Sweet but Sexy Boxed Set (91 page)

She pushed Geoff away and covered her face with her hands.
“She’s right. She’s right. Oh, Geoff, didn’t you have enough sense to use a condom that night? How could you do this to me?”

“
You’re not pregnant. You can’t be.”

“
It only takes one time, you jerk. I haven’t been with anybody else, and I should have started menstruating three days ago. I don’t care if we were married, what kind of man has sex with a woman who’s too drunk to say no?”

Geoff sat back as if he
’d punched her. For a moment he studied her face then he set the bath cloth on the bedside table and left the room.

****

“Mom?” Geoff called as he flew down the steps. “Mom!”

Monnie hurried into the hallway, her excited face greeting him.

Typical.

The world was falling apart, and Tsunami Monnie was happy about grandchildren.

“Where’s Janie?”

“
She left a little while ago. Said she was going to the studio.”

“
Please. Don’t let Cheris leave, and keep her mother away from her. I’ve got to go out for a little while.”

“
Is she feeling better? Is she really pregnant?” Monnie clinched her hands excitedly. “When’s she due?”

“
I’ll talk to you about it later, Mom. Thanks for handling this.” Geoff charged through the door on his way to find Janie.

When he arrived at her studio, he noted Bobby
’s beat up truck out front.

Just the prick he wanted to see.

When he walked in, Janie’s angry voice carried across building.

“
…done, Bobby. You might as well leave because you’re wasting my time.”

Geoff stalked through the front room and found Janie with hands on hips in her office and Bobby lounged against the doorframe.

“I don’t get why you’ve got this attitude all of the… Hey, look. It’s the college boy. What’s—”

“
Did you touch my wife the night of Janie’s gala?”

Bobby
’s gaze narrowed, then his mouth split in a lecherous grin. “Yeah, Cheris. Janie told me you got married. I warmed her up real good for you, didn’t I? Took her right there next to that stone horse. Man, she was hot.”

Geoff grabbed him by the neck and shoved him into the wall pinning him there.
“You stay away from my wife
and
my sister.”

Bobby clutched at Geoff
’s hand struggling to breathe.

“
Geoff, don’t. He’s not worth it.”

Geoff pressed his thumb and finger a centimeter inward feeling the pulse and the swoosh of blood beneath the skin.
It wouldn’t take much to—

“
Geoff!” Janie shook his arm. “Let him go.”

Glaring at the man, Geoff broke contact and stepped back.

Bobby grabbed his throat coughing.

Geoff flexed his fingers and waited.
“If you don’t leave in five seconds, I’m calling the police.”

Bobby straightened.
“I’m the one who should call the police. You coulda killed me. It was just a damn joke.”

“
Go ahead and call the police,” Janie remarked. “They all know you on a first name basis. They’ll think you started it.”

He glared at her and spit on the floor. When Geoff took a step toward him, Bobby stumbled toward the front. The door opened and slammed shut.

“Shit, Geoff. What the hell was that about?”

“
Who’s that friend of yours? The nurse practitioner?”

“
Traci Chew?”

“
Yeah. You have her number? Do you think she’d see Cheris today?”

“
I don’t know. I can call her. What’s wrong?”

“
Cheris thinks she’s pregnant. She and her mom got into it. She’s so upset. I think she needs to see somebody. Today.”

“
But…” Janie shook her head. “You don’t seriously think she and Bobby—”

“
Of course not. Please will you call?”

****

Cheris didn’t move when Geoff came back in the room. Though her back was to the door, she knew it was him. She recognized the sound of his shoes as he walked in the room, the movement of his body when he sat on his bed.

“
Are you awake?”

“
Yes.”

“
Janie’s got a friend who’s a nurse practitioner. She’s agreed to see you this afternoon. Give you an exam. Make sure everything’s okay.”

“
I don’t want to be…to be.” She took a shuttering breath. “I can’t be somebody’s mother.”

“
If you’re pregnant, you’re already somebody’s mother. You’ll be a good mother.”

Cheris turned on her back to look at Geoff.
“How can you say that? You’ve met my mother. Is that the kind of person you want raising your child?”

“
What makes you think you’d do one thing like your mother? Everything you’ve done until now has been exactly the opposite.”

“
Yeah. Like getting knocked up.” Tears trailed down her skin.

“
I don’t think it’s knocked up if it’s on your wedding night.”

She didn
’t answer.

“
Think how much fun we’ll have. Buying toys. Going to Disney World. Building model space ships.”

Idiot. He had no idea.
“Toxic paint from Chinese toys. Temper tantrums at Space Mountain. Going broke paying for college.”

“
Bill Connors is going to be thrilled. He’ll triple your salary and make you the maternity and child Internet advice specialist.”

“
I’m not ready for this.”

“
Let’s go see the nurse practitioner and go from there. Okay?”

Cheris sighed and sat up.

****

Cheris sat on a Queen Ann chair in a warmly decorated room and waited for Traci Chew. As a nurse practitioner, Traci specialized as a midwife and ran her medical office out of her house.

“Well, Cheris,” Traci, a dark haired young woman with blue eyes walked in the room with a folder in her hand. “The pregnancy test is negative. The other tests will take longer to get the results back. But if something shows up, I’ll let you know.”

“
What other tests?”

“
For STDs. They’re standard, but your husband mentioned he thought you should have them. Since you said he’s been your only partner, I don’t anticipate anything.”

“
I know I’m pregnant. I haven’t started my period. I’ve never been late in my life, and I’ve been sick to my stomach off and on for three weeks now.”

“
I ran several tests to be sure. You’re not pregnant. Your lab work shows nothing abnormal. Not even a fever.”

“
What’s wrong with me then?”

Traci peered at her over her glasses.
“What’s going on in your life right now? Any changes in habits, diet? Stress factors?”

Cheris rolled her eyes.
“Where do I start? I ate cake and woke up married to six feet of stress sitting in your waiting room. My boss made me a marriage consultant, and I have to do webcasts every week. I’m going to move into my dream home, and my horrible mother showed up at my wedding shower and made a disgusting scene in front of everybody.”

“
Well.” Traci opened the folder and wrote on a paper inside. “That sounds indicative of stress to me. It can really play havoc with your menstrual cycle. Are you ready to start a family right away?”

“
No.”

“
You’ll probably want to get on some birth control pills then.” She tore a sheet from a pad of paper and handed it to Cheris. It was a prescription. “I’ll see if I have any samples to get you started. You’ll want to use another form of birth control for the first month, okay?” Traci walked to the door. “Go ahead and start the pill today. If nothing else, it’ll regulate your period.”

Cheris made sure she stuffed the pills down in the lowest part of her purse before she walked into the sitting area Traci used as a waiting room in the front part of her house.

When he saw her, Geoff stood up and searched her face. She shook her head slightly, and relief flickered across his face.

Just as she thought.

All of his big talk of Disney World and her being a good mom had been a put-on.

He didn
’t want a baby any more than she did.

And he
’d used to opportunity to have her tested to make sure she wasn’t a slut like her mom.

Silently they walked to his SUV and settled inside.

“I don’t sleep around,” she declared.

“
Okay.”

“
So I can only assume you wanted me tested for STDs because you do.”

“
I don’t. I’ve never—”

“
So this just shows how stupid all of this is, that you would have sex with me without knowing anything about me, Geoff. I had an excuse that night, but you didn’t. And I thought the reason you hadn’t had sex with me since then is because you cared about me, but it was really because I wasn’t born into a nice family like you were.”

Geoff started the car.

“Do you want to go back to my parents’ house and your mom, or do you want me to take you home?”

Cheris rubbed her eyes and ran her hands through her hair.
“I don’t want to deal with her right now, but I don’t see that I have a choice.”

Without a word, Geoff drove her to the house. When he pulled into the circular driveway, he left the engine idling. Cheris sat and waited.

“I’m going back to Georgia,” Geoff announced.

“
Right now?”

“
Yes. Janie said she’d be here in a little while. She can take you home.”

“
You’re mad at me.”

“
You know, Cheris.” Geoff stared through the windshield. “It doesn’t matter how much I love you if you’re always ready to think the very worst of me because you don’t think you’re worth loving.”

“
You don’t love someone after only three weeks.”

“
I’ll be back in Cullsbaeir May thirtieth. That’s a little over two months from now. Want to continue this conversation then?”

“
What about the divorce?”

“
You waited two weeks as I asked. If you still want to file, I’ll sign.”

But I don
’t want to get a divorce.

Tears filled her eyes, but she blinked them away. Opening the door, she slid out of the vehicle and walked toward the house while Geoff pulled around the driveway and onto the street.

****

“
So, it was a nice party. I would thank you for inviting me, but since
you
didn’t I thanked Margaret Arrowood instead,” Sarah commented as she and Gerald stood in the yard preparing to drive back to West Virginia.

“
You all could stay with me tonight.”

“
Gerald’s already lost a day’s worth of business over this.”

“
I didn’t mind,” the man interjected. “You only get married once, unless you’re your mama.”

“
Shut up, Gerald. If I could have found somebody who didn’t drive me ape shit, I might’ve stayed married.” Her gaze traveled across Cheris, examining her from head to toe. “Geoff seems okay. His mother’s a little too happy, but it’s because she’s on Zoloft. I saw it in her medicine cabinet.”

“
Mama!”

“
Chip’s on blood pressure medicine. I’d have to take it too, if I had to listen to her yack, yack, yack all the time.”

“
You was doing plenty of yacking yourself,” Gerald quipped. “Telling her all your stories of people who come into the diner.”

“
She does like a good story. How’s your stomach? You always was a nervous child.”

“
I wonder why?” Gerald winked at Cheris and hugged her before climbing into his ancient El Camino.

“
You need to get over that. Remember that time I took you to the mall and you threw up all over Santa Claus?”

“
No.”

“
All that drama, and for what? It goes and upsets everybody. But at least you ain’t pregnant.”

“
Geoff said he thinks I’d be a good mother.”

“
Well, I guess he’d know since he’s mama’s all cuckoo taking drugs and acting like we’re best friends. She asked for my peanut butter pie recipe, but I’ll be cold in my grave before I let her have it.”

“
Get in the car, Sarah. I don’t want to be driving half the night.”