bella had the power to destroy him if she left.
Travis took a step closer and reached for her. She met him in the middle and fell into his arms. Resting her cheek against his chest, she let the tears out. He’d give anything to erase the hurt, but the easy way out for now would only be worse later.
He rubbed big circles over her back, but the sobs continued.
Anna rushed into the room with wide eyes. “What’s wrong?”
Bella lifted her head and wiped her eyes. “Nothing. Just hormones having a party.”
Travis lifted Bella’s chin as she continued to sniff. Brushing his thumbs over her wet cheeks, he smiled through the stabbing in his chest. “Are you okay?”
She nodded and sniffed again. “Yeah.”
He pulled her back in and held her tight. Leaning down until his mouth was right beside her ear, he whispered, “I’m sorry.”
Lifting her head, she blinked through the leftover tears. “I’m sorry too.” She took a deep breath and turned to Anna. “I think I need a nap.”
Anna opened an arm to Bella. “Sunday is a day of rest, after all.”
Bella stepped into Anna’s embrace and turned back to him to whisper, “Sorry.”
“I’ll call you later,” Travis promised.
Bella pressed her lips together into a forced grin. “Okay.”
It was time to part ways, but he didn’t want to leave. Every instinct said to stay with her, but she didn’t need him right now. She needed rest and a friend who would hopefully assure her that they were making the right decision by waiting.
When Bella and Anna disappeared down the hallway, he slipped into his boots and walked out. Inside the safety of his truck, he banged the back of his head against the seat. Whether they were waiting to get into a relationship or not, he’d be there for Bella. Even if he had it to do all over again, he’d still let her have complete control of his heart.