Chapter 42
Malik looks at me as I come out of cleaning the bathroom in cabin two. I toss a roll of paper towels at him and he catches them.
”Are you sure you”re okay?” he asks again. ”You haven”t been this quiet since that time when you were sixteen and you had mono, but you had to clean the cabins because everyone else came down with really severe cases of the flu.”
I lean against the kitchen counter, trying to decide how much to tell my little brother. Malik stares at me.
”What’s wrong? Something worse than your breakup with River?”
I hesitate, not knowing if being pregnant counts. It”s not even in the same realm as River”s knife in my back.
It”s something else entirely.
”There is something, yes. But if it”s okay, I”m not ready to tell you just yet.” I ball up my mouth. ”When I do tell you, you”ll understand. I promise.”
Malik”s brown eyes study me for the barest moment before he shrugs. ”I trust you. And I”m cheering for you, too.”
I smile at him, but there is an almost palpable air of sadness. Yes, I”m pregnant... but what kind of a life will this baby actually have if I just move back into my trailer? Everything is up in the air right now, especially if the family gets kicked off the land by the IRS. There”s always a spot in my mom”s condo, of course. But that”s not a long-term solution for raising a child.
The decisions I”m going to have to make soon have been making me lose sleep, tossing and turning at night.
Malik waves a hand in front of me.
”Anybody in there?”
My cheeks warm. ”Yeah, of course. Just... thinking about what I have to do next.”
Malik nods. ”Okay. Well, I picked up the mail for the Vintages already. It”s on the counter behind you. I”m going to run into town to meet some friends. Can you take the mail to Delta”s trailer on your way to drop off the mop and scrub brushes?”
”I can do that.” I bite my lip, staring at Malik. On impulse, I give him a quick, hard hug. When I let him go, he looks at me funny.
”You”re making me worried that you have a terminal diagnosis or something.”
I shake my head. ”No such luck. You”ll have to put in the work to make me leave if that”s what you”re hinting at.”
He pins me with a searching gaze. ”You”re real weird today.” He sighs and checks his phone. ”I”m going to be late to meet my friends if I don”t hurry. Are you sure you”re good?”
Grabbing the mop, I give him a stiff faux salute. ”I”ll be fine. Run along now.”
He gives me a quick kiss on the cheek and then heads out. I grab everything and pull it to the front door, locking it tight. Then I remember Delta”s mail. I go back inside and grab it. It looks like a few letters and a bunch of direct mail ads for getting your AC repaired or a local pizza delivered. I shift the pile and a large manila envelope falls out. Curious, I put the letters aside and examine the envelope.
I gulp when I see that it”s from the Internal Revenue Service and it”s stamped ”IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS INSIDE’.
God, what could this be? I feel like there”s almost no answer that”s good.
My heart beats as I flip the envelope over, toying with the sealed flap. Should I open it? Aunt Delta would have a fit if I do. But then I would be in the loop with whatever the IRS is telling her.
My fingers hover over the seal. I feel like I have the devil on one shoulder, egging me on. And on the other shoulder is just a rather untalkative angel.
At the last moment, I roll the manila envelope up and stuff it in my pocket. Then I head outside again, head bowed as I fidget with the keys.
”Pearl?” comes the soft voice from behind me.
Nearly jumping out of my skin, I whirl and flatten myself against the door. Sarah Taylor is standing on the path, her arms wrapped around herself. She gives me a plaintive look. ”Sorry. I didn”t mean to scare you. I... I just wanted to talk. I hope that it”s okay that I came here.”
I feel sweat breaking out over my brow. ”You came to talk to me?” I ask.
Sarah nods, clasping her hands in front of her body. ”If you don”t mind.”
Pushing my hair back, I brush off my stretchy black leggings. Her presence here is making me anxious. After all, I”ve seen the luxury she lives in. I don”t for a second believe she”s not judging me, even if she is soft-spoken and kind.
”Why don”t we sit over there at the picnic tables?”
Her smile is instant. ”That would be great. I”m not going to take up too much of your time. Honestly. I just want to chat for a minute.”
I force a smile to my lips and head over to the picnic tables. But my mind is going a million miles an hour.
What does River”s mom want to talk to me about? I can”t fathom why she thinks it would be a good idea.
When I reach the old wrought iron table, I take a seat. Sarah does too, after she brushes a spot clean. Then she looks at me.
”You know, Pearl, you”re pretty special. River has never brought another woman home to introduce to the family.”
My stomach sinks just a bit. ”Mrs. Bennett...” I”m not sure what River has told them. Does Sarah even know that our whole relationship was fake?
”I know that River isn”t the easiest man to love.” She smiles sadly. ”Sometimes, a tragic event that happens to a young person shapes them so much that they begin to grow around it, rather than actually healing. I don”t know how much River has told you about his father...”
I sit up, interested. ”Nothing at all.”
She nods. ”I thought so. He was pretty young when his father passed away. To my knowledge, he doesn”t remember much. But when I met Sam and decided to blend our families... I think River felt a bit lost in the shuffle. He”s been secretive since then, especially about his dating life.”
”That tracks.” I trace my finger across the whorl of wrought iron on the table in front of me. ”I”m not sure what it has to do with me, though.”
”I watched you two together. He has never seemed very happy or open at family gatherings. But when he was with you, he was... I don”t quite know. Happier? More vibrant?”
Sarah shakes her head to herself.
”I”m not making much sense, but I guess what I”m asking is... is there any way that you two can forgive each other? He won”t explain anything except for some kind of property dispute between you two.”
I want to yell that River is a no good con-man, but of course that isn’t Sarah’s fault. He’s a big boy who makes him own terrible decisions.
How much should I tell Sarah? When she finds out that I”m pregnant in a few months, she will probably put two and two together. Is it worth hiding the pregnancy from her?
How about the fact that my engagement wasn”t ever real?
I push out a long breath. River and I spent so much time lying to this woman. It”s time for some honesty.
”River and I only ever had a casual relationship. The engagement was something he lied about to get his trust fund early.”
Sarah”s hand flies to her heart. She looks stunned. ”You lied?”
I flinch. ”Sort of. I never wanted to make a big deal out of things like he did. River proposed publicly without telling me beforehand. He invited my family to your house for the engagement celebration when I was trying to keep my family from knowing about the scheme. He... has a way of doing things that he knows might upset people first and asking forgiveness later, rather than just asking permission in the first place.” I pause. ”But we were sleeping together. And now I am pregnant.”
Sarah looks shocked. For half a minute, she is silent. Taking it all in, I guess.
”You”re pregnant?” she asks.
I nod slowly. ”Yes. I broke things off with River after I found out that he targeted me because of the land I”ll inherit one day. But I”m definitely carrying his baby.”
”Good lord.” She reaches across the table to me and I grasp her hand. ”That is a lot. I don”t know if I could overcome all of that.”
I nod. ”Yeah. It”s not great.”
She licks her lips. ”Can I ask how far along you are?”
I screw my face up. ”Not very. I haven”t even been to my official first doctor”s appointment. I am not telling anybody because it”s so damn early.”
”But you”ve told River, right?”
I shake my head. ”No. I don”t know how to talk to him right now without screaming at him.”
That draws an unexpected chuckle from her lips. ”I know just what you mean.” She rolls her eyes. ”You will have to talk to him eventually, though. You two are connected for life, now.”
I squint. ”Actually, we”re not. I signed a contract freeing River from his obligation to this baby. The plan was always to raise it on my own.”
Her brows descend. ”You”re not serious. You can”t think that I will let you struggle with single motherhood like that? No way. That baby you”re carrying is my grandkid.”
”I”m not asking or expecting anything.”
”You should be expecting a lot.” She pauses. ”Honestly, once River knows about the pregnancy, he”s probably going to throw himself at your mercy and beg for you to take him back.”
I snort. ”River has a ton of dreams for his future. And I don”t play into them at all. From the beginning, he told me that he plans to settle down a decade from now in a big city with someone career-minded. I don”t see myself fitting anywhere in there.”
Sarah leans forward and pins me with her gaze. ”Plans change. Especially when there are kids involved. River is lighter around you, less self-conscious. You might have been faking an engagement, but he can”t fake happiness.”
I wave the idea away. ”He might have feelings for me. But he isn”t willing to give up his future to live here. Besides, how can I trust him again, knowing what he did?”
Sarah stares at me for half a minute and then stands up. ”I”m going to tell him to apologize.”
”He has apologized. It”s just not enough.”
”When he finds out about the baby--”
I interrupt her with a sharp reprimand. ”Don”t tell him that I”m pregnant. It”ll only complicate matters.”
She arches her brow. ”When are you planning on telling him?”
”I”m not sure yet. Soon, I guess. But I would rather do it on my own terms.”
Sarah sighs. ”Very well. I won”t tell my son that you”re carrying his baby. But he will still try to beg for forgiveness, I think. Because like it or not, he loves you. I don”t think he”ll be foolish enough to throw that away.”
I shrug my shoulders. ”That”s nice, but I”m afraid you”re dreaming.”
Her smile hardens. ”We”ll see about that. I won”t take up any more of your time. I”ll see you soon, though. I can feel it.”
”Bye,” I say. I watch her walk back to her SUV and drive away.
”What was that?” I murmur to myself, shaking my head.
I have no idea how I should feel after that. If anything, I”m more confused!
I shift and the IRS letter that I stuffed into the pocket of my leggings pokes me in the leg. Withdrawing it, I look at the envelope.
Not giving myself time to hesitate, I rip it open and pull out the thin stack of papers inside.
THIS IS YOUR 90 DAY NOTICE OF INTENT TO SUE. IF YOU DO NOT REMIT THE OVERDUE BALANCE OF $67,368.49, WE WILL BE FORCED TO FILE CRIMINAL AND CIVIL CHARGES PURSUANT TO MONIES OWED. WE WILL ALSO BE FORCED TO PUT THE PROPERTY UP FOR A SHERIFF’S AUCTION; YOUR FAMILY WILL HAVE TO LEAVE AS SOON AS THE PROPERTY FALLS INTO DISTRESS.
I gape at the top two lines, printed in red ink.
I have no access to funds to help her out. But if I don”t do anything, it sounds like the government can take our land and Aunt Delta will go to jail. What the hell am I supposed to do with that information?