Sunk (11 page)

Chapter Twenty

RAINE

Unable to wait, I dive my hand into the bakery box and fish out an éclair. It’s so simply delicious, and no one makes them better than Sly’s grandma. Thankfully, eating just the one satisfies my craving.

“Thanks for going out of the way for this,” I say before taking the last bite.

“It was worth it. And we got to see Grams for a few minutes. She adores you,” he says, grinning from ear to ear.

“And she adores you too. I even think she might favor you over the others,” I tell him as we pull up to the house. I’m nervous about going back inside, even though I know it’s perfectly fine. But Beau tainted it, and I really just want to get things packed and move on. And I certainly don’t blame Sly for firing him. Beau deserved it.

“Just don’t tell Asher,” he says, spotting his brother shoveling the snow off the front porch.

Asher races over to open my car door, helps me out, and makes sure I don’t fall on the slick driveway. “How’s my nephew doing?”

“Oh, so I’m having a boy? Are you psychic now? He’s fine.”

“You can’t blame me for hoping for a little man. I can spoil him rotten,” he says.

“You need to have a job to spoil him,” Sly says, and I give him a look. Then a smile creeps over his face. “Here, have one. Just don’t eat them all.” Sly shoves the bakery box in his hands.

“Oh, yum, thanks.” Asher immediately opens the box and takes an éclair as we walk into the house.

“Thanks for shoveling,” I say, shaking my coat off and placing it on the coat rack. I pull my boots off and leave them by the door, then grab a few boxes to take to Ava’s room. Everything else in the house is a long gone distant memory. Ava’s is the liveliest room in the house.

In her room, the guys leave me to it by myself, giving me the space and time to do what I want. I take my time, walking from wall to wall, imprinting all the images into my brain. “I’ll never forget you, baby girl.” I rub the horse mural that’s painted on one wall. Even though I’m ready to do this, it still tugs at my heart. I don’t want to pack her things in a box, but this is part of the process of moving on.

Setting a box on the bed, I place some of her toys inside and save some of the horses for the new baby. If it’s a boy I’m carrying, I can use some of the toys Ava had, but the rest will have to stay boxed up. But if or when I do have a girl, she will have plenty of things from Ava’s room, and that’s something I can look forward to. A future little girl will love this stuff. I keep a few of the braided bracelets out so I can wear them and still feel like I have her with me. I slip a few of the bracelets on my wrist. On my other wrist I wear the charm bracelet Sly gave me; he was so thoughtful getting it. I make a mental note to pick up a nice watch for him.

A few hours later, I have managed to get all of Ava’s stuff packed. The bed and the dressers are staying with the house for the next owners, but everything else is packed and getting loaded into the car.

“Everything is loaded. Ready to go?” Sly asks, peeking his head into Ava’s room.

“I’ll be out in a moment,” I say softly.

Sly leaves me in the room. I take one last long look around, as if to say goodbye one more time, before turning away and closing the door behind me. Meeting Sly back in the living room, he comes over and scoops me in his arms.

“This is not goodbye, you know. She’ll always be with you in here.” He taps my heart.

My eyes water. “I feel like I’m abandoning her by leaving this place.” A lump forms in my throat, making it hard to swallow. I look around the place I no longer know or feel at home in.

“You’re not abandoning her. She’d want you to move on, and I think you are doing a remarkable job. No one expects you to just forget her. That would be impossible to do. And you got this little guy with you,” he points to the horse on my bracelet. It makes me smile.

“I know. It’s just hard walking away, you know,” I swipe my tears away.

“I know,” he says, pulling me close to his chest. He holds me as the silence falls around us, letting me have my moment. I couldn’t ask for a better man to have by my side, to have my back, and to know when to hold me without even speaking the words. He knows me through and through. He made me feel whole again, made me see that life is worth living, and I couldn’t ask for more than that. He breathes life back into me.

I pull back to look up at him. “I think I’m ready now.”

“Okay, love.” He takes my hand and rubs his thumb over my hand, calming me.

Unhooking my hand from his, I look around once more, before meeting Sly at the car. It’s already dark out, and the snow is starting to fall again. I thank Asher before he drives away. I drive my own car that I left here yesterday, to the house I now share with Sly. I wish I could feel the comfort of Sly’s hand on mine, but I could also use the silence on the drive home.

Twenty minutes later, we both pull up the driveway at the same time. He pulls in front of me, parks the car, and immediately treads to my car. Opening the door, he helps me out.

“We need to get you inside and off your feet. You’ve been on them all day,” he states, taking my hand and rubbing it with his thumb. My soul calms from his touch. Peace surrounds and embraces me, and I welcome it.

“Thank you. For everything,” I say.

“You’re welcome. Let’s get you in bed, you need your rest. I’ll load the boxes from Ava’s room into the garage.”

“Can you just lie with me until I fall asleep?”

“Of course,” he says, smiling. He brushes my hair back with his hand, and it has such a calming effect. I grab his other hand and press it to my belly. “Did you feel that?”

He chuckles. “Oh my gosh. My baby is kicking.”

He moves his head down to my belly. “Hey little one, it’s daddy.” The baby kicks again, and it amazes Sly. And I giggle at how it amazes him. “I can’t wait to meet you,” he says. He kisses my belly and then my eyes feel heavy. I feel him kiss my forehead before exhaustion takes over.

***

“Babe, wake up.” Sly lightly shakes me out of my deep sleep.

Rolling toward him, I blink my eyes a few times. “What time is it?”

“It’s nearly eight. You have a doctor’s appointment in an hour.”

“Oh crap.” I struggle just to swing my legs over the edge of the bed. Having this large belly makes doing simple things more difficult. “Let me shower quick and I’ll be ready,” I tell him.

Slowly, I walk to the walk-in shower, and even a quick shower isn’t so quick anymore. My feet were so swollen last night, I was glad to lie down and get some relief. After showering, I towel dry my body, which is also difficult when bending down. Working some mousse in my long hair, I let it air dry into loose curls. Leaning forward into the mirror, I put some light makeup on and make my way to the dresser.

I take out a pair of stretchy pants and grab one of Sly’s long sleeve shirts. After dressing, I sit on the edge of the bed and sigh heavily.

“What’s the matter?”

“I need some maternity clothes. I’ve resorted to wearing your shirts because my belly is huge,” I huff.

“Well, you just so happen to be in luck. I just got off the phone with my mom, and she wants to take you shopping for maternity clothes and things for the baby.”

“Really? That’s so awesome.”

“Yep, she’ll meet us here after your doctor’s appointment, unless you want to go another day?”

“No, today is fine. I’m actually looking forward to it,” I tell him with excitement.

At my appointment, the doctor confirms I’m twenty-eight weeks along, which puts me at seven months pregnant next week. They hook me up to a sonogram again, and the baby’s heart beats loudly.

“Would you like to know the sex of the baby?”

“No, I think we want to be surprised,” I say.

“Okay, well, everything looks good. You have a normal healthy baby inside you,” he says.

Looking over to Sly, we both beam with excitement. It’s still surreal I’m carrying his baby inside me. We will have a piece of us in three more months, and we can’t wait to meet him or her. Leaving the doctor on a happy note, we stop for a bite to eat before meeting his mom at the house.

***

SLY

After mom picks up Raine, I head to my office with my brother following behind me.

“How excited are you about the baby?” he asks.

“Very excited. And I asked Raine to marry me.” I grin.

“Dude, that is awesome. She is an amazing woman. Congrats,” Asher says, genuinely smiling, then shakes my hand.

“Thank you. I’m glad some things are actually going right in my life,” I state.

“It’s been a rough few years, since, you know…” he says, tilting his head down, referring to the loss I suffered.

“I think I was meant to meet Raine when I did, like we are meant to be together or something. I don’t know how to explain it,” I say.

“You don’t need to explain it to me. I just hope I find who I’m meant to be with. Okay, enough of this mushy shit. Why am I here?”

I chuckle, and it feels nice to be having a normal conversation with my baby brother. “What are you doing for a job these days?”

He shifts in the chair across from me. “Why? Are you offering me a job or something?”

“Yes, I am, actually. It’s about time you get your shit together, little brother,” I state.

He runs a hand through his red hair, and I see his tattoo sleeve peeking out the cuff of his shirt. He huffs. “What’s the job?”

“You’d have to start from the ground up. I’m not giving you any favors just because you’re my brother. I’m doing it because you saved Raine the other day, and I want to show my appreciation by offering you steady employment and a steady paycheck. And like I said, you’ll be out in the field to start out, working construction.”

I clasp my hands together and wait for his answer.

“Okay, sounds good. And I appreciate the offer. When do I start?”

“Meet me here Monday morning, first thing in the morning, and we can go over all the logistics and such. You’ll be in charge of most of the residential stuff.”

“Awesome, sounds good.” He stands and shakes my hand.

My baby brother is finally becoming a man, and some poor girl is in big trouble when she meets him. I laugh at the thought.

“What’s so funny?”

“Nothing. I was thinking some poor girl is going to be in for it when she meets you.” I laugh again as we walk to the door.

“She’ll be so swept off her feet, she won’t know what hit her,” Asher says.

“You are a cocky fuck,” I retort.

“I am my brother’s brother,” he says.

“Touché, little brother, touché.”

Asher waves at me as he enters his car, and I wave back feeling happy he is finally manning-up. Maybe there is hope for him after all.

Chapter Twenty-One

RAINE

Sly’s mom, Anne and I are out shopping for maternity clothes. She seems ecstatic about the baby.

“I can’t believe you are going to have a baby in three months. It seems like yesterday you were telling us the news,” Anne says as we scan the racks at the maternity store, Beach.

“The time has flown and I can’t believe it either. I hope everything comes back to me from my first pregnancy. It’s been close to eight years since I was last pregnant.” I rub my stomach.

“Oh, it’ll be just like riding a bike,” she says.

After looking around this store, nothing really piques my interest.

“Do you know of any other stores? Nothing is really catching my eye in here,” I say. “Also, I was wondering if maybe we can stop at that watch jeweler. I’d like to get Sly a watch.”

“Of course. I’ll take you where I get James’s watches every couple of years.”

Outside, I take in the almost spring like weather, inhale the crisp air, and exhale it out slowly. Anne comes to my side with a shopping bag in her hand.

“I have to say I was so happy to hear you agreed to marry Sly. I’m happy to have you as my daughter-in-law, and I hope you’ll consider me family.”

“Oh, thank you so much, Anne. That means so much to me. You and James are just about the closest family I have besides my sister and her husband. I’m very happy. Your son is an amazing man, but, of course, you already know that,” I say brightly.

I genuinely love Anne, James, and the rest of the family. I know she’ll be there for me like her own daughter. She is the most selfless woman I know; she always makes sure everyone around her is happy.

We get to the car and she drives to the next stop. “I was thinking,” she says, “I’d love to give you a baby shower. I know you and Sly have a lot of things already, but I’d still love to do it.”

“That is really sweet. I’d like getting everyone together before the baby finally comes.”

Anne pulls up to the watch jeweler, and we both get out to walk inside. I’ve never been in here, but I have driven past the place many times.

“I’m really excited. Thank you for letting me be a part of your pregnancy. The woman Sly was with before never let me be a part of hers.” She smiles. “And I don’t want to be overbearing, so you just let me know when I’m overstepping my bounds.”

I agree, nodding my head while Anne leads me to the counter full of watches inside a glass case.

“Did you have something in mind?” she asks as the sales clerk approaches us and greets us.

“Anne, it’s so good to see you. Are you shopping for James?”

Anne smiles. “Actually, this is my soon to be daughter-in-law, and she’s looking for a watch for my son.”

The sales woman smiles and shakes my hand. “What are you looking for?”

“I don’t know, really. Just something that can be worn daily. And maybe something that can be engraved on the back.”

“Great. How about I just grab three out for you and we can go from there?” the woman says.

“Sounds good,” I respond, nodding my head.

I wander around looking at the selection of watches while she gets a few together. Once she does, she calls me over to the counter. Fifteen minutes later, I buy a watch that I think Sly will love. It has a black onyx face and gold time hands, as well as a few diamonds and a black stretch band. It’ll look great against his always tan skin.

Anne and I walk down the sidewalk to another maternity store. I already feel my feet starting to swell, but I need a few items before calling it a day. After a few tries, Anne helps me find two pairs of pants and a few maternity tops to go with them.

“It feels like I’m carrying a freaking bowling ball around,” I tell her.

“Well, you only have a little ways to go. I’m having fun spending time with you, just spending one on one time together,” she says joyfully.

“Me too. But it’s a shame Carina couldn’t come too,” I say, scanning the rack of clothes.

“That girl is a workaholic. She takes after her father.” She giggles and shakes her head.

“I think I’ll just get these. I just don’t have the energy to try anything else on,” I say, coming out of the dressing room. All of a sudden, a strange feeling comes over me. I mumble something to Anne, and then everything goes black.

Disoriented, I come to, and an EMT is leaning over me, calling my name. “What happened?” I ask.

“Ma’am, you passed out. We need to get you to triage and get you checked out,” he says.

Over to my right, I see Anne on the phone with a look of concern on her face. I assume she is speaking with Sly. He’s had enough to worry about and now this happens. The EMTs load me into the ambulance, and Anne says she will follow behind them and that she called Sly. She must be so worried. Inside the ambulance, the EMT takes my vitals.

“Is the baby okay?”

“Your baby looks fine, but we want you to get checked out as a precaution. Nothing to be alarmed about. Your blood pressure is a cause for concern. We’ll know when the doctor runs some tests. Just try to relax,” he says with a calming voice.

I could use Sly’s hand right about now, grazing his thumb over mine like he always does to settle my nerves. Knowing Sly, he’ll be there before we even arrive.

The ambulance pulls into the emergency lane and I’m ushered to triage. The nurses immediately look me over and recheck my vitals. I feel fine, but I know they need to make sure I am okay.

“Raine, we are going to admit you for the remainder of the day. Your blood pressure is high, and we’d like to monitor you until we can see if there is cause for concern. Your doctor will be on his way as soon as we get you into a room.”

I nod, then I hear Sly asking one of the nurses about me, and she escorts him to where I am.

He rushes toward me. “Oh, thank god you’re okay,” he says with relief. “The baby is okay, right?”

“We’re both fine. My blood pressure is high, and they just want to monitor me until the doctor comes in.”

After he hugs me tightly, he holds my hand as he sits next to me. Then the nurse comes in.

“Well, Miss Raine, we are going to move you to a room now. It’ll be room 112 if you want to meet us there,” she says, looking to Sly.

Sly stands, but does it hesitantly. He’s being protective of me and I know he’s just worried. I give him a smile and his worry seems to fade. “I’ll meet you there,” he says as they wheel me out of the Emergency Room.

“Go tell Anne I’m fine. I’m sure she’s worried too,” I tell him.

Ten minutes later, Sly and Anne meet me in my room. “I’m so glad you’re okay,” Anne says, bending down to hug me. Sly is at my side, sitting in a chair, holding my hand and rubbing it with his thumb. He brings my hand up to his lips to kiss.

More tests are run, and I feel like I’ve been poked and prodded. A few hours pass before the doctor finally comes in and reads my chart. “Hi, Dr. Rankin,” I say.

“Hello, Raine, Sly. Looking over your chart, everything seems okay. We’ll get you checked out as long as you promise to take it easy, or I can order bed rest for the remainder of your pregnancy,” he says, taking off his glasses.

“I promise I’ll take it easy, Doc,” I say, nodding my head.

“And I’ll make sure she does,” Sly says.

“All right then. I’ll have the nurse release you.”

He leaves, and Sly has not let go of my hand. He kisses my hand again. “I’m glad you’re okay. But you heard the doctor. You have to take it easy.”

“I know. I won’t go running any marathons any time soon,” I say, which causes Anne to giggle.

“You’re not helping,” Sly says sternly to his mom. She stifles her giggles, but the amusement is clearly written on her face.

In the evening, I’m finally released from the hospital and on my way home. Sly stops to grab some Chinese food on the way; I’m starving. At home, Sly makes me comfortable in bed and brings the Chinese up for us to eat.

“Well, aside from the scare, did you have fun with my mom?”

“I did. She bought me a few pairs of pants and a few tops as well. Oh, I have something for you. Can you grab my purse?” I ask him.

He looks confused, but hands my bag to me. I fish out the watch box and hand it to him. “What’s this?” he questions.

“Open it,” I tell him excitedly.

He takes the box from me, and I watch as he opens it. “You do so much for me, I thought I would get you something nice.”

“Wow, I love it.” He turns the watch over and sees it’s engraved with our initials. “You didn’t have to do this,” he says, smiling.

“I know. I wanted to. I hope you do like it,” I say. “Look at the date,” I tell him.

He turns it over and then looks at me. “It’s the date we met.” He reaches over and hugs me tight. “I love it. I’ll wear it every day.”