Page 60 of The Man I Love

The reality wasthathe had every right to date whomever he chose, but the acidity in her throat begged to differ. Try as she may, she wasn’t sure if she’d ever be okay with seeing him with another woman. Not that it mattered. They’d been broken up for over six months. It was only natural for him to move on. This was the twenty-first century and pregnant ex-girlfriend or not, he had every right to date whoever he chose.

She opened her eyes to focus on the menu but failed. Everything was blurry and distorted. Who was she kidding? The thought of Tristan with another woman tore her up inside.

“Do you know what you want?” he asked, making her head jerk in his direction.

“What I want?” she asked breathlessly.

His eyes narrowed, and he nodded his head. “Yes, have you decided?”

Was that up to her? Was he giving her that choice? She stared at him, blinking,when clarity finally hit. He wanted to know what she wanted toeat, not what she wanted out of their relationship!

“The Cobb salad,” she blurted out. Even though she hadn’t gotten that far in the menu and didn’t know if a Cobb salad was an option.

His eyes narrowed slightly, and she was sure she’d been caught. She’d have to explain why she was acting like a total lunatic. “There’s blue cheese in that, isn’t there?”

She took a deep breath and tilted her head to the side. “Yes, I think so,” she agreed.

His eyes met hers, his brow furrowing slightly. “That’s not good for the baby.”

Taken aback, she shifted her eyes toward the menu again. He was right. Soft cheeses held a risk of Listeria for pregnant women. “How did you know that?” she asked, holding a quiet gasp.

He shrugged, then picked up the glass of water their server had set at their table. “I’ve been reading baby books too, Samantha.”

23

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

July

Present Day

Tristan receivedanother phone call after lunch, then a third when they’d reached theWelcome to Illinoissign a few hours later. But this time he pulled to the side of the road, answering it after he hopped out of the truck. She vaguely heard the female voice on the other side before he closed the door behind him, and her stomach dropped for the millionth time that day.

Maybe he had a girlfriend—or at least someone who was upset enough that he was driving alone across the US with the woman who was pregnant with his child. She told herself to mind her own business, to focus only on the things she had control over, but the task felt impossible.

She shifted in her seat, removing her seatbelt to get out of the truck, only to fasten it again. What was she planning to do? Follow him? Stand on the side of the road and eavesdrop?

She wouldn’t blame the woman for being upset, but Sam had every right to be upset too. Her body didn’t care that they were broken up. The factwasthathisbaby was growing in her belly.Shouldn’t that count for something? Couldn’t he at least wait to find another woman until his DNA had exited her body?

She grabbed the notebook out of her bag and fanned herself with it. A cold sweat had broken out on her forehead, and she was sure she was going to be sick. She could hear his muffled voice through the windows, but the whooshing of cars made everything inaudible.

Maybe it was his mother on the phone? Or possibly Renee? If it were either, why would he have gotten out of the cab? Why would he feel the need for a secret conversation?

By the time Tristan had opened the door of the truck, she’d worked herself into a frenzy. She remembered all those weeks when she’d waited for his call that never came—all the nights she’d lied awake, wondering why he hadn’t sent even a single text—and all the heartbreak from months earlier was fresh again.

His door slammed shut, and she fanned herself harder.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“Fine.” She nodded, not trusting her voice to say more than that.

He climbed into his seat but made no effort to start driving again.

“Is something wrong?” She looked up.

He shook his head, grabbed the brown bag in the center console, and handed it to her. “I bought this for you at the rest stop,” he said. “Maybe it will help.”

Curious, she straightened her shouldersand set her binder on the seat. She took the bag and slowly removed an oblong brown box from it.

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