Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fourtee n
Emberli
I turn, just as Thayne’s body closes in on my own, and forget how to breathe properly. I press myself up against the counter, clinging on to it for dear life as he corners me.
His cinnamon and leathery scent surrounds me as he closes in, so close I can hear his breathing that turns irregular once he realizes just how intimate we stand. His arm darts past me, reaching above my head, letting me snag a look at his well sculpted biceps before the moment ends and Thayne looks down at me.
I pray he didn’t catch me practically objectifying him but God , he’s even more attractive up close. Thayne holds the glass in front of me, creating a distance between us that makes me wonder what would happen if I happened to close it again.
“Thanks.”
“It’s only a glass, trouble.”
I quickly dive under his arm that rests on the counter where my hands grip and run the tap.
Thirsty. So fucking thirsty.
“So listen, I was thinking about what you said. ”
I listen as I gulp down a glass full of water, eagerly filling up the next before I turn, resting against the counter once again, but this time Thayne stays at the opposite end, like it’s some line of prevention.
Oh God . He definitely caught me staring.
Great. Now he must think I’m a creep.
“Write a list.”
I frown, unaware of what he’s talking about.
Did I hear him correctly? “Write a list?”
He nods. “Write a list of things you haven’t done yet. Things you want to do before the baby arrives.”
My heart slams against its ribcage as the words leave his mouth and I fear, with the hormones skyrocketing around my body right now, I could burst out crying at his thoughtfulness. I try to ignore the voices in my head that ask about a thousand and one questions as to why.
“I want to help you.”
I’m met by the more frequent side of Thayne that’s been showing recently and I nod slowly.
“Really?”
“Anything. Just write it down and I’ll do my best to help you complete it.”
“But why? Why help me?”
“Because I was wrong about you, trouble. And I want to spend some time making that up to you. If you’d let me.”
***
It occurred to me that family meals back home were nothing compared to the Rawlins’ breakfast table. At home there were five of us, and occasionally we’d have all of us sit down together when we weren’t working. Here, every seat at the table was full .
The smell of coffee filled my nose and I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it. I followed Thayne towards the laughter and chatter that reminded me of my own family.
I missed them.
The older sister's guilt was real, and often kept me up some nights, knowing that my younger sister might be struggling and feeling like she can’t speak to anyone about it. And I’m… I’m not there to tell her that everything will be okay and figure itself out. We message now and then, but it’s not the same. And Buck, I’m not there to play his games with him nor am I there to hug him, even though he swears he hates it. I realize how much I miss him when I find myself engrossed in Colton and Ryker’s video game.
“Damn it! I keep getting killed!” Ryker groans, flinging himself back on the couch.
“That’s because you’re shit.”
“Language!” I hear a woman yell from the kitchen.
“Hey Em, nice to see you.” Colton grins over his shoulder. “Wanna play a match?”
I shrug. “Sure.”
The both of them shuffle up on the couch and Ryker hands me a controller. “Win this for me, please.”
Ryker and I hadn’t exchanged many words and I had put it down to him not being much of a talker. Whilst the other guys seemed to not stop, Ryker was a lot more withdrawn.
“I hate to break it to you, but I'm undefeatable.” Colton smirks.
“Kick his ass, Em.” Lynnie says from behind me.
I have to thank my brother for forcing me to play these games with him religiously, because the shock on Colton’s face when I beat him twice in a row is priceless.
“I can’t believe you finally got your ass handed to you.” Mack laughs.
It appears our match has become center of attention and Colton demands a rematch for the second time.
He remains just as shocked when I beat him a third time and I high five Ryker who I’ve spoken more to today than I have the past few weeks.
“You’re fucking amazing,” he states.
“Marry me.” Colton rasps from my other side and earns a whack around the head from his sister, who mouths an apology to me.
“Breakfast is ready!”
Everyone seems to swarm to the table, diving into the trays of food before they even sit down.
“You must be Emberli.” Standing before me is an older woman with oven gloves covering her hands. She takes them off before opening her arms. “I’m Sally, Aca and Ryker’s mom.”
“Hi. It’s so nice to meet you.” I swallow, taking in the sweet scent of what smells like strawberries, as she hugs me.
“You’re even prettier than Willow said.”
I’m certain by the familiar warm feeling rising to my cheeks, that I’m about as red as a tomato.
Oh. I’d kill for a tomato… or an entire bowl of them. Cravings had only gotten weirder throughout this trimester, I’d found myself dipping celery into a jar of peanut butter just last week, and this week I’d had the undying urge to demolish every salt and vinegar packet of crisps there ever was in a sour cream dip.
“This is Doug, my husband.” Sally gestures to the man who nods his head at me with a smile, digging into the pancakes on the table that everyone seems to swarm for.
“Come and sit down, Em.” I take a seat beside Willow who grins at me reassuringly.
“Dig in sweetie. These boys are like gnats at a barbecue when it comes to food.” Sally says.
“Coffee?” Opposite me, Mack holds up a jug of coffee just as Thayne appears next to him, holding a mug before he reaches over the table and places it down in front of me, along with a jar of sugar and a jug of milk.
“Decaf,” is all he says.
I blink and before I can thank him, he turns to Aca and laughs at something he said.
“How far along are you sweetie?” Breaking me from my thoughts is Sally, who leans forward intrigued, her face in the palm of her hand. “Five months.”
The reality hits me like a slap in the face, and I gulp down a lump in my throat.
I was five months pregnant.
Five months.
“Do you know what you’re having yet?” I shake my head. “Do you have a preference?”
“Honestly I’m freaked out either way.” I chuckle. “But, as long as they’re healthy.”
Willow’s hand reaches mine and she squeezes it. “You’re going to be an amazing mom.”
I’m glad someone thinks so.
Being an amazing mom was all I wanted for this baby.
Fuck Elijah. In fact, fuck all the men who decide they don’t want anything to do with the baby, ditching the minute it’s a double lined pregnancy test. A part of me wondered what he was doing now, and whose life he was ruining next.
The weirdest part? I felt for him.
He would never truly be happy with himself and that was better than any revenge.
“I hear you're staying with Thayne until Aca leaves.” Sally comments as she stands up.
“Where are you going now, mother? Sit down and eat.” Ryker scolds and she waves him off, returning a few moments later with another tray of bacon.
“About that, there’s a leak in my cabin.”
“Why didn’t you say something sooner?” Flint turns to Aca.
“Because I wanted to sort it myself.” Aca grumbles. “Evidently I couldn’t.” He turns to me. “I’m sorry, Emberli.”
“It’s fine. You can stay with me until it’s fixed. There’s no issue.” Thayne says as he battles Mack for the last pancake on the tray. Once he claims victory, he smacks Mack’s cheek with it before biting into it.
“I can get it fixed within a few weeks. I just need to order in some more pipes.”
“What about baby names?”
Sally’s interest was great, heart-warming almost. But it reminded me just how much that I hadn’t planned. I felt like I was doing this entire baby thing wrong. Like I was neglecting my child and I hadn’t even held them in my arms yet.
“I haven’t…” I gulp down the growing lump in my throat as I shake my head. “I haven’t thought of any yet.”
God, did that make me sound like a terrible mother? It definitely did.
“There’s a lot of time for you to decide sweetie.” Sally grins widely.
“Yeah, names like Mack can be for either a boy or a girl. Mackenzie or… Mackenzie.”
“She’s not going to want to name her baby after you, dumbass.” Willow scoffs and looks at me, rolling her eyes. “Here’s a tip for you, ignore everything Mack says.”
“Oh yeah. You’re especially good at that Wills.” He shoots back and her head whips over to him, eyes flashing with annoyance.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“This weekend I literally had to practically drag you home. You wouldn’t fucking budge without a burger and fries from Big Al’s.”
“That’s my girl.” Doug chuckles, Willow beams at this before she turns to Mack.
I look down, seeing her hand still overlapping mine. I wasn’t used to friends, let alone those who showed affection through touch.
It was nice, different. Like she was telling me that she was there for me without actually saying it.
“Blame it on Lynnie. I had to venture out all by myself because she was sick.”
Lynnie reels back at this. “Hang on. It’s not my fault I was sick. ”
“And you absolutely should not be going out by yourself.” Flint pipes up and Willow rolls her eyes.
“Have we forgotten that I am indeed twenty-three years old?”
“We know, Wills. We just want you to be safe.” Colton says.
“I’m always safe.” Willow counters. “I’m not a little kid anymore.”
“No, but you’ll always be our little sister.” Flint brushes past her, planting a kiss on her head before finding his seat.
“Don’t I know it.” She grumbles.
“Do you have any siblings, Emberli?” Doug asks.
“Yeah, I have a younger sister and brother. Ebony and Buck.”
“Do you argue like this lot?”
“Not much.” I chuckle. “But they’re a lot younger than me, so.”
“That must be hard.” Sally sympathises and I nod.
“I miss them a lot.”
I may have been born with the urge to travel, but I was also born family-orientated, which is why it was so hard to leave originally.
Two years later and here I was. My battery for travel had run out and I was ready to settle down. I just didn’t know where.
I’d always loved home, but I felt like a failure going back there and apart from my family, there was nothing for me there. I had to do what's best for me, what's best for the baby.
“Well, we can be your family whilst you’re here. Do you know how long you plan on staying?”
It’s as if a horse has just claimed my chest as a seat and I shake my head with the feeling of heaviness.
“I don’t know. I never thought I belonged anywhere until I came here.”
“Well we love having you here.” Lynnie smiles across at me.
“We really do.” Willow nods.
The rest of breakfast went smoothly and despite my attempts to help clean up, I was shot down immediately and sent back to Thayne’s cabin with an extra plate of eggs that either the baby or me seemed to take an interest in. Sally also disappeared into the garden for ten minutes before returning with a punnet of tomatoes. I’d let slip about tomatoes when she asked me about my cravings. Her questions surrounding my pregnancy made me somewhat more comfortable throughout breakfast, especially when she told me stories of her own.
I didn’t know much about Thayne’s parents, but from what Willow had told me, the family had grown up with Sally and Doug instead. Sally was clearly a natural at being a mom. I couldn’t speak for myself however.
***
“Dancing in the rain?” Thayne’s eyebrow raises suggestively as he looks over my list that I created last night.
“I’ve never done it.” I shrug. “I’ve seen it in movies and I just want to do it. It looks so freeing.”
He nods, his eyes scanning over the rest. “Okay. This all seems relatively easy to do. A helicopter ride? Anywhere specific?”
I shake my head. “I just want to ride in a helicopter.”
“Swim in a rooftop infinity pool?”
I nod and he glances down once again.
“A rage room?”
I shrug. “I’ve never done one.”
“Okay. Tattoo?” He raises an eyebrow at me.
I shrug. “I haven’t got any.”
“They’re permanent, you know.”
“A child is also permanent, although I did read in one of my books that it’s advised to not get tattoos when pregnant.”
He must hear the worry in my voice because he looks up. “It’s your decision, trouble.”
I nod. “I want to do it. Does that make me a terrible mom? ”
“No. Not at all. We’ll take precautions. Willow used to go to school with the woman who runs the tattoo studio in the town, she’s professional and great at what she does. We can talk to her about any worries you may have.”
I nod and he drops his head, eyes scanning over the sheet of paper before they widen. “Skinny dipping in a lake?”
“Also seems freeing.”
“Is that a euphemism?”
I crack a smile and he looks down at the list. “Learn how to salsa and go camping.” He murmurs before placing the piece of paper down with a nod. “Okay. It all sounds do-able.”
“Really? We don’t have to worry about the helicopter ride or infinity pool too much.”
“Emberli. Do you want to do it?”
“I mean, yeah. I’d love to.”
“Then we’re doing it.”