Page 55 of Forever His This Christmas

“No thanks, I’m not drinking this trip,” she stated sliding it back over to them as she sat down after shutting and locking the door.

“Really? Why’s that?” Trina asked lifting a brow her way. “We both know you’ve never been that big of a partier so there’s no way that you’ve taken things to the extreme and become an alcoholic. So, what’s up?”

“Not a word of it to anyone…I’m pregnant,” Lisa said, and Trina smiled shaking her head before heading around to grab a bottle of sparkling cider.

“I knew it; I knew there was no way you’d get married unless you were expecting his baby. The creep Johnson certainly deserves to rot in hell for his crap,” Trina stated, and Lisa’s stomach tightened at her words.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” she asked, taking a small sip of the drink her voice steady as always.

“You can cut the act Leese…we know, we’ve always known to some extent,” Nicole said, and she gave a laugh and smile not betraying anything.

“Know what? That I got pregnant and wasn’t about to let anyone treat my kid like shit let alone my parents and brothers, so I didn’t tell anyone I was and had Aunt Diane take care of her for me until I graduated,” she stated with ease.

“Stop the crap Lisa,” Trina stated giving her a long look. “We both know what kind of creep Johnson is. We could see how obsessive he was of you in eighth grade and his one-eighty had us totally confused, until you started changing, becoming even quieter. Okay, so at first, we thought that maybe you were into him and you not liking him publicly was to keep everyone from figuring it out.”

“But that stopped about the same time as his accident,” Nicole added. “You were terrified to look over your shoulder and we kept quiet because we didn’t know what would happen if we said anything. When he came back to school you were so withdrawn around him…we wondered if he hadn’t tried to do something to you that night that he crashed his car up in the hills.”

“There’s no reason he would be up there if he hadn’t been coming to see you Lisa, we know that, so whatever it was…why didn’t you tell us or someone?” Trina said when she took in a shaky breath.

“He threatened me with everything and anything…he still is,” she stated closing her eyes for a moment. “Corey doesn’t know I saw him last night, but I had to have his word that he wouldn’t dare come after me again. I said I wouldn’t tell anyone as long as he left everyone, I love out of it. I…I’ve kept Abby from this place and everyone else because of him, because he’d send me photos out and about here…and last Christmas some of me and Corey from New York. Abby was upset at the end of the schoolyear and hopped a bus from California to there. I couldn’t turn her away. She’s my world…so I broke up with Corey and moved us to Chicago to stay safe. We met on the one-year anniversary of our first meeting and before I knew it, we were back in bed together resulting in this baby. When I saw the ultrasound, I knew I couldn’t keep the baby from Corey but that would mean telling my family about Abby…so here I am, getting promises from a monster to protect the most precious thing in the world to me.”

“So, when did you have her?” Nicole asked, sharing a look with Trina.

“April, at the beginning of spring break, I took off a day extra and headed up there, went into labor the day after and had Abby early that morning. I stayed with her, not wanting to leave her for a moment but Diane agreed to take care of her for me and the instant school was out, I was back there with her. He thought I was leaving town because of him…when really, it’s always been because of Abby. I was with her while going to college and up until I moved to New York, I’ve been with her since the end of last school year again.”

“Wow…so I take it that Johnson was your horrible first experience you mentioned to Colin?” Trina asked and she sighed.

“It wasn’t just one experience. It was awful and horrible…but I have his confession on two tapes, one an actual tape the other digital so if he would think about trying to hurt Abby, Corey, or me…I won’t hesitate to use them. I just don’t want Abby to have that label over her…a child of rape…she’s not his. She’s mine and I will kill him before he dares to hurt her.”

“She looks so much like you. I’d be terrified that dirty old man would…” Nicole stopped talking as though realizing what her words would do to her.

“He can’t…the accident left him paralyzed from the waist down and thankfully that part of his anatomy doesn’t function any longer. He can rot in that chair for all I care. After what he did to me…I’m no longer the scared sixteen-year-old who thought I’d go to jail for puncturing his tire with a knife,” she stated seeing the shock that hit the two at that news.

“I knew I was pregnant and wanted a guarantee that he couldn’t begin to hurt me again, so I recorded his gloating confession of what he did to me, told him he’d never touch me again before showing him the tape recorder. He ranted and raved then came after me and I ran. I know the woods up here, where to hide, which path to take to get away quickly, and he came after me in the car. The tire hadn’t entirely deflated; I’d stuck the knife in near the bottom so he wouldn’t see it as easily. He drove off and I saw the whole crash. After he came back, he threatened to get me sent to jail and I didn’t think anyone would believe me when I said what he’d done to me…and I had Abby to think about, if nothing else she would have been proof that he’d slept with me. He’s tried to kill me twice when I’d come to visit…I wasn’t about to risk Abby’s safety for anything, not even for my parents and brothers to understand me,” Lisa said blinking back tears.

“You should have told us, and we should have told you what we knew,” Trina said coming around to hug her. “So, when are you and Corey getting married? I’d snatch him up quick if I were you…especially with that rock.”

“I plan to,” Lisa stated giving them a half-smile. “Judge Henry’s doing the ceremony on Christmas Eve. Corey didn’t know about any of it until yesterday when we got here and not about the baby until after he’d proposed. We got the license and saw Judge Henry this morning in town, got the dresses, and then Corey dug the ring out of his suitcase and gave it to me before dinner. I would marry him without a ring and be just fine withit, seeing him with Abby…that’s what she deserves. That’s what I’m going to give her and this baby, and Benton Johnson can find himself in hell…he’s not dragging me down there with him.”

“Good and we’re here for you if you need us,” Nicole said as the two hugged her tightly. “Now, let’s get you back to that man of yours but first, please tell us he’s good to you.”

“Try ten million times better than Casey and the football game tryst,” she stated making them laugh. “Yes, I already know the whole C name thing…I’ve dated quite a few with C names but no one like Corey. He’s perfect for me. He looked me in the eyes and said he loved me after hearing my horror story. I can’t begin to deny myself that.”

“We’ll make sure you remember that when you flip out before the wedding,” Trina teased, and she was glad she didn’t have to tell them any more than that. They knew to keep things quiet, and she wasn’t about to go advertising anything. There was far too much at stake for that.

Chapter 19

“I’d say my mother’s here,” Corey said as the doorbell rang although he had the text from the man who’d gotten there early that morning to keep an eye on the place to tell him exactly that.

“And what exactly do you think I’ll find her reaction to me and Abby is?” Lisa asked, letting him hold her tightly knowing her mother would answer the door. She and Diane were in the kitchen with Abby showing her the special family recipe for their sugar cookies. She didn’t feel like getting up, her stomach was heaving, and she knew it wasn’t just because of the morning sickness, her worry and tension was getting to her it seemed.

“She’ll love you baby, she absolutely hated Donna, and you are nothing like her, so she’ll adore you,” he promised pressing a kiss to her temple hearing her voice in the hallway.

“Corey, Lisa,” her mom said as she walked Meredith into the room with a smile seeing them still lounging on the love seat together. “Your mother’s here.”

“We see that Mom,” Lisa said letting Corey pull her up from the spot, his arm sliding around her waist as the other woman came into the room to greet them.

“Oh, my goodness, look at you two together,” Meredith said putting her hand over her heart with a full smile. “Here I wasworried that you were making the second biggest mistake of your life, but I can see you’ve finally found your brain, Corey.”

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