Page 28 of Mistletoe and Mischief

Now is not the time to get nauseous—my stomach doesn’t get the message. Revealing my secret in front of my roommates is going to earn me incessant razzing. But if I’m right, I can help Jasmine understand that relationships and love aren’t about control.

The pregnancy takes this to a level I wasn’t prepared for, but it might work to our advantage. If I can accept her and another man’s baby, my point might be even clearer.

Landon explains his misstep regarding the addendum, adding a third problem, but their words blur into white noise. I’m mentally rehearsing what I’ll say.

A flash of red catches my eye. Jasmine’s Beetle rounds the corner. I love that damn car and how it represents her personality.

“There she is,” I say, cutting through the chatter.

My stomach knots. The Beetle slows, turning into her driveway. Before I can second-guess myself, I’m out of the car. The guys are right behind me as we sprint down the sidewalk to her driveway.

She pulls into her garage and we move faster, barely sliding under the garage door before it closes.

Getting out of the driver’s side, she gasps, stumbling into the wedge where the door meets the body of her car. Panic morphs to surprise.

I force my gaze up from her belly. I can’t let that distract me.

She wipes her eyes, closes her car door, and waves a hand to keep us away as she hurries to the house door.

Has she been crying? Shit! They were probably happy tears from winning the SSSS. And now we’re here to ruin her day—in her mind.

I step forward, placing my hands together pleadingly. “Jasmine, please give us a chance to explain a few things.”

She looks from me to the others, frustration etched across her face. “They’re not supposed to be here. The termination details were clear.”

“There was a misunderstanding,” Cole starts. “We’re so excited about the baby.”

“Great, but we have other issues,” she cautions.

Landon steps forward but she retreats. He takes the hint and sticks with words. “I was on the phone with a client we’ve been trying to win over for a couple of years when you sent the addendum. Blake and Cole knew I’d be ecstatic about news of a baby, and they told me to sign. They knew I’d sign. It was amistake based in pure happiness. It’s that simple. No disrespect meant.”

Her flat tone reveals nothing as she addresses me. “So why are you here?”

It’s now or never. I’ve identified the trashcan at the corner of the garage. Hopefully my stomach won’t take this to further levels of humiliation.

I take a breath. “There’s something I’ve never told—”

The light from the garage door open shuts off, cloaking us in darkness. Is this a sign? Keep my secret in the dark?

Rustling sounds are followed by the brighter overhead light clicking on. Great. “Maybe we should go inside?” Now I’m just stalling.

Jasmine shakes her head. “No.”

The trashcan hasn’t moved. Good.

“I should have taken you up on your offer to join you and the three of them, but I was too afraid that I’d be rejected again. Only this time, you might reject me and not them.”

Her expression softens, but I press on before I lose my nerve. Or my breakfast. I step closer to the trashcan.

“I let fear control me. It’s easier that way. And I think it’s easier for you too. You use your independence as a defense.”

Jasmine’s brow furrows, her arms crossing defensively. “That’s rich coming from you now. It’s easy for you to say all this when the contract’s canceled. There’s nothing to join.”

The truth stings, but only for the part I’ve revealed so far. I have to keep going. “We’ve both been running from something scary, and for me, it ends right here, right now.”

I raise my hands to motion to our surroundings. In my mind, it had been more grandiose, not in a nearly empty garage. I shove them in my pockets. “I’m in love with you, Jasmine. If not for these guys allowing me to join their Heli-scapes business twoyears ago, and devote all of my time to it, I don’t know how I would have survived the heartbreak of losing you.”

She doesn’t run. Good. She doesn’t stop me. Better. And I no longer need my emotional-support trashcan. Best. I step closer to her.

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