Page 76 of The Wedding Planner's Manny
“Yeah?” Jeremiah leaned back, arms crossed in front of his chest, and looked around the café.
“Where is he then? No alpha worth his salt would let you meet me by yourself.”
Those words cut deeper than Jeremiah could ever know. Ethan was with his wife, not in this café with me, because he wasn't actually the child's father and he had no obligation to me. He had an obligation to his family, and I wouldn't keep him from fulfilling it.
Jeremiah leaned forward again when I couldn't think of anything to say. “Does this new alpha even exist?”
He asked the question so calmly that sweat broke out on the back of my neck. He was on to me, and he knew it. He thought he was winning.
I couldn't let him win.
I had to distract him. Somehow. Hastily, I dug through the messenger bag I'd brought and pulled out the article I'd been writing since my college years, printed on a fat stack of papers that made a satisfying thudding noise as I slapped them on the table in front of Jeremiah. “Of course he exists,” I claimed. “He even helped me complete this.”In a way.
Jeremiah didn't have to know the details. Fact was that Ethanhadhelped me progress in a big way.
“What is this anyway?” Jeremiah looked through the papers. “Oh, don't tell me it's that piece of crap you started writing in college.”
“It's not a piece of crap!” How could he say that? He knew how hard I'd worked at this at the beginning of our relationship, before he’d dissuaded me. But he'd never valued me for my mind or what I did with it. I could see that now. “This is something you should read,” I said tapping my index finger on the stack of papers. “Maybe then you'll understand how screwed up your community is and why I had to leave you.” It was all there, black on white. “I'm going to try to get this published too.
Well, at least some of it. If you don't want your name attached to mine when that happens, I suggest your sign the divorce papers now. Did you even bring them?”
“Of course I did. I promised, didn't I?” He got the documents out of his briefcase. “But you don't really want me to sign this, do you? Because you don't have a father for that baby.”
“I do,” I insisted. I couldn't let Jeremiah intimidate me now. Even as he leaned closer and his alpha scent invaded my nostrils. Once upon a time, I'd found that smell arousing. Now it instilled nothing but anxiety in me.
“Then where is he?” Jeremiah let his gaze sweep the café again.
“Busy,” I pressed out.
“It's Sunday and he's too busy to protect you?”
“Do I need protection? I thought I was just here to watch you sign those papers before I could move on with my new life.” I swallowed, wishing he would just get a move on. Could he smell the fear on me? Because I was definitely sweating now.
“You need to start telling me the truth, Rhys,” Jeremiah said and my throat drew so tight I was afraid I could never take another breath again.
And then, miraculously, someone else spoke up for me. “What truth is that?” Ethan stood behind Jeremiah, studying him with barely concealed rage. I hadn't even noticed him come in, but suddenly, he was there.
How? Why?
I had a lot of questions, but then I realized that none of them mattered right now. What mattered was that Ethan was here, and it looked like he might not have a problem telling Jeremiah to back off. This moment, he was my unexpected hero. My alpha in shining... well, he wore clothes that looked carelessly thrown together while rushing out of the house and his hair was a bit unkempt too, so maybe he wasn't my alpha in shining armor, but hewasmy hero.
“Who are you?” Jeremiah demanded.
“I'm the baby's father,” Ethan said without even batting an eyelid. If I hadn't known the truth, I would have believed him. I could only hope that Jeremiah would too.
Jeremiah glared at him. It seemed he couldn'tdecidewhether or not to believe Ethan. “You and him?”
he asked, looking back and forth between me and the alpha who had come to my rescue.
“Yeah, me and him,” Ethan said with all the confidence of someone who was speaking the absolute truth. Then he left his spot by Jeremiah's chair to stand by my side, his hand on the back of my chair.
“Is there a problem with that?”
“Hell yeah, there's a problem with that. He's married to me.”
“But you were going to sign the divorce papers today,” Ethan pointed out. “So that's really of no consequence, is it? Face it, I've slept with this omega so many times you wouldn't want him back anyway.”
My eyes flew to Ethan in surprise. How could he say something like that so openly? Did he not care that we were in a public space and all heads were turned to us? If what Nick told me about his business was true, heshouldcare.
