Page 10 of Knocked up By the Minotaur

She doesn’t do casual. Maybe I could…

I shake my thoughts away and lean abruptly back. Maybe I could what? Lock myself into a serious relationship only to get bored, stifled, resentful, and eventually disappoint—or worse, hurt her? No, that’s never what I want to do to any female. It’s the reason I avoid the scenario entirely.

I let out a soft sigh. “I can’t say I’m not disappointed to hear you say that,” I tell her, offering a lopsided smile when she turns back to me. “If you ever change your mind, you should know that I won’t change mine. In the meantime, your coffee is getting cold.”

She grins at me suddenly and leans over to squeeze my hand in hers, before letting go to pick up her cup. “Thanks for not making this awkward. You sure take rejection well.”

I snort and it’s now my turn to roll my eyes at her. “Fates and above, female… Could you at least try to spare my feelings?”

She chuckles. “Oh, please. A guy as handsome and successful as you, has got his pick of women, you’ll get over it in no time.”

And can someone please tell me why that small compliment from her has my heart immediately lifting from where it plummeted just seconds ago?

I’m just gearing up to throw her a teasing, exceptionally corny, disgustingly cheesy one liner as payback, when her eyes suddenly widen as she looks across the room. Shock slackens her features, and she drops her coffee cup down with a clatter as anger immediately rides through to bleed across in its place.

“Brad?”

Chapter 5

Grace

Brad—my stupid ex, that man I’d sworn to never even think about again—is standing across the room from me right now, here in Whispering Pines. And he looks pissed.

He’s not the only one.

My fingers twitch with a desire to find a projectile but I hold myself in check, not particularly wishing to get banned from this sweet little cafe for life.

“What is he doing here?” I whisper angrily, distantly aware of Oli turning in his seat to look at the man I’ve just now decided I hate more than anyone else—even more than Mr. I’m Leaving My Pregnant Fiancé To Start A New Life In Thailand With A Twenty-Year-Old.

Brad powers across the room towards me, walking right past Lucas in the play area without sparing him so much as a glance, his hands fisted tightly at his side. Lucas, for his part, only watches him pass without much expression, before turning back to the toys before him.

“Who the fuck is this?” Brad says as he stops by our table, his voice oddly squeaky in his anger, as he jerks his chin at Oli without turning his eyes away from me.

I press my lips together, clenching my jaw tight to stop myself from shouting at him, trying to gain control of my emotions before responding.

“I presume this string-bean of a male is your ex?” Oli’s deep, smooth voice cuts through the noise, and I dart my eyes towards him. He looks relaxed, staring at Brad with one raised brow, his lips curled very slightly as if he’s looking at something deeply uninteresting and slightly disgusting.

String-bean? The ridiculous nickname coupled with his blandly affronted expression has the tiniest sliver of humor flare briefly in my chest, strangely settling my borderline violent anger.

“Unfortunately,” I manage. When my voice comes out normally and I don’t immediately begin murdering Brad, I let myself look back into his gray eyes. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“I came to win back my girl,” Brad says with another squeaked pitch to his voice, before clearing his throat. “Imagine my shock when I walk down the street and see her holding hands with—with…” He waves his hand vaguely before Olistaire’s face, who huffs and twitches back to avoid the fingers. “Gracie-boo, have you lost your mind? How could you do this to me?”

My mouth falls open, and this time I don’t respond because I’m simply at a loss for words. After what he did to me,multiple times, where does he get off saying something like that?

“I’m trying to make this work,” Brad continues, somehow whiny and angry at the same time, “and look at how you’re acting! It’s barely been a few days, how could you be so heartless?”

I suck in a breath, and the anger in my chest bubbles and grows.

“I’ve been miserable, pookie! Do you know what it’s like living in our home all alone, without my beautiful queen there with me? Our bed is cold and lonely, the apartment is like a prison to me now. I can’t live without you. My soul is empty when you’re gone.”

A thought suddenly occurs to me as I fight to keep myself from leaping out of my chair and strangling him, and I narrow my eyes. “What’s the date, today?”

Brad splutters. “What? That’s not important—”

“It’s the twenty-sixth,” Olistaire supplies, and his voice sounds cooler than before.

The twenty-sixth. I close my eyes and breathe out slowly. “The internet cut off on you yesterday,” I say much, muchmore calmly than I feel. “Didn’t it, Brad?”

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