Page 44 of A Second Chance At Forever

Lennox.

I instantly felt what was left of my heart shatter and fall to pieces. I pushed my plate of half-eaten food away. My stomach started churning and I felt like I was going to vomit.

“Are you upset?” Nicole asked when I pushed my food away.

“I’m surprised. I mean, we never talked about all this before.”

“I know,” she let her eyes fall to the table. “Do you want to get out of here?”

“Yeah, I’m not hungry anymore.” I stood even though I felt like I was being weighed down.

She grabbed my hand and led me through the bar. “Look, it’s Lennox. Let’s go say hi.”

I opened my mouth to say no, but it was too late.

“Lennox, I can’t believe you’re here.” Nicole took the open seat next to her. I watched as Lennox turned around.

“I stopped in with a friend but she just went outside for some air. How are you?” Lennox asked noticing me slowly approaching them.

Her eyes glanced back and forth between Nicole and me. She knew right then that I hadn’t broken up with Nicole.

Her eyes suddenly turned sad, I felt it in the pit of my stomach. It felt like I had just been kicked. I couldn’t move, I couldn’t breathe. I just held on, hoping she would see me. See that I wouldn’t do something like that to her.

“I’m great. Why are you standing back there? Come up here and talk to her.” Nicole grabbed my hand and pulled me up beside them.

“Hey, stranger. It’s been a long time.” Lennox reached in for a hug. I knew what she was doing. She thought I had changed my mind about Nicole and she didn’t want to get me in trouble.

“We need to talk,” I whispered in her ear when she was close enough.

“Well, actually I was just getting ready to head out. Wish I could stay and have a drink with you two, but my friend is waiting for me outside.” She grabbed her purse from the bar and headed for the door.

“Lennox,” I called after her.

She turned but didn’t say anything. I knew that look in her eye. She was hurt and was about to fall apart. “I hope we can meet up again.” I was pleading with my eyes for her to understand.

She should know me. She should know that I would never hurt her.

“I don’t know. I don’t know how long I’m going to be here,” she gave me that fake smile she thought she had perfected. “Maybe.” She turned and rushed out the door.

“Let’s get you out of here.” Nicole stood and pulled me toward the door.

I watched as Lennox’s car kicked up gravel as she sped from the parking lot. I walked past Dane who looked pissed off. I was about to turn around and ask him if everything was okay, but Nicole drew my attention away.

“Do you want me to stay with you tonight or do you need some time alone? I understand if you need some time to think.”

“You wouldn’t mind?”

“No, I completely understand. It’s a lot to think about.” Her eyes showed nothing but understanding and she looked sincere.

“Okay, I will call you tomorrow.” I bent down and pressed a kiss to her lips, but it wasn’t the lips I hoped to kiss.

I opened Nicole’s door for her and watched as she got in and drove away.

When I walkedinto the house, I grabbed a few beers and the bottle of Jack and made my way to my favorite spot. I sat down, kicked my feet up on the railing and took a long drink from the bottle before washing it down with half a beer.

I hurt Lennox. How could I screw this up so badly? There’s only been one person I’ve ever wanted and I lost her for good this time. What am I going to do? I can’t leave Nicole now. If she is pregnant, I have to stay with her. Help her raise this baby. I’ve only ever thought about having kids with Lennox. She was the one I wanted.

The more I thought about it, the angrier I got. I had fucked everything up. I got a girl I was just wasting time with, pregnant and lost the love of my life in the process. There was a time when I thought I would die if I didn’t get Lennox back, then there was a time I thought I would be fine. I just had to find something or someone to occupy my time until she returned.

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