SEAL's Baby (Navy SEAL Secret Baby Romance) (31 page)

“What are you saying?”

  
“I’m saying I didn’t suffer because of it,” I said. “I turned out all
right despite not having a father figure in my life.”

  
“There’s a difference though,” Maddie cut in. “Your father just
didn’t know how to be a dad. Dylan will want to do better; he’ll want to be a
good father.”

  
“At the expense of the life he had envisioned for himself?” I
asked. “We’ve been through so much together. We had this beautiful love story
in school but then we took different paths and we still weren’t able to be
happy because we were so tied to each other in so many ways. It’s time for
Dylan to have the life he wants and it’s time for me to try and achieve the
same thing. I appreciate all your advice and support, but this is my decision.
Dylan has moved on. He left Bastrop and he left me. I don’t want him coming
back just because I’m pregnant. I couldn’t bare that.”

  
Maddie and mom exchanged a glance and I could tell that they knew
there was nothing more they could say to me. I excused myself after a moment
and went to my room. I slipped underneath my covers and closed my eyes as I
travelled back in time twelve years into the past to when I was sixteen, Dylan
was by my side, and everything had been simple.

Chapter Thirty-One

Dylan

Two Months Later

  
The air felt different in Bastrop. I used to think it had a
slightly claustrophobic tenor when I was a teenager, but now it felt more like
freedom. I was old enough to realize now that it had nothing to do with the air
and everything to do with me. I was different now, I was older, and hopefully
that meant I would do better this time.

  
I got off the tarmac and walked into the airport. It took me an
hour to get through baggage claim and when I had finally got all my bags
together, I moved towards the main exit where I knew Tyler was waiting for me.
I saw him the moment the sliding doors parted. He was a little warmer than
usual and he stepped forward and embraced me willingly enough.

  
Our relationship was still a work in progress, but we had been
doing better than before. It wasn’t like we had had much communication in the
last four months, but he had dropped me a short message a few weeks after my
deployment. All it said was, ‘Hope you’re doing ok, mom’s fine, and I’m all
moved in,’ but I appreciated it all the same. It was more than he would have
done a few years ago.

  
I had messaged him back with a text that was equally as short but
a few days later I had got a reply. We had continued in that vein over the next
few months and even though the string of texts put together could barely
constitute a conversation, it was something.

  
My communication with Lizzie, however, had come to an abrupt stop
a few months ago. I had written to her a few times, short emails with little
detail but I had been sure she would keep replying. Then suddenly, out of
nowhere, she stopped answering back and I stopped hearing from her altogether. There
was no explanation and no excuse: just silence. A part of me wondered if this
was payback. If this was Lizzie’s way of showing me what my silence all those
years ago had meant to her.

“Hi, bro,” I said as
Tyler and I broke off our awkward hug. “How are things?”

“Fine,” Tyler replied. “Pretty
good actually.”

  
“I can see that,” I said looking him over. He looked different
somehow and it had nothing to do with his clothes. He seemed happier, and that
made him appear a lot better looking too. “You look really good.”

“Do I?” Tyler asked.
“Funny, people have been saying that to me a lot lately.”

“Any particular reason for
that?” I asked curiously.

  
Tyler smiled but he didn’t answer. He took one of my bags and we
started walking towards the parking lot. It felt a little like déjà vu for me
as I hopped into the front seat of Tyler’s Jeep.

“That all happened a lot
sooner than I anticipated,” Tyler said as we turned out of the parking lot.

“My discharge, you mean?”

“Yeah,” Tyler nodded. “I
thought it would take a couple more months to be honest.”

  
“Actually I did too,” I admitted. “But my captain … well, he’s
pretty great and I think he had a feeling I would want to retire soon. I called
him from Japan and told him my decision and he didn’t seem all that surprised.
By the time I got back to America … well, my walking papers were almost ready.”

“Wow,” Tyler nodded. “So
does this mean you’re officially discharged?”

“It does.”

Tyler nodded. “So what’s
the plan now?”

I laughed. “That’s a
loaded question.”

  
“Well, you better be prepared to answer it because that’s the one
question you’re going to get hit with wherever you go.”

“I suppose you’re right,”
I nodded. “And I do have something in mind.”

“Does this have anything
to do with that war vet rehab center idea of yours?” Tyler asked.

“You remembered?”

  
Tyler rolled his eyes at me. “I don’t just nod along mindlessly
when you talk, Dylan,” he said. “I actually listen from time to time.”

  
“Good to know,” I said. “But yeah … that is what I have in mind.
I’ve been looking at larger pieces of land and I there are a few places that
would be the perfect setting for a center like the one I have in mind.”

“In Bastrop?” Tyler asked
with interest.

  
“Actually no,” I said slowly. “I decided to come back home for a
few weeks and get my head on straight, work out a few things, you know … and
after I’ve sorted that out, it might be time for me to leave again.”

  
“Did you ever stop to consider the fact that you’re so used to
moving around that you might actually not be able to stay in one place for
long?” Tyler asked.

  
“I have actually,” I nodded. “But the thing is, there’s nothing
tying me down at the moment. So I guess I have the luxury of making things up
as I go.”

  
“Hmm,” was all Tyler said and it was pregnant with a number of
unsaid things. I was about to ask him what he meant by that but then I stopped
myself at the last minute; everyone would have differing opinions. I had to
learn to block out the white noise and start listening to myself.

“So … have you seen or
heard from Lizzie lately?” I asked trying to sound as casual as possible.

  
Tyler glanced at me. “To be honest, I haven’t seen her much at
all. She’s been MIA for a while now but I think it’s because she’s busy with
work and …”

“And …?”

  
“And I think she’s seeing someone,” Tyler said cautiously and I
knew he was expecting a reaction from me. I suppressed my instinctive response,
which was to balk in disappointment. I should have expected that. She was just
too special a person to be alone forever.

“Who?” I asked hoping
that my voice didn’t sound too weird.

  
“I honestly don’t know,” Tyler said. “Maddie doesn’t say much
about her; they’ve been friends for so long I guess her loyalty leans more
towards Lizzie than it does to me.”

I wrinkled my eyes at
him. “Why on earth would Maddie have any loyalty towards you at all?”

Tyler smiled. “I guess mom
didn’t mention it to you. Maddie and I have been dating for a while now.”

“Seriously?” I asked in
surprise. “How long is a while?”

  
“We started dating a few weeks after you left town, actually,”
Tyler said. “And we’ve been pretty inseparable since.”

“Geez,” I said. “I did
not see that one coming. But it explains why you’re more pleasant to be around
though.”

“Thanks,” Tyler said
sarcastically.

“You and Maddie, huh?” I
said trying to get used to the idea. “I would never have thought.”

“Sometimes these things
take you by surprise,” Tyler said. “I certainly felt that way.”

“So is this serious?” I
asked.

  
“I think so,” Tyler nodded. “I mean it’s only been a few months but
I really, really care about Maddie. I might even be falling in love with her.”

“Whoa.”

“It’s too soon, isn’t
it?”

“Not really,” I said. “I
knew I loved Lizzie a couple of hours after meeting her.”

“You were like twelve,”
Tyler pointed out.

  
I shrugged. “I was but that doesn’t mean I was any less capable of
feeling what I felt. And I still maintain it was love. I knew it then and I know
it now. You’re sure Maddie hasn’t mentioned anything about the guy she’s
dating?”

  
Tyler sighed uncomfortably. “I heard her talking to Lizzie one
night and some mention was made of a cute doctor.”

“He’s a doctor?” I
groaned.

“As far as I could tell …”

“That’s just great,” I
said. “No competition there.”

“I wasn’t aware you were
in the competition at all,” Tyler said pointedly.

  
“I … well … you’re right, I’m not,” I said pedaling backwards
fast. “I guess … whether Lizzie and I are together or not is immaterial. I
still get a little jealous sometimes.”

  
“I get it,” Tyler said with understanding. “It must have been hard
getting back into things with her only to leave again.”

“Yeah,” I nodded.

  
Our conversation had to come to a close as Tyler pulled into the
driveway. The moment I opened the door I was hit by the smell of roast chicken
and spices. “I hope mom hasn't gone crazy with the cooking,” I said as I helped
Tyler with the bags.

  
“She wanted to have a special lunch to celebrate your retirement
from the Navy,” Tyler said. “She was beyond thrilled when you gave us the
news.”

“I can imagine,” I nodded
as we moved into the house.

  
We set the bags down by the stairs and I moved into the kitchen.
“Hi, mom,” I said brightly and she screamed with delight as she ran at me full
throttle. She was looking much better since I last saw her. She had gained a
little weight and there was some brightness in her eyes now.

  
“Oh, darling,” she said hugging me hard. “I’m so glad you’re back.
I’m so glad you’re out. I don’t have to worry as much anymore.”

I laughed. “How about you
don’t worry at all anymore,” I suggested.

  
“When you’re a parent, you never stopped worrying,” she said.
“It’s just different levels of the same thing. Come and sit down; you must be
starving.”

  
“I’m all right,” I said just as I saw Maddie standing off to the
fridge. She was smiling at me but there was stiffness about her that I
recognized immediately.

“Maddie!” I said. “I just
heard about you and Tyler.”

“Surprised?” she asked
coming forward.

“Very,” I nodded.

  
She gave me a hug but I noticed how rigid her body was and how the
smile on her face didn’t seem to reach her eyes. I looked at her a little
closer and I noticed how pointedly she looked away from me as though she wanted
to avoid eye contact altogether.

  
“How’s Lizzie?” I asked because I thought it would have been weird
not to mention her at all. Plus I was dying of curiosity.

“She’s … fine,” Maddie
said after a small pause. “Really good, actually.”

“That’s good to hear,” I
said. “Tyler tells me she’s dating someone.”

  
I noticed the look that Maddie shot Tyler just before she smiled.
“Yes … she’s been seeing someone. It’s new though, and she wants to keep it as
private as possible.”

  
I nodded, ready to fire another question at her but she seemed to
sense that and she changed the subject quickly. I sat there through the entire
meal trying to figure out subtle ways of bringing the conversation back around
to Lizzie. Once we had finished eating, I followed Maddie outside while Tyler
and mom put everything away.

“How are you, Maddie?” I
asked on a more personal note.

“I’m great, Dylan,” she
said. “Tyler and I are happy.”

“I can see that,” I
nodded.

  
I desperately wanted to ask her about Lizzie but her sudden
coldness was throwing me off. I realized that it was obvious. I had left Lizzie
again, in almost the same manner I had done the last time. Obviously Maddie was
angry on behalf of her friend. Obviously she thought that Lizzie was better off
without me and she was worried about what effect my presence in town would have
on Lizzie.