Page 20 of Save Me
“Because I’ve seen how you eat those, Abbi,” he retorts smoothly, “and I doubt Ronan heard a single word you said.”
“I have no idea what you mean.” A devilish glint flickers in her expression as she collects a dollop of jam spilling out of the treat. This time when her finger reaches her mouth, she takes her time, sucking it off.
His jaw clenches.
This is one of the things I’ve always loved about Abbi—she’s all sweet and innocent … until she’s not.
But I don’t need to stay here and picture them fucking, which is what they’ll be doing in T-minus-five minutes or however long it takes him to drag her to their suite. “He’s not wrong, Red. Consider me suitably tortured for the day.” I slide out of the cabana.
“Text me later about that thing,” Abbi calls out.
“Will do.”
“What thing?” I hear Henry ask as I walk away, his voice softer now that they’re alone.
“None of your business. Put your hand here. She’s kicking. I think she likes sweets.”
I smile as I take the stone path back toward the hotel. Whatever else Henry is, he’s a doting husband to her. Maybe that’s why I’m not leaving here with that same burning envy I normally feel that Henry has what I want.
Does that mean I’m finallymoving on?
Or, more than likely, it’s because I think I’ve found a woman who can make me as happy as Abbi would have.
As happy as Tasha did.
Or, dare I hope, happier?
There’s only one way to know for sure. I dig out my phone.
Don’t flake out on me, Sea Witch. 6pm sharp.
6.Sloane
“Ababy, Sloane?” Gigi’s hand abandons her knitting to clamp over mine.
“Looks like it.” I decided that confessing my sins while I braided her hair was the best approach.
I knew she would never admonish me. But when she turns in her seat to peer up at me, her wrinkled face is brimming with excitement.
“This isn’t good news, Gigi. I’m terrified and feeling incredibly stupid.” Compound that with Ronan’s visit yesterday, and I can add confusion to the mix of emotions that grips me with unrelenting fervor. I thought I had him all figured out. Now, I don’t know …
Dare I hope that he’s a decent guy?
“Oh, honey, that’s normal.” She squeezes my hand before releasing it. “I remember when I was pregnant, I had never even changed a real baby’s diaper before.”
“Neither have I,” I admit, tying off her braid. Sure, I’ve held a baby here or there, but as soon as they started to fuss,I’ve happily handed them back. “And this was totally avoidable.”
“That doesn’t mean it’s wrong.” Gigi pats the chair next to her, silently instructing me to sit. Her brow furrows with thought. “You know, your mother said almost the same thing when she came home after her fling with that fool.” She has always refused to call him my father. As far as she’s concerned, he doesn’t deserve the title. “It was unplanned too, and she was petrified. Didn’t know what to do. Thought her life was over. But she managed just fine.”
“She was nineteen, Gigi.” When I was that age, all I cared about was making money during the day and having fun with my friends at night. “Plus, she had you to help her.” I might not have had a father in my life, but I had two strong women who supplied me with a fierce amount of affection and care.
“And you’re thirty-one, which is a far cry from nineteen. You have a house and a thriving business.”
As long as Cody’s tongue-wagging doesn’t lose me my staff.
“Andyou still have me. Don’t dig my grave yet,” Gigi chides with a soft laugh. “Plus, you have Frank.”
I chuckle. “He’s not exactly a wet nurse.”
