Page 64 of Secret Shifters Next Door

“Okay, we have to remember, if she doesn’t bite, I’ll need to stay at my place for a few nights. We’ll have to make it look real in case she’s watching. Don’t worry, I promise I’ll have extra eyes on you to make sure you’re safe. You will be okay. No matter what.”

He pulled me close and kissed me long and hard, making my knees weak. It was almost like a goodbye kiss. That wasn’t what I wanted, but I knew the next part would be difficult. It was his way of telling me he didn’t mean any of what he was about to say. It was hard to hide the smile on my face when he pulled away.

The elevator doors opened, and he held me back, leaning out and looking around the foyer of the doctor’s office. Then he leaned back in, and said, “Show time.”

He stiffened, and a look of irritation and anger masked his face as he stomped away from me. I followed a few seconds later, already caught off guard by what a good job he was doing. Tate slammed his hands into the glass door and shoved it open. Every motion of his body exuded anger. He was intimidating like this, but I did my best to channel my inner movie star and pushed through the door with what I thought was a moderate reenactment of how he’d gone out.

The doctor’s office was in a building right on Main Street. Lilly Valley was a small town, and most of the activity was located here. A strange combination of terror and excitement filled me when I saw how many people were out and about walking by. Excitement that there would be plenty of witnesses to our ‘break up’ and terror at how many people were going to watch as Tate and I pretended to nuke our relationship.

Tate spun on a heel and pointed at me. “You know what? I think it’s horseshit you even asked me to do this damned test. Christ, if you’d been on the pill, we wouldn’t even be worrying about this.”

He seemed so angry that it took me a second to screw up my courage and reply. “Well, no one held a gun to your head and told younotto put on a condom. We both screwed up, don’t pin it all on me.”

Tate scoffed sarcastically. “Oh, okay. It’s like that? Obviously one of us is at fault. Shit, I’m the one in here getting fuckingDNA taken to prove I’m the father. How many guys did you fuck anyway? Jesus.”

He was acting, but his words seemed so vitriolic that I actually felt a little hurt, and responded waspishly. “Well, if you’re sticking your dick in every woman who walks by without putting a condom on, maybe I need to get another type of test.”

A ghost of a smile flashed across Tate’s face. He was fighting a laugh. He pulled himself under control and deepened his scowl. It was nice to see. I’d been ready to cry until then. We were being mean and nasty to each other. It felt like we were saying all the hateful things we wanted to say months ago when things had been awkward. Like it had all built up and was exploding right here and now. That trace of a smile kept me grounded, but there was still an ache in my chest.

“You don’t even want this baby. Admit it. You just want to duck out on your responsibilities and do nothing. That’s a shitty way to be a father.”

People up and down the street had stopped to watch and gawk at our screaming match. I hoped Emily was watching. This was rough, and I hoped it was all worth it. Tate took three big steps backward and put his arms out to his sides, like he was being crucified.

He screamed, “You know what? You’re right. Fuck off. Get out of my life, never talk to me again. You and that brat in your belly.”

He spun on a heel and stomped away, jumping into his truck down the street and laying a strip of rubber on the road as he roared off. We were acting, it was a show, I knew that. The problem was, we’d done a really good job, and my body was pulsing with hormones, and I was still stressed beyond belief. Which meant that, despite me worrying if I could cry fake tears, I started sobbing and sank to my knees right on the sidewalk.

My hands fumbled at my purse, trying to dig out my cell phone to call Emily. The plan had always been for Tate to leave me stranded, making himself look like a total asshole. What no one else saw or knew was that Steff was waiting in an unmarked car in a nearby parking lot to swoop in and pick me up if Emily didn’t take the bait. It made it a little better knowing that someone who knew what was going on was watching me, making sure I was safe.

Finally pulling the phone free, I dialed Emily’s number. I prayed for her to answer as I wiped tears and snot off my face with a tissue from my purse.

When I was about to give up, she answered. “Harley?”

Obviously still crying, I said, “Emily? I need help. Tate’s gone.”

There was a long pause before she said, “What do you mean gone?”

“We had a fight. It was awful. He blew up at me and left me here at the doctor’s office. He said he didn’t want anything to do with me or the baby. I need you.” My voice was clogged from the tears, and I was shockingly proud of my performance. “Please, can you come give me a ride? I don’t have any way to get home. I’m so alone.”

“Oh, sweetie. I’ll be there soon. Just wait for me, okay?”

“Okay,” I said miserably.

Hanging up, I stared at the phone, astounded that the plan was actually working. She was coming. I wiped the tears away, as I wasn’t upset anymore, and sat on the sidewalk. The bystanders had all gone back to going about their business. Several folks looked like they were ready to ask if I needed help. I was torn, because they were being nice, but I was also lying. I didn’t want some good Samaritan to use up a good deed on an act. I was both happy and sad that no one ended up checking on me. It was strange.

While I waited, my phone buzzed, and a single text from Tate came through:I feel terrible about saying all that, but I think we did a good job selling it. Are you okay?

I typed back:All good. Emily is on the way. We should be in the movies lol.

He sent me back a laughing face emoji. We were okay. Thank goodness. It made me feel better, but I also knew Emily would be there soon, so I tried to get my face back to the wretched mask of sadness and misery I’d had a few minutes ago.

Emily pulled up about fifteen minutes after I’d called. She nearly leaped out of her car and ran around to me. She knelt and helped me up.

“Oh my God. That piece of shit, I can’t believe he did this to you,” she said, wrapping me in a hug.

She let me go and wrapped an arm around my shoulder, guiding me to her car. She was supposed to get arrested. The cops had to be around here somewhere. They were probably waiting on Steff’s word to run in and take her into custody. What if they were farther away than that, though? If I was in the car and driving away, it would be really hard to arrest her. I stopped right as she opened the passenger door.

“Emily, it’s okay. I need a few minutes to get myself under control,” I said.

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