Page 62 of The Man I Love

Cars blazed by in both directions, kicking up dust that made her cough and sputter as she walked along the highway edge. She knew it was only a matter of seconds before she completely lost it and couldn’t stand the idea of him watching her.

“Sam!” Tristan yelled from behind her, “What the hell are you doing?”

She couldn’t face him. “I have to pee,” she lied through her teeth.

“You just peed before we left the cafe!”

“Pregnancy bladder, remember?” She was fully taking advantage of the situation, but didn’t care.

His steps paused behind her. “Be careful,” he finally called. “Don’t go too far.”

She waved an acknowledgment, then made a sharp left, and headed into the woods. When she was certain she was out of his sight, she bent at the waist and took a deep breath, sure that if she didn’t, she would pass out.

Things were easier when he was ignoring her. Things were easier when he still wore those damned glasses!

Her scalp burned from where the fan pulled her hair, but she was grateful for the pain. It gave her something else to focus on, made her forget about the way his touch affected her, and about the brazen and primal way her body reacted to it.

Knowing he would come after her if she didn’t hurry was the only reason she stood upright. But the baby dropped a little lower with movement and she realized she reallydidhave to pee.

She spotted a bush not too far in the distance and walked towards it. Tiny white flowers littered the ground at her feet, and she tiptoed around, trying not to crush them. When she reached her destination, she squatted down, and tried to maintain her balance, but it was nearly impossible. Her shorts were tight at her knees, and her belly wasn’t making it any easier. Maybe it was the pressure to perform, or the worry of peeing on her own clothes, but nothing was happening.

“Come on, Sam. You can do this.”

The first trickle began just as crunching leaves sounded in the distance. “Ooof!” She fell to her bottom as a deer jumped out into the clearing.

Startled, she took a few calming breaths and inched backward. The deer was only five feet away and didn’t seem to notice her. Sam only sat there, observing, thankful for the soft foliage that broke her fall.

The doe was relaxed and completely unfazed by her presence, even though she sat in plain sight. Then a fawn stumbled out of the bushes on unstable legs and Samantha’s heartbeat calmed. Timidly, the baby moved toward its mother, and a newfound peace washed over Samantha. “What are the chances?” she whispered to herself. She felt like this moment had been curated just for her. Like it was a sign from above. That the universe was telling her to stop worrying about Tristan and focus on their child.

Eventually the deer scurried away, leaving Samantha to dust herself off, finish her business, and pull up her shorts. After following the whooshing sounds back to the street, Sam climbed into the truck again and fastened her seatbelt. Tristan only stared straight ahead. “Everything okay?” He cleared his throat.

She leaned forward and pulled some hand sanitizer from her bag to clean her hands with. “Yes,” she answered. “Everything’s fine.” And she actually meant it.

24

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

July

Present Day

It wasa full twenty-four hours before Samantha’s bottom began to itch. At first, it was just a slight discomfort that would ease with a simple adjustment in her seat—but it quickly grew to more than that. It wasn’t so much the itch but the location that was the most troublesome—because she couldn’t find relief with Tristan in the next seat. She glanced at him now, resisting the urge to grind her teeth against the newfound annoyance. “Can you pull off at the next stop, please?”

He made a face, then peered at the itinerary that sat open in the space between them. “I thought we weren’t stopping again until North Platte?”

She clenched her jaw, then pulled in a deep breath before speaking again. “I have to pee.” There. It was the perfect excuse; one she would thank Renee for repeatedly the next time they talked.

“Again?”

She pressed her hands into the seat, lifting her whole body off the cushion. “Yes!” she practically yelled. “Yes! I need to pee! A baby is literally sitting on my bladder! I need to go to the bathroom.”

He didn’t say another word after that and pulled off at the next exit.

As soon as he came to a stop in the mini-mart parking lot, Sam bound from the truck before he even had time to put the truck into park. The friction between her thighs was so intense that she wanted to scream as she yanked the door open and searched for the bathroom. She waddled down the hall, then cursed under her breath as she read the sign. “See attendant for key.”

Back at the counter, she leaned against the surface and braced her legs apart. “Can I get the key to the restroom, please?” She gritted her teeth, not wanting to alert the entire store of her bodily needs.

The woman glanced up from her phone, looking no older than eighteen, and blinked—but said nothing.

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