Page 43 of Trash the Dress

“But I just got my drink,” she says while sticking her lower lip out.

“It’s on the house. Now go.”

I walk away but hear her say my name two more times. This…this kind of thing right here is why I had the niggling feeling that my happiness won’t last. The past always finds a way toresurface. And this time it’s not simply a memory, it’s here in the flesh.

I can’t helpbut look over my shoulder ever since the night Vivian showed up at the bar. I have no desire to find out why she came to see me after all these years, but I can’t shake the feeling I’ll learn the reason whether I want to or not. When I blocked her number, I had no clue she’d just show up in person.

My focus today is being at this appointment with Scarlett and finding out if we are having a boy or girl. Nothing between us has changed, we still feel solid. But this soul-deep fear is gnawing at me.

We are finally called into the ultrasound room, and everything is going good. The tech starts to smile and then asks, “Y’all want to know the sex, right?”

Scarlett squeezes my hand and glances at me for my answer one more time before I give her a nod. We’ve gone back and forth about waiting or finding out and we decided to find out now.

“We do,” she says.

The tech freezes on an area and says, “Congratulations! It’s a boy!”

“A boy! Zander! Oh, we’re having a little boy,” she says and wipes a happy tear from her cheek as the tech finishes up and gives us a few minutes.

Once she’s dressed, I hand her the pictures she gave us showing us that we are in fact having a boy. My heart nearly soars out of my chest with pride. A son. Scarlett is giving me a son.

After we finish the appointment with Dr. Ray, we have an early dinner before I head to the bar to stay until closing andthen Scarlett heads home. We are going to have lunch with my parents tomorrow to tell them we’re having a boy and then she wants to talk about letting her parents know, even though they’ve barely spoken since the day we told them we were pregnant.

I have a feeling their relationship will be on the rocks for a while. But her best friend, Anna, will be coming for dinner tomorrow night so we can share the news with her.

I walk into the bar with a grin on my face and hold on to the happiness I feel knowing I’m having a son. And I find myself simultaneously praying the past stays far away from the bright future I plan to have with Scarlett and the baby.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

Scarlett

“Icannot wait until tomorrow! I’m so happy!” I tell Anna on the phone as I pull into the driveway. When I get closer to the house, I spot an unfamiliar car near the garage.

“Hey, I’ll talk to you later, I just pulled up and I need to get a few things out of the car,” I tell her, not mentioning this strange vehicle.

“Okay, hunny-bunny. Love you!”

“Love you too, tootsie-wootsie,” I say before ending the call.

I get out of my car and walk closer to the unfamiliar one parked in front of my spot. It’s empty. I take out my cell and think about calling Zander, but I don’t. Dread settles in my gut as I reach the front door and find that it’s unlocked. My feet still move forward, not heeding the possible waiting danger.

I open it and go in. The worst feeling tickles my spine. This isn’t fear, this is something else entirely. The kind of feeling when your brain suspects what your heart refuses to admit. That feeling when you find out bad news…and it’s the soul-crushing kind.

The house is strangely quiet yet pulsing with heightened electricity, and I take my time walking to our bedroom only to find a woman sitting on our bed. She’s got curly, blonde hair. It’s about shoulder length. She’s wearing next to nothing, covered only by a robe. Her brown eyes widen as she sees me. Then her gaze drops to my pregnant belly. The gravity of how bad this potentially is starts to settle in my chest and it stings.

“Who the hell are you?” I ask, not caring how I sound. Because I’m sure I already know who she is, but it’s my wretched heart that won’t admit the truth.

“I’m Vivian. Who are you?” she asks and lifts a brow with a smirk on her face like she has one-upped me.

“I’m Scarlett, Zander’s girlfriend. I’m going to need you to get the hell out of our house,” I say, somehow keeping my voice steady even though my hands are shaking, and my heart is pounding so loud it’s deafening.

“Your house?” she laughs. “Honey, he built this house for me…for us. How do you think I got in?” she asks, jutting her chin in the direction of the dresser where it appears she set her purse and keys. “Never changed the locks so I could come back anytime, and trust me, I have. This isn’t my first time back in his bed since we broke up.”

“Get out,” I say calmly although I’m anything but.

She stands and cinches the belt around her silky robe to cover her near nakedness, then moves to stand in front of me. She’s taller by a few inches and much slimmer than me, even before I was pregnant. “You’re a phase, darling. He still loves me. He never got over us. I could tell when I talked to him the other night at his bar. But this time, I’m back to stay.”

I feel the blood rush from my face, and she sees it too because her smirk turns into an almost evil grin.

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