Chapter 15
Fifteen
Mabel
Watching the realisation on Mavericks face as Ellie calls me Mama almost breaks my heart all over again. The hurt in his eyes as I watch him look down to my ring finger, and then the relief when he sees it’s bare.
I trot over to my brother and tell him if he wants me to even slightly talk to him again, he needs to change positions with me, so I don’t get the questions that Maverick wants to ask me in this field, because I know what the questions are going to be.
The main one I imagine being;
Who is her dad?
****
Ten years ago;
Leaning against the bar, I scan the crowd of McCoy’s, holding tightly onto my whiskey glass. The music is far too loud in here for my liking, but I did this to appease my friends. Spending the last four years hidden away, wallowing in my own self-pity.
“Someone’s got a taker,” Hope says, nudging my side and nodding towards an out-of-towner who’s sitting with a group of men, I don’t recognise. I look up and directly into his eyes as he gives me a shy smile.
“Go talk to him,” Iris begs, nudging my shoulder.
“Oh, uhm, I can’t-” I start, buckling with the pressure, taking another sip of my drink.
“No, not doing that,” Iris cuts me off with her hand.
I look between my best friends who are giving each other a knowing glance. “Honey, it’s been four years-” Hope starts. “You need to move on.” Iris finishes firmly, placing her hand on my arm.
I look back over to the fairly handsome stranger and offer him a shy smile. I understand what my girls are trying to do.
Four years ago, the love of my life went to college, and I never heard from him again after two weeks of him being gone. My heart still aches for him, and I’m still not ready to move on, much to everyone’s dismay.
“I’m not ready,” I say, shoulders slumped.
“You haven’t got to marry the guy!” Hope says. “But you need a good seeing to-” Iris laughs and I give her a dirty look.
Iris is one of the most forthcoming people when it comes to sex. Or anything if I’m honest. The girl’s an open book and not scared to say what she thinks. The firecracker she is.
Mack refills our tequila glasses, and I immediately shoot one glass down the back of my throat, hoping for the liquor to give me some courage.
“Okay, I’ll talk to him.” I relent.
Iris is right, I need something more than my favourite pink vibrating friend that I keep in my nightstand draw whenever the itch starts. I can’t live off that forever; I need to feel something real. Maybe a one-night stand is what I need to try and move on.
“Atta’ girl!” Hope says, shooting back her own shot. “How’d I look?” I ask, giving the girls a twirl in my white dress and pink cowboy boots.
“Stunning!” They say back in unison.
I look back towards the direction of the man who’s staring at me, accept he’s already walking towards me. I look back at my girls who have got their thumbs up.
I walk towards the stranger, taking smaller steps than him. “Hi-” I muster out when he reaches me.
“Hi.” He smiles down at me.
“Could I buy you a drink?” he asks.
“Sure.” I smile back at him.
I notice his accent isn’t from around here, sounds more North but I can’t place it.
I put my hand in his and let him lead me back towards the bar.
He signals Mack to get us a drink. Mack automatically sees me and grabs my favourite whiskey from the shelf and starts pouring it over ice, before handing it to me.
“For you?” He points at the stranger, his hand still in mine.
“Bud, please,” he says as Mack pulls the bottle from under the bar.
I take my drink and look at the stranger who bought them. He isn’t overly tall and had a caramel-coloured clean haircut. Clean shaven too, unlike Maverick who couldn’t have been more different from the man standing in front of me.
“Austin.” He smiles, holding his hand up for me to shake.
“Mabel.” I take his hand in mine.
“Pretty name,” he adds, bringing his beer up to his lips.
“Thank you.” I can feel myself blushing. I look back over to my girls and see them both with huge smiles across their faces.
Maybe this won’t be as hard as I’m making it out. I overthink everything and maybe I shouldn’t.
The night drags on, but I find myself actually enjoy Austin’s company.
I find out he’s here from New York and it’s his cousin’s bachelor party.
They stayed in Nashville for the crowds but decided to stop here on their way home.
He leaves tomorrow. Suits me fine. Last orders are called at the bar from Mack.
“Do you-” he starts. I look up from my glass. “Want to get out of here?” he finishes.
I look at him, and the alcohol has hit as I feel myself swaying. I let out a giggle before standing up from my bar stool and take his hand.
“Sure,” I shrug, doing my best to flutter my eyes.
I look over at Iris and Hope and offer them a wave goodbye before turning on my heels and leading Austin back out towards the parking lot.
“My hotel is over the road-” he says quickening his pace.
I let out a laugh. “I know, only one round these parts of town.”
He laughs with me and stumbles forward.
We drunkenly walk towards the motel, and my mind wanders to the fact I’ll be the talk of the town tomorrow if anyone sees me.
To hell with it, I’m done being so broken over the man who left me.
I pick my stride up, trying not to trip over my own feet. Before I know it, Austin is trying to get his key card out from his pocket. He finally pulls it out and taps it on the lock, opening the door and letting me through.
“Ladies first…” he laughs as I skip past him.
I walk inside the hotel room and notice that it hasn’t changed since I worked here when I was younger as a side gig to earn some quick cash.
I look towards the bed, and I feel unfamiliar hands on my hips, pulling my back towards his chest. I let in a breath and hold it firmly in place. The realisation hits that no, I’m not ready for this, but I’m going to do it anyway.
Austin pulls my hair away from my neck and plants a rough kiss onto it. As I lean my head towards his, trying to get into it I notice the fire inside me that Maverick could always make isn’t there.
My heart pains at the thought.
Austin turns me to face him and opens his mouth, leaning in to kiss me. I return the gesture and follow his lead on the kiss. It’s wet and not well thought out. His tongue nowhere in sync with mine.
I realise I’m still holding my breath as I let it out into his mouth. Austin pulls away from the kiss to pull his shirt over this head and then removes his brown shoes and his jeans until he is only left in his briefs.
I follow suit, lifting my dress over my head. There’s no heat between us, no urgency.
I notice him scanning my body as I stand in my underwear. This time I’m glad I matched my bra and thong. Austin licks his lips.
“Condom?” I ask.
He smirks at me before pulling a foil out of his bag. He pulls his briefs down, so they’re around his ankles before opening the packet with his teeth, pumping his length, and rolling the condom along his shaft.
I’ve only ever slept with Maverick, so should I be expecting a similar interaction with Austin? Maverick would take his time to make me feel good, always starting with kisses down my body before nuzzling his face in between my thighs.
He always said it was his favourite place to be…
Austin walks back over to me, picking up our wet kiss and leaning into me, pushing me back down onto the bed. Climbing on top of me, he pulls my thong off and throws it onto the floor.
He pushes my knees apart and climbs higher on top of me before I feel his tip trying to find the entrance to my pussy.
Thankfully I’m drunk and only slightly horny, which has made my pussy damp enough for him to force his length inside of me. I let out a whimper as Austin starts to move inside of me.
Holding his weight on his hands behind my head he starts to thrust into me with force, moaning each time.
I quickly realise there’s nothing in this for me. Austin isn’t attempting to make me come at all, just himself.
As quickly as this started, it ends with Austin finishing inside me with the condom as a firm barrier between us. He rolls onto his back, breathless, while I remain in my position, feeling a deep disappointment. I could have done better with my purple friend at home.
“That was incredible,” he says, letting out a heavy breath, rolling onto his side to face me.
“Yeah...” was all I could muster out.
I’m glad one of us thought it was incredible. That was the worst fuck of my life.
Sitting up with only my bra on I move down the bed and onto my feet. Scanning the floor for my thong that he threw minutes ago. Spotting it, I pull it back on, along with my dress back over my head.
“You don’t want to stay?” Austin asks, and I hear the disappointment in his voice.
I shake my head. “Sorry, got an early start.” I smile back at him, pulling on my boots.
“No problem, we’re heading out early anyway.” he shrugs.
I grab my bag that’s fallen off my shoulder next to my dress and pull it over my head.
“Well, it was nice to meet you,” I say, pulling on the handle of the door and slipping out before Austin could say anything else to me.
I walk down the long corridor before looking at the time.
Quarter past midnight.
Wow, I thought I’d imagined that not taking long. If that’s how one-night stands go, remind me never to do it again.
I race towards the front door and out onto the street where I spot Jimmy on the street with his truck.
Did he follow me?
No, surely, he wouldn’t. I shake the thought from my head.
He’s harmless and also my dad’s employee.
And right now, he’s my best option to get home.
I walk in his direction in the hopes that he will take me home as I am far too drunk to drive myself. I’ll get my truck tomorrow…
****
Nine months and four days after that night, I lay in a hospital bed in the most agonising pain I’d ever experienced.
The condom we used broke, and we were none the wiser until the pregnancy test I held in my hands said positive three months later.
Holding onto my mom’s hand, stuck in the bed at the hospital with no way to go back.
Screaming and crying out for the man who should have been there to hold my hand in this moment. Mama trying her best to comfort me, that Maverick wasn’t coming, in my delirious state.
I never saw Austin again, I tried looking him up, but it was harder than I thought it might have been. I didn’t know where to start, we didn’t even exchange surnames.
Looking down at the baby that was placed in my arms when it was finally over, wrapped in a beautiful pink blanket, I did the only thing that I still had any control of.
“Welcome to the world, Ellie Jane,” I smile down at the bundle whose eyes shined brighter that the Tennessee stars.
I named her the name we picked out all those years ago, in our field. Planning our future that wouldn’t happen. I named my daughter the only name I had ever wanted too. Even if it wasn’t with the man, I wanted to do it with.