On The Ropes (21 page)

“What the fuck?” I growled.

“Hey there.” Fox gave me a wide smile that immediately put me on guard. “I kept trying to talk to you. Thought you were ignoring me.”

“No, I was in the zone. Operative word being
was
.” I tapped the buttons to start my run all over again. Fucker.

“You’ll get it back.” Shrugging, he climbed back on his treadmill and set off at an easy jog. I was about to pull my headphones back on when he spoke again. “So, what’s new with you lately? Haven’t seen you around much.”

I started running again, fast enough that I hoped he’d get the hint. Of course a two-by-four to the head wasn’t a hint to Fox. “I’ve been training. As you should be, you pale-bellied pussy.”

He just laughed. “Guess you must need a lot of it, if it requires that much concentration.”

“Yeah, well, when I crack your head open again, I don’t want to hear your girl crying.”

It was a low blow, but I wasn’t in the mood to talk. Especially not to him. He reminded me too much of Carly, and I just could not go there. Not again.

“I’ll take that risk,” he said cheerfully, picking up his pace without skipping a breath. He wasn’t showy about it, but he was in damn good shape. In fact, I’d say he was probably the best athlete out of those who trained at The Cage.

Excluding me.

“So haven’t seen you for dinner lately. What’s up with that?”

“Kind of a conflict of interest, dontcha think? Since we’re going to be tearing each other apart next week and all.”

Truth was, I hadn’t been able to break bread with him when I was banging the hell out of Carly and lying to people I considered my friends about it.

Maybe
I
was the pale-bellied pussy.

“Not to me. I don’t have a problem with it, why should you?”

I made a noise in my throat and sped up. Maybe he’d give up if it was obvious I couldn’t carry on a conversation.

“Gotta be frank, brother, a guy’s gotta wonder if there’s another reason you haven’t been coming around. Like, oh, I don’t know. Maybe you’re having a problem with Mia?”

I sent him a look out of the corner of my eye. “If this is about that Vanity bullshit I heard about, I don’t know where she got the idea I touched your girl. Certainly not from me.”

“Nah. She’s taken care of. Somehow Emerson got her to promise not to leave Mia alone or else she’d land her butt in jail. I’m not sure how he got it to stick, but she’s gone back to Mark’s Gym with her tail between her legs.”

“So now she’s their problem?” Didn’t really sound like the best way of solving the issue to me, but since I’d had a hand in that situation too, however unintentionally, I wasn’t going to voice my opinion.

I had enough shit to deal with.

“Long as she’s not ours. Dude, she was incensed over you. What’s up with that?”

“Looking for tips?”

“Nah. I tend to stay out of the cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs lane if I can help it.”

I didn’t laugh, but it was a close thing.

“So, hmm, if you don’t have a problem with Mia, and you’re cool with me, that only leaves…” He snapped his fingers as if he’d just been hit by a lightning bolt. “Carly. But you couldn’t be having an
issue
with her, could you?”

I didn’t like the way he stressed the word
issue
, not one bit.

“No,” I said through gritted teeth.

Fox could go fishing in another hole, because this snapper wasn’t biting.

“You know, funny thing about Carly. She’s been gone an awful lot just recently. She’s always had an active social life, like I mentioned to you some weeks back, but lately it’s been on hyperdrive. She rarely seems to sleep in the apartment two nights in a row.”

He barely panted between sentences, though he was running at a damn good clip. I wished he wasn’t quite so physically fit, because maybe then he’d choke and shut the hell up.

“Maybe that’s because you make her sleep on the floor.”

“Oh, you know that, do you? How’d you hear about that?” His genial tone made me want to punch him. In the face.

“The night I bandaged her finger,” I responded, as if it made all the sense in the world. It was a damn good save. I just wasn’t sure if it was good enough.

Fox was about as affable and unassuming as a copperhead snake.

“Huh. Interesting. See, I figured she’s been getting closer to her salad shop guy. But I don’t think that’s it. I have this odd feeling it’s not him she’s been cozied up with. Wonder who else it could be?”

For a moment, panic flared in my gut that Marco and his fuckers had sent pictures to Fox just to screw with him. Then I realized they wouldn’t bother. Their hits, if they came, would be much more direct than anonymous photos.

“Is there a reason you’re telling me all this, or did you just forget to take out your tampon this morning?” I managed. I
was
winded, though I wasn’t altogether sure if it was from the run or from Fox’s nearness to the truth.

“I thought we were buddies. Friends don’t lie to each other, do they? And they also don’t judge, regardless of all the evidence.”

I didn’t say a goddamn word.

“Sometimes what it looks like on the surface is only half the picture. And I gotta think that if Carly thinks…that guy is worthwhile enough to spend time with, there has to be damn good reason.”

My hands clenched on the handrails as I sped up, but I couldn’t run fast enough not to hear him. I couldn’t shut his voice out of my head.

“She’s a smart chick, and she knows her own mind. And I’ll support whomever she finds worthy of her.” Fox paused, and I shut my eyes. “No matter who that is.”

When I opened them again, Fox was gone.

T
he family meeting
didn’t happen that night. Fox realized I needed some space to wrap my mind around things, though he explained if I didn’t tell Mia within a few days, he’d have to, on account of his not wanting to couch it for the rest of his life.

I had to respect his honesty.

Friday afternoon, one week before the fight and three days since my life had crashed down on my head, I found my sister at the building she’d just purchased, since her offer had been accepted in record time. She was wandering around with a tape measure and making notes, completely occupied by her task. Watching her immersed in something she loved made me tear up, unless that was just the fact that I was hauling around a mini future Italian grandmother in my belly.

Either/or.

“Hey,” I said, lingering in the doorway with my hands in the back pockets of my jeans. “Am I interrupting?”

I kind of hoped she said yes and sent me away. Okay, no
kind of
about it. I really didn’t want to have this conversation.

I’d suggested to Fox we just let her see me get bigger. Eventually, she’d figure it out, right? Or else she’d tell me to knock off the brownies at three a.m.

“No, not interrupting at all. Come in here and help me plan.”

I tried not to drag my feet as I headed deeper into the room, but wasn’t at all sure I managed it.

“You’ve been cleaning already,” I said, surprised as I noticed the broom and dustpan in the corner. “It’s not even officially yours yet, is it?”

“All that’s left is paperwork.” She waved it off. “The seller wants to offload the property. They don’t care if I install a stripper pole in here.”

All the blood in my face drained.

“What’re you measuring for?” I asked quickly.

“Couches and loveseats. I want to put them all over. I need to see how many I can get in here.”

“You’re really planning on running through that money with the quickness, aren’t you?” I asked, unable to stifle the pride in my voice. My sister had struggled financially for years, and when she came into money, the first thing she was doing was trying to give back to others.

If only I could ever be one tenth as selfless.

“Nah, I have plenty left. I only put down a chunk on the property. I got a loan on the rest.” She crouched to put down a strip of masking tape, probably blocking off space for one of the couches. “Kinda weird how they’ll give you loans when you already have the money, yet when you’re poor, forget it. But oh well, the important thing is—”

“Ame, I’m pregnant.”

She stopped moving across the floor. Stopped moving entirely. Then she let out a loud laugh. “Wow, you almost had me there. I almost believed you.”

I blinked away the grittiness in my eyes and crossed the room to her. Taking those steps was the hardest thing I’d ever done. I knelt at her side and stared at the tape on the dusty floor. Here she was making her dreams come true, and I was about to crush one of them.

“I let you down,” I whispered. “I’m so sorry.”

She clasped her hands between her jean-clad thighs and bowed her head, and if I hadn’t been on the verge of tears already, that would’ve done it. They spilled over, hot and thick, and I nearly choked on them as I fought to speak. “Don’t hate me, please. I need you. I can’t do this alone.” I didn’t think I could do it, period, but if she wasn’t by my side…

I covered my mouth and rocked.

Her shoulders shook, and seeing her cry was like a blow to the chest. I couldn’t breathe through it, couldn’t do anything but throw my arms around her and bury my face in her hair. Her body was as stiff as board, completely unyielding to me. “I love you. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

Those moments when she didn’t respond were the longest of my life. Then her arms came up around me, and I let out a sob. And clung like a little girl.

“
Shh
,
shh
, it’s okay. It’s all going to be okay.” She rubbed my back and kissed my head, just as she had a million times before when I’d cried.

She didn’t hate me. Oh God, she didn’t hate me.

After a few minutes, she drew me back and cupped my cheeks, studying me minutely. “You’re all right? I mean physically?”

Mutely, I nodded.

“You’re not…I don’t know, sick or anything? Isn’t that part of it?”

I jerked a shoulder. “I haven’t been sick at all. Well, other than when I puked up that wine, but…” I trailed off at the horror on her face. “It was only two glasses,” I said weakly. “I had it on an empty stomach.”

“You can’t drink now.”

“I
know
that,” I said crossly, then sighed. “I’m super hormonal though, so you know, tread gently.”

She frowned and reached down to peel up my T-shirt. My belly was just as flat as ever, and I guess she decided the same because her frown spread. “You sure? That doesn’t look like a preggo belly to me.”

“It’s early yet. Super early. Like barely a baby.”

“So that means…”

Reading the speculative look in her eyes, I shook my head. “I’m having it.” I’d already considered and rejected the options. It would be hard, but I could do it.

I’d wanted to be an adult so badly…well, I guess I’d get my chance.

“That’s not what I meant. I was counting forward and figuring it’d be a next summer baby? Ish?”

I nodded.

“Of course you’re having it. You’re not aborting my baby.” She huffed out a breath. “I mean, it’s your baby, but dammit, now that I know about it, it’s mine too. And it’s not going anywhere.”

My eyes filled again, happy tears this time. I sniffled and pointed next to my head. “See what I mean? There’s no off button.”

“You’re allowed, considering the circumstances. If it was me, I’d still be curled up in the fetal position on the floor.”

“No, you wouldn’t, because Fox would be carrying you through town.” Shaking my head, I briefly recounted the story of how I’d told him I was knocked up.

Her eyes widened and slitted about five times during the telling, then she propped her fists on her hips. “That jerk knew first and he didn’t tell me?”

“Don’t be mad at him. I made him promise. He insisted I tell you. God, Ame, he was so sweet.” I sniffled again and tried to catch some of the deluge with my sleeve. “He’s going to be a great daddy someday.”

“Not listening. Not listening.” She plugged her fingers in her ears and made me laugh through my tears. “
La, la, la
.”

Gently, I drew her hands away from her ears. “One baby at a time.”

“You got that right.” She squeezed my hands before pulling me to my feet. “Well, I guess we’d better start preparing. No time to waste.”

I blinked. “For what? I already have dinner planned. I figured we’d have sweet potatoes and roast pork with—”

“No, no, not dinner. I mean for the baby. We’ll have to get a bigger place, but we needed to anyway. We need to start looking now. It takes time to find good places in the city, and we’ll want to stay in Brooklyn because I think that’s a better place to raise a child.”

I followed her to the door and out to the street. “But it’s only a few weeks in—”

She opened the passenger door of Fox’s ‘Vette and waved me inside. “It’s never too soon to start making preparations.” She shut my door and rounded the car. She got behind the wheel, and eased away from the curb once she’d ascertained the street was as empty as it would ever get on this side of town. “Can’t be too careful, with a baby on board,” she added as she signaled into traffic.

“No,” I said faintly. “That’s true.”

Don’t panic. She’s just excited. She’s not going to try to run your baby’s life—and yours—like a drill sergeant on crack.

“I thought I’d make tiramisu for dessert,” I said, trying to steer the conversation back to safer topics than the current state of my uterus.

“That has caffeine in it. I’m not sure, but is that good for the baby? Not that I’m an expert or anything.”

Don’t get annoyed. She’s just trying to help.

“The amount is really tiny,” I began.

“Okay, you’re the food expert. But maybe ask the doctor to make sure.”

“Uh, I haven’t, um, been to a doctor about this yet.”

“
What
?”

“I just discovered it the other day. Did you miss the part about my being barely pregnant?”

“No, I just assumed you’d follow-up with a doctor before you started making plans.”

“I didn’t want to do anything before I told my family,” I said, crossing my arms. No matter what, my sister had an uncanny way of making me feel five.

Would that still be the case when I
had
a five-year-old?

I shuddered. God, there was a frightening thought. A cute, talcum-powder-smelling-baby was scary enough.

“Good. That’s good. We can arrange a doctor’s appointment soon enough.”

Knowing I was likely opening a box of vipers, I asked what was hovering on the tip of my tongue. “Aren’t you…aren’t you curious about the father?”

Not that I wanted her to be. Even a little bit. But still, wasn’t that usually at least a consideration? She was acting like I’d been visited by the stork in the dark of night.

She waved my question away. “If he was a factor, you’d have mentioned it already. Nope, this baby is ours now, and we’ll take care of it.” She reached over and patted my leg. “Everything’s going to be fine. Just sit back and relax. In your condition, you shouldn’t be getting upset.”

I sat back, but I sure didn’t relax. Because the weirdness right now was epic.

When we walked into the apartment, Fox was kicked back on the couch playing golf on the Xbox. Normally he would’ve been at class, but he’d skipped it since he knew I’d been planning to tell his supposed better half the news this afternoon.

To say he was surprised to look up and see Ame and I strolling through the door like any other day, no tears in sight, was an understatement.

“Hi,” he ventured tentatively.

“Hello,” Mia said coolly, sailing past him and into the kitchen. “Carly, you should probably hydrate.”

Behind my sister’s back, I stuck my tongue out.

“Don’t stick your tongue out at me, Carly Ann.” She came back and held out a bottle of water. “Drink.”

“How does she always know?” I wondered before uncapping the bottle. And draining half of it in one swallow.

Guess I really
was
thirsty.

“So, ah, how are things?” Fox leaned over to peer intently into my eyes. “You don’t look like you’ve been tortured for your secrets.”

I had to giggle. “No. No torturing.”

“Does she know?” he asked in an unfortunately loud whisper.

“Yes, Fox, I know. Thank you very much for
nada
.” Mia flopped down beside him on the couch and sulkily grabbed the other controller. “What happened to sharing with your partner? What happened to being honest at all costs?”

“Told you,” he said out of the side of his mouth, and I giggled again.

Okay, so my family was a little bit nuts, but I loved them. Maybe everything really would be okay.

“I need to make a quick phone call, then I’ll get dinner started,” I said, and was firmly ignored since Fox and my sister were now arguing over golf.

Golf
, of all things.

Taking advantage of their distraction, I headed into the bedroom and sent up a prayer of gratitude at finding it empty. I just needed a few moments of privacy to call my bestie and ask her for a colossally huge favor. But hell, I was on a roll. Hopefully it would remain a Kaiser and not change into an onion one, because I hated those.

Curling up on the bed, I called Jenna.

“’Sup?”

“’Sup yourself. Busy?”

“For you, always.” Her laughter made me smile. She always sounded so young and carefree, even though she was a couple of years older than me. “Let me guess. You’re finally calling to fess up all the sins you’ve been dancing around for weeks but just not sharing because you don’t want your bff to have good gossip.”

“More like I don’t want you talking to your brother.”

“Which one? Surfer or SEAL?”

“Either, but in this case, specifically Slater.”

“Um, okay, but why?”

“Because I talked to him already about some of this, and let’s just say he doesn’t agree with my choices.”

Not that I could even blame him for that, because he was right. Giovanni and Giovanni’s family—and assorted others he’d gravitated to—weren’t exactly the best influences.

Which was why I was steering far clear of all of them for the foreseeable future. At least until next summer, at which time I might reevaluate. But while I had a kid in my belly to look out for, no matter how I missed Giovanni and wished things could be different, I wasn’t going near him. Because things
weren’t
different, and he’d made it clear I would never be his choice.

I might be slow to take a hint, but once I had, there was no going back.

“Which choices?” Jenna asked suspiciously, sounding every bit like the sister of a SEAL. I liked her older brother Liam a lot, but to say he was a rigid thinker was an understatement. Jenna was more freewheeling than him, though I was pretty sure when push came to shove, she would skip merrily back onto the safe, conservative side of the street.

Guess we’d just have to see.

“He’s not happy with a guy I’m seeing.
Was
seeing,” I corrected, lowering my voice. That topic wouldn’t be discussed under this roof, while my sister and Fox were battling it out on the virtual golf green just feet away. “But that’s not why I’m calling.”

“Why are you calling then? Since it sure seems like you’re still telling me a whole lot of nothing.”

“You remember how I said I was dancing on the side?” I tried to keep my voice close to a whisper, but not so low that Jenna thought I was whispering. “Well, I’m quitting. The money’s great, but it’s just not for me anymore.”

“Okay,” she said, making the word have about five syllables. “Whatever is best for you.”

“Yeah, but there’s a schedule conflict. I have another week left, and next Friday is Fox’s fight. I need to be there.”

“And, what, you can’t get anyone to cover for you?”

“Not yet, no. Everyone’s busy that night, and the girl who owed me a favor just quit herself. So I’m kind of in a pinch. But I have one more night after that one, so I don’t want to ditch my shift because like I said, the money’s good, and since I’m going to be short for a while…”