Page 86 of Expecting an Argument
“Wait, he left the manor and found you?”
She nodded. “He just walked in while Tyson and I were in the middle of the department store renovation. The question was buried in enough small talk that I didn’t think anything of it, but looking back, it was obvious that it was very important to him to know if you were married.”
Ashley’s eyes fell to the floor and she bit her lip. “I always thought he was just an asshole, but I started re-thinking everything during the middle of your pregnancy. Between the insistence of his questioning before the reunion and how heacted back in high school…”
My heart stopped. “Do you think he was in love with me then?”
She scoffed. “I think he didn’t have the balls to admit to himself that he had feelings for you, but something was there—something strong enough where he couldn’t move on from you even if he tried. It’s like he always wanted to…” Her green eyes rolled around the room, as if she were searching for the right answer.
“He wanted towhat?”I insisted.
Her eyes landed on my face. “He wanted to keep you.”
I took a quick glance at “The Fontaine Family” card on the nightstand as my hands splayed across either side of my belly. Though a very sudden and very warm feeling of being wanted filled my body, I couldn’t accept it.
“Well, I don’t want to bekept.”I scoffed. “How many times do I have to say it? I want my independence, to keep winning million-dollar verdicts, and to never rely on a man, ever.”
Ashley’s brows peaked and her eyes strained. “And what’s the point of achieving all that if you still aren’t happy?”
The warmth in my body disappeared in an instant, leaving behind a hollow cavern beneath my ribs. I was about to argue that happiness didn’t pay bills when the familiar rumble of a diesel engine echoed outside.
“That’s him!” I gasped as I shifted my legs off the mattress.
“Wait,” Ashley protested, “shouldn’t you—”
“I can’t believe he has the gall to show up here,” I grumbled as I leaned forward, trying to stand up from the mattress. “I have to tell him to get lost.”
Ashley sighed, but hopped off her chair and pulled me to my feet before leading me to the stairs. Before I could descend the first step, pain flared down the side of my belly and I gripped Ashley’s hand.
“Are you sure you want to go downstairs?” Ashley asked. “You’re obviously in a lot of pain and—”
The doorbell rang and my heart raced.
“I’m in pain all the damn time.” I gripped the wooden handrail and took my first shaking step down. “If I don’t go down there and tell him to leave, he’ll wait on the porch forever!”
Reluctantly, Ashley helped me down the two flights of creaking stairs until we reached her living room. I was nearly out of breath, but I released Ashley’s hand and hurried to the front door.
The antique hinges creaked as I opened the door. “Beau, you can’t be here—”
But he wasn’t there. My heart sank as I scanned the empty porch, finding nothing but Ashley’s hanging ferns and a deserted driveway while the faint chirping of crickets filled the night.
A sharp spike like a tearing sensation flared up on the right side of my belly and I grimaced. I looked down and splayed my hand across the aching spot when my eyes caught a flash of white on the welcome mat.
I took a step back so my belly wouldn’t block my view and found a folded paper note covering a small dark box like a tent. I widened my stance to bend over and retrieve it, but Ashley snuck around from behind me and picked up the note.
With a soft smile, Ashley handed me the note. It was written on college-ruled notebook paper and had a short message written in ballpoint pen on the front.
“You win,”Beau had written.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and unfolded the crinkling paper. I held my breath as my eyes traveled down the paragraphs written in blue ink.
“Olivia,
According to my research, you had a 1 in 100 chance of getting pregnant with an IUD. We had a 30 in 100 chance of making a baby after one try and our pregnancy had a 3 in 100 chance of resulting in twins.
For years, I believed my grandfather that I would never reap the benefits of good fortune for the rest of my life, but putting the odds together gave us a .009% chance of having our twins, and ultimately, of you coming back into my life.
And that makes me the luckiest man alive.
