Page 38 of The Storms Between Us
thirty-two
If someone toldme I would be leaving the doctor’s office today with an engagement ring and an ultrasound picture, I would have called them insane. Yet here we are, silently sitting in the Jeep, just staring at the little bean we created. Watching the tears gather in Elijah’s eyes as the doctor played the sound of our baby’s heartbeat was a moment I’ll never forget. I love this man, and I know he loves me. Together, we’re going to love this baby better than our parents ever loved us.
“She kinda looks like a gummy bear,” Elijah says. I snatch the ultrasound picture from his hand, glaring at him.
“She does not! And you don’t even know that she is a she. She could be a he,” I look down at the picture and feel myself wanting to cry all over again, which I’ve learned is something else I’ll have to get used to in the coming months. “Whatever they are, he or she is perfect,” I breathe.
I was never one of those girls that daydreamed about getting married and filling my house with babies. There’s nothing wrong with wanting that at all, but it just wasn’t my dream. I spent more time dreaming about the library from Beauty and the Beast and wanting to be surrounded by piles and piles of books. I wanted to know I introduced the world to an amazing author or story. But right now, all I can imagine is reading all my favorite classics to my own baby. We drive back home talking about all the things we have to get done before the baby gets here. Hopefully, we can be fully moved in to the plantation by then and not have to bother Rory and Everett with a screaming baby at 2am.
As we pull into the driveway, I see Everett’s bike parked next to Eli’s, and I know he's home. I feel myself becoming anxious at the thought of telling my brother the news. Will he think we’ve moved too fast? I would never want to cause a rift in his and Eli’s friendship.
“If you would prefer to wait before we tell them, we can do that. Whatever you want to do, Ember, I’m with you,” Elijah says. I don’t know how this man always reads my mind, but he does. No matter what happens, he will always have my back, and that feels amazing. I look down at the stunning ring on my left hand. The center stone is a beautiful pear cut emerald with diamonds branching out on either side like vines. It's incredible and unique, something I would have picked for myself. I know I made the right choice in saying yes, and I don't want to hide my joy from the people I love the most.
“Let’s go tell Uncle Ev the good news,” I say, smiling and climbing out of the car.
We walk in to the sound of rock music blaring from the sound system in the living room. I know from years of experience that means Everett is in a bad mood.
“Uh oh,” Elijah says, picking up the same vibe I did, “wonder what crawled up his ass today,” He shouts over the music.
“You’d think he’d pick something else after 15 years, but I guess not.” I roll my eyes as Elijah turns down the stereo to a reasonable level.
“Hey! What the fuck!” I hear Everett yell from his room. He comes storming out, stopping short when he sees us. “Oh, sorry, I didn’t think you guys would be back for a while,” he says, obviously irritated about something.
“The Foo Fighters, Ev? Still?” I ask, remembering the same songs blaring from his room when we were in high school.
“Don’t worry, I won’t tell Dave Grohl you were talking shit, Sparky,” he says with a smirk.
“What’s got you in your angry feels, brother?” Eli asks him.
“Nothing, just fucking women, man. They’re insane. And I’m also pretty pissed about shelling out 10k for something so fucking stupid,” he says and I twist my face in confusion.
“What? What do you have to spend that much money on?” I ask.
“You didn’t tell her?” He asks Eli.
“Not yet. I didn’t really get the chance to before we had to go to the doctor,” Eli says, sounding a little guilty.
“Tell me what? What’s going on?” I ask, throwing my hands up in annoyance.
“Justin. He fucked up some shit at the shop. Cut the hardline for our security system and broke a bunch of cameras,” Everett says, and my stomach falls. It’s one thing to mess with me, but now he's going after the people I care about most. He’s affecting their lives and their business. When will this nightmare end?
“I’m so sorry, you guys. Sometimes I think I never should have come here,” I say, sitting down at the bar and dropping my head into my hands.
“Don’t you fucking say that,” Elijah snaps, but I don’t raise my head to look at him. “You belong here, Ember. You belong with me. How do you not see that by now?” he asks.
“What I see is all the trouble I’ve brought into your life, Elijah. I see all the danger I've brought to your doors,” I say, his attitude irritating me. My emotions are already on edge after today’s events and the hormones don’t help the situation.
“You think I give a fuck about some cameras and a security system, Ember? Ten grand is nothing compared to knowing you’re safe,” he says. Usually his alpha male protective vibe turns me on, but today I'm exhausted, pissed off, and I don’t have the patience to be rational.
“You don’t get it, Eli. If I hadn’t come here, none of you would be in danger at all. None of this would even be happening. He could really hurt someone, and that would be my fault.” I know I'm screaming at him by now, but I don’t care. The fire inside of me has taken over and I can’t control the fury I feel.
“Ember, that’s not fair,” Everett adds. “No matter where you went, I would have been there. I never would have let you go through this shit alone, even if you didn’t move here.”
“You know what, I didn’t fucking ask either of you for help. I wanted to do everything I could to keep you all safe, but that doesn’t matter to either of you. You both want to swing your dicks around and talk about how ‘you’re doing everything for my protection’, but you’re not. Because we all know the safest option would be if I wasn’t here at all,” I say, turning and going upstairs into my old room and slamming the door behind me. I know I’m being childish and unreasonable, but I’m scared. I’m scared for the people who matter the most to me. I don’t know how I would survive if something happened to any of them. The guilt would tear me apart for sure.
I see Kelsea’s name flash across my phone screen, lying next to me. It’s like she has a sixth sense for when I'm in distress. Even though I’m angry at Elijah and my brother right now, I still want to share all the news from my day with her. I pick up the phone with a small smile.
“Hey Kels, how is it you always know exactly when I need to hear your voice?” I say with a laugh.
