Page 100 of Man Seeking Woman

Cutting me off, Kayla laughed out the words. “Yes it is.” Her eyes grew wide as she pushed her chest against the table. “I was totally right, it doesn't matter how much you try to push back.”

The word love floated through my head a few times, but I shoved it away. Because it didn't fit into the box that I was currently in.

“Alright, yes, I have feelings for him, but it's really hard for me to know what's true and what's just my hormones being all crazy. I mean, I love egg sandwiches, like literally love them right now, but that doesn't mean I want spend the rest of my life with one.”

“Joke all you want, but August Burke is not an egg sandwich.”

Smirking, I stuffed the last bite of my meal into my mouth, and chewed with full cheeks. “If he was, I'd be screwed. I'd eat him every single day.”

Kayla started laughing, her eyes tearing up as she tried to catch her breath. “That's gross, I just got a horrible picture in my head.”

Finishing up our drinks, I hugged Kayla outside. “This was fun, I needed to get out before this baby comes.”

“Hey, just so you know, I'm serious when I say love just happens. Don't fight it, you'll never win.”

Thinning my lips, I smiled and gave her a nod as I climbed into the car waiting for me out front. I knew my friend meant well and the more I thought about it, the more I realized that she was right.

I did have feelings for August. Feelings that coiled around my muscles like talons, feelings that went deep into my bones. Maybe it was possible he felt the same way. He treated me like a princess, offering me the world in the palm of my hand, even if I never took it.

But I was holding back, not ready to fully unleash what I felt brewing inside. I had to talk to him first. I needed to know if I was alone with these mashed up feelings, or if we were floating together side by side, and just not reaching out to hold each other's hand.

* * * *

After getting home, I fell asleep and barely remembered August coming in. I remember him picking me up off the couch and carrying me into the bedroom. I remembered his lips on my forehead and how he kissed my belly, then tucked me under the blankets, even taking the time to put the body pillow between my legs to support my belly.

But when I woke up this morning he was long gone.

Stumbling out into the living room, my robe hung open and my bare feet like I was walking on sausages. I couldn't even see my ankles, they didn't exist. I had forgotten what they even looked like at that point.

Valerie had been there that morning, I knew because there was a basket of fruit on the table and the mail from the box. The house smelled like a mix of cleaning solution and air freshener.

Gagging down a few gulps of air, I grabbed the paper and went up on the terrace. I couldn't take the fumes, they were too much.

Dropping into the lawn chair, I adjusted my robe, covering up my belly and curling my legs up so they were underneath. Unfolding the paper, I looked over the back, checking the local deals at the farmers market that day. Twisting it around to the front, I froze.

Is love in paradise lost?

We've watched August Burke over the past few months as his love and lover's stomach grew. But, it looks like these two might have called it quits. Last night, August was spotted at the New York's newest hot spot, Grandure, with long time flame Michelle Rivers.

Does this mean they've mended the torn fragments of their past? It's easy to see that August's baby mama is running ragged. Our insider informant has dished out some dirt. Ella Day, the name to the face has finally been revealed. While she comes from a small town up north, her big dreams have led her here. A source tells us that after several failed attempts at success, Ella has been hung out to dry.

Could she have gotten pregnant on purpose? Is this woman blackmailing August and he finally had enough? Sources say it's possible this was a ruse the entire time, and August couldn't see it until it was too late.

There were two pictures above the caption; one of me with crazed hair and half my gut hanging out as I ran up the road for antacids early one morning. I remembered that day, my heartburn was horrible and my throat felt like it was dissolving in acid. The second picture was of August sitting at a dinner table with a woman I didn't recognize.

Her hair was perfect, her body slender and amazing. She had perky tits, a flat stomach, a cute little button nose, and a smile that screamed fuck me now. August was sitting across from her, that signature smile of his on his face.

He lied to me. . . He didn't have dinner with his mother.

Crunching the paper in my hands, I couldn't stop glaring at the pictures. I felt stupid, I felt hurt, I felt like he had yanked my heart out of my chest and stomped it into the ground.

Tears streamed down my cheeks and I felt like I couldn't breathe. How stupid was I? I had let myself believe that maybe he had feelings for me too, I let myself think that we did share something special.

I was wrong.

The baby was almost here and he was getting ready to move on from this arrangement. He really did only want me to carry his child. Everything else was just to keep me sedated, he tempted me with love and security, and all of it was a fucking joke.

Jumping to my feet, I flew back into the house. I could barely see because my eyes were covered in tears. Wiping my hands across my face, I packed my bags and left. Why was I going to stay where I wasn't wanted?

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