Page 73 of Grump's Nanny

I nodded and sighed as my heart fluttered at her loveliness. “You better be quick or I’ll come in there after you,” I called.

“Don’t threaten me with a good time,” she shouted back.

After changing into my pajamas, I turned down the bed and flipped on the TV so we could watch an episode of the Netflix food competition we’d been watching. Haley and I had taken to judging it as if either of us were gourmet chefs.

As I waited, I opened my phone and caught sight of the webpage I’d been on last,Build your custom engagement ring. It was fast, too fast, but what I felt usually didn’t come around once in a lifetime, let alone twice. I must have been the luckiest son of a bitch in all of history.

Haley emerged from the bathroom, which burst open with steam like a sauna, wearing a towel on her head and rubbing lotion onto her face.

“I thought you said last night was the last time you were gonna use my face products,” I said, laughing. Haley had taken to using all the skincare products I had on my towel rack, and I was happy to share.

“Well, I lied, obviously,” she said. “The cold air really does a number on your skin when you’re out there so long.”

“Yes.” I chuckled. “I’m familiar. Why do you think all those expensive creams are there to begin with?”

“Makes sense,” Haley said with a smile as she approached and kissed me.

“I’m gonna run to the bathroom really quick,” I said. “And then we can see whether Sharon or Chris are gonna be the next best hot dog chef.”

“I can hardly wait,” she said, laughing.

God, her laugh was beautiful. It had a musical quality to it which accented her naturally smoky, sexy voice so well. It was quickly becoming one of my favorite sounds in the world, right alongside the laughter of my children.

I hadn’t been lying when I said I was lactose intolerant, I could already feel my stomach cramping. I grabbed for the bathroom read I’d been enjoying and took it to Haley’s bathroom since she was still in mine. As I turned to open the lid of the toilet, that’s when I spotted it.

Like a herald of doom, there sat a little plastic white stick with a pink cap on it. Two pink lines stared me in the face.

Two pink lines.

What the fuck!

I snatched the heartbreaking thing and rushed for the bedroom, ripping open the door and waving it at Haley, all of my effort being used to hold back sadness I didn’t want her to know I was feeling.

“What the hell is this?” I demanded.

Haley lost all the color in her face and her mouth dropped open. “I…”

Our eyes met and we both understood who had left that there, as if there was any confusion to begin with.

“What, I wasn’t enough for you?” I choked out.

“James,” she said slowly, terror building in her eyes. “I haven’t even looked at anyone but you since the night after the party. You’re the only person I’ve been—”

“Am I?” I said, my pain turning into anger. “If you remember correctly, I’m not the only person you were sleeping with at that time. Did you use protection when you were with Kevin’s nephew?”

“Are you being serious?” Haley said, tears appearing in her eyes. “I’m on birth control, James. I think it was the antibiotics—”

“What a load of shit,” I said, throwing the damned thing across the room. “I hope you have a good fucking cellular provider, cause you’re gonna need it to get ahold of your baby daddy.”

Haley went quiet, staring at me, tears rolling down her cheeks.

I fucked up.

That was too far, I’d fucked up.

There was no situation in the world that asked for that kind of treatment and now I had forever made myself not good enough for her. What if it was mine? I was panicking to such an extent that I had said things I didn’t really mean and now it was all ruined.

Haley didn’t say another word, just pulled off my sweatshirt and angrily threw it at me.

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