Waiting for Love ((Waiting) Book 2) (26 page)

Chapter Twenty-seven

Jeff

     Shelby is now four months pregnant with our baby and she looks more beautiful than ever. There’s something about knowing that we’ve created this life that’s growing inside of her, that makes me feel even closer to her. I didn’t know it was possible to be tighter than we already were but having a child together elevates our love to an astronomical level. I had no idea I was capable of so much love. We haven’t found out the baby’s sex yet. She has her next appointment in a few weeks and all will be revealed then. I think she’s having a boy. I’m not sure why, it’s just a hunch I have. As long as the baby is healthy that’s all that matters to us.

      Shelby finally settled into her pregnancy after the initial first week of hell. She was a mess for that time, but then she calmed down and together we faced her fears about being a new mother. Now she’s getting excited, especially since she just started to feel the baby move. She said it was like something tickling behind her belly button. I can’t wait until I can feel the kicks. She’s just starting to show. Her belly is becoming slightly rounded and she looks healthy with the five pounds she’s gained so far. The biggest change to her body is in her breasts. They seem to get larger each week, but I’m definitely not complaining.

    Sometimes it’s hard for me to believe that I got the girl in the end. There was a time there when I didn’t think things were going to go in my favor and I thought she was gone from me forever. When I went home with her for Thanksgiving that first time, her brother Greyson let it slip that she was in a relationship with Garrett. I was shocked and horrified. I knew it wasn’t going to end well for them and that Shelby would most likely end up expelled. I never let on that I knew who her mystery man was, I just sat back and waited; praying that it all wouldn’t blow up in her face. When I found out that she was planning on moving in with him, I knew I had to do something to prevent it
. I was the anonymous letter writer.
I sent the letters and pictures to Garrett that threatened Shelby’s expulsion. If he hadn’t left so quickly and he had stayed with Shelby, that would have been the end of it. I never would have reported their relationship. It was an empty threat, but unfortunately for him, he fell for it. He gave up on them so easily it made me realize that he didn’t deserve her in the first place. She needs to be with someone that will hang in there for the long haul and fight for her. I think I’ve done a damn good job so far and I have no plans to ever stop. 

    I’m sure some will think that I’m a horrible person for what I’ve done, but everything I did was in the name of love. I was looking out for Shelby and what was best for her. My only regret is the depression she suffered through. It weighs heavily on me and it always will. It’s my life’s mission to make Shelby happy and I know I do. It’s funny how things have a way of working out the way that they’re supposed to.

Chapter Twenty-eight

Shelby

   
Have you ever had a secret that weighed on you so heavily that you felt as though you might collapse from the burden of it? I’ve been lying to all of my loved ones for months now, lying right to their faces. What a terrible person that must make me. I know at some point the truth will have to come out, but I’m dreading that day with every fiber of my being. I don’t want to hurt anyone, especially Jeff.
God, I’m such a horrible perso
n...

Four and a half months ago -

    I lean over and try to talk in Hailey’s ear, but my legs are feeling unsteady.

“I’ll be back in a few minutes. I need to pee.” I made my way to the bathroom and everything was going fine until I came out that door and found Garrett waiting for me. We exchanged verbal barbs and as I went to walk away, he kissed me. I tried to maneuver my lips away from his, but it wasn’t possible and after a bit I didn’t want to. His tongue was tangling with mine and it felt so amazing to have his mouth on me. The three plus years apart hadn’t diminished our attraction at all. His hard cock was lined up perfectly and he was pressing against me. Our hips were rolling into each other and he backed me up, pushing me into the vacant ladies room. He flipped the lock on the door before pressing me up against it. He slid his hands up under my dress and tore my thong clear off me. My head felt like it was in a fog as I watched him undo his pants and push them down his lean hips. He lifted me up and I wrapped my legs around his waist before he lowered me to his hard and ready cock. As I slid down on him, we both groaned from the overwhelming pleasure having him inside me caused. I had forgotten how intense the chemistry between us was. He starting moving me up and down and telling me how much he still loved me. It was a hard and fast fuck. It wasn’t romantic at all and I felt cheap and dirty afterward as I cleaned myself up at the sink. I wasn’t worried about pregnancy because I was on the pill and I always took it at bedtime like clockwork...except that I had been sick with a stomach bug a couple of weeks before and it must have made my pill less effective without me knowing it. I didn’t make Garrett wear a condom because I was drunk and too caught up in the moment to remember...

To Be Continued....

Waiting for Him, coming in April 2016

Waiting for Him, coming April 2016

Chapter One

Shelby

      I’ve made a horrible mistake. It’s the kind of mistake that’s so epic it’s going to change the course of my life and the lives of two other people I care about as well. In spite of all the turmoil this error in my ways is costing me, it’s also the best thing that’s ever happened to me. When I think about the long term reward, I can’t regret my actions, no matter how ill thought out they were. I’m only sorry for the hurt that this situation will cause those that I love the most. I’ve grown up hearing that “there are no accidents” and that “everything happens for a reason.” I believe that’s the case and I have to hang on to the belief that all of this has happened for a greater purpose.

      I’ve been carrying around a secret for five months now and no one else knows the truth. It’s a heavy burden for me to bear on my slight shoulders, but I don’t feel like I deserve a respite from the weight of it. I have the gift of life growing in my belly and I’m still in awe of the fact that I’m going to be holding my beautiful baby boy in my arms in four more months. Nurturing this tiny human inside of me is the greatest blessing that I could ever receive. I’m trying to focus on all the good and not think about the fact that I don’t know who the father of my son is. There’s a fifty-fifty chance that this baby is my fiancé Jeff’s son or my ex Garrett’s. I haven’t found a way to tell Jeff that he may not be the father and I haven’t even told Garrett that I’m pregnant; never mind that the baby might be his. I know I need to stop being such a coward and come clean with Jeff. It’s time to face the music, bite the bullet, pay the piper, put my big girl panties on or any other cheesy idiom that means I need to own up to what I’ve done. Jeff needs...and deserves to know first. It’s going to devastate him and destroy our relationship. I have to accept that we’ll most likely be over and that he won’t be able to forgive me. Then I have to find a way to sit down with Garrett and calmly inform him of what’s going on. He’s going to be shocked to say the least. We’ve barely spoken to each other for the past few months and I see him at work all the time.
Talk about awkward.

      I know time is of the essence so I send Jeff a text.

Can you come straight home after work?
It only takes a few seconds before my phone alerts me of his reply.

Sure baby. Everything ok?
Shit.
I knew he would assume something’s wrong, but I couldn’t take the chance that we wouldn’t discuss everything tonight. I’m forcing myself to take care of this before I can change my mind.

Yes, I just want to talk to you.
I leave it at that. If I say anymore, he’ll know something’s wrong and he’ll just worry about me. I don’t deserve his concern.

Ok, be there asap.
My stomach clenches with fear when I venture to guess what the outcome of our talk will mean for Jeff and I. I have a horrible feeling about this and I can't shake it. It doesn't take psychic ability to know that this situation has disaster of epic proportions written all over it. 

      It’s only about twenty minutes before Jeff is walking through the front door of our apartment. I’m half lying, half sitting on our couch, with my head on the arm rest and my legs curled up beside me. I’m tired and I’d like nothing better than to take a nap and escape from this much-needed conversation. He immediately walks over to where I am.

“Are you okay, baby?” He presses his hand against my forehead to see if I’m feverish. “You look a little flushed.”
Why does he have to be so sweet?
Especially right now when I’m about to annihilate his entire world as he knows it.

“I’m fine,” I say, sitting upright and resting my feet in front of me on our coffee table. “I’m just a bit tired, but that goes with the territory I guess,” I say gesturing at my tiny little baby bump. I haven’t even had to buy maternity clothes yet, although all my waistbands are about to bust. They’re being stretched to maximum capacity and I’m going to have to invest in some elastic waist pants or leggings and some loose sweaters and blouses to camouflage that I’m pregnant. For obvious reasons, I’m trying to keep it a secret for as long as possible.
Speaking of
secrets…

      Jeff sits down on the couch next to me and rubs my thigh with his strong hands. I love the way his fingers look wrapped around my leg. It’s possessive and sexy and I hope it’s not the last time I ever see it. I inhale a deep breath and try to mentally prepare myself for what I’m about to do, but I’m not sure that’s even a possibility. I need to spit it out and there’s no real way to candy coat it.

      “So I wanted to talk to you about something that happened a while ago and I haven’t had the courage to discuss it with you.” I glance at J and his eyebrows are already furrowed as if he knows that nothing good is going to come from what he’s about to hear.

“The night that I went to that club with Hailey, Garrett showed up,” I pause to make sure I have his full attention. “He and I didn’t just kiss like I told you.” At this point, my eyes well with tears and Jeff squeezes my thigh as if to brace himself for what’s coming. “He and I had sex,” I whisper raggedly as I start to cry tears of sorrow. “I’m so sorry, Jeff. I never meant for it to happen and I was horrified after it did.”

“What the fuck, Shelby? Why am I just hearing about this now and why didn’t you tell me when it first happened?” His breathing is labored and his fists are clenched as he waits for me to answer.

“I don’t know that I was ever going to tell you J. I didn’t want to hurt you. I love you and I didn’t want to lose you. It was something that just happened in the heat of the moment and I felt so cheap and dirty afterward. I was drunk, but not drunk enough not to know that I shouldn’t have done that. I don’t want you to think I’m trying to make excuses.” Jeff shakes his head and angrily grits his teeth, before standing up from the couch. He starts to pace back and forth.

“I can’t fucking believe you would do this to me...to us. How could you?” His question cuts me right to the quick and it’s not something that I haven’t asked myself, at least, hundreds of times. There’s no adequate answer for him or for myself. I have no idea what possessed me to have sex with Garrett that night. If I could do it all over again, I would do it differently for sure.

“I have no excuse J. I’m not sure what happened, but I made the worst decision I could have. There’s more I need to tell you.” I wait for a moment, trying to think of the kindest way to say what I need to say.

“This baby could be Garrett’s. We didn’t use a condom and I had just gotten over the stomach bug. I was throwing up and it was mostly at night which is when I take my birth control.” Watching Jeff’s face crumble as he realizes the depth of my betrayal and what the consequences of my infidelity might be, makes me feel like the worst person in the world. Tears are falling unchecked down his cheeks and I know that there’s no way we’re ever coming back from this. I’ve done it. I’ve broken his heart
.

Acknowledgements:

There are many people that helped me along in my journey to write this book. My husband *Daniel is my inspiration for all the good parts of Garrett and Jeff. He’s the best friend I could ever hope for and my biggest cheerleader in life. I feel like I can accomplish anything with him by my side.

*My two sons are my greatest blessings. They provide me with endless amounts of love and laughter. I know that they will probably never read my books and I’m not sure that I would want them to.

*I have to thank my beta readers - Morgan, Dee, Carol, Shweta, Kathy and Renee. Thank you for all the insight you offered and thank you for loving the characters I created.

*Thank you to Dee Kelly, my dear friend and one of my favorite authors. Thank you for not only reading my book, but for all of your invaluable input. I’m so grateful and honored that you took the time out of your busy schedule to help me make my story the best it can be.

*Letitia Hasser/RBA Design – Thank you for the beautiful cover and teasers you created for my story. It’s everything I hoped it would be. You’re so wonderful to work with and you make the whole cover designing process so easy for me. I can’t wait to see what you come up with for Waiting for Him.

*Laura @ Editing For You - Thank you for all your hard work on Waiting for Love. It means the world to me that you cared about my story and I’m looking forward to working with you on Waiting for Him, very soon.

*I’ve become friends with some really amazing people along this journey and they are my favorite authors. – Harper Bentley, who I named Bentley Academy after, Anne Mercier, and Robyn Roze. I admire each and every one of you professionally and value our friendship. xo

*Thank you to my friend Kiley Frost from Frost Creations. You go above and beyond in  designing and making teasers for me. xo

*Recently some of my author friends and I have started a Facebook group called Bad Boys and Chocolate. We talk about great books, book boyfriends and have great giveaways.

*Thank you to all the bloggers and authors out there that have shared my posts and teasers. I couldn’t get my book into people’s hands without you guys. I sincerely thank you all for your hard work. I have to give a special thank you to Give Me Books Blog for doing such a great job with my release blitz, Shweta and all the lovely ladies at Fallen for Books, and Kat Fenton from Kitty Kats Krazy About Books. Thank you for all the love you’ve shown for my books. xo

*Last, but certainly not least, thank you to each and every one of you that has read one of my books. The fact that you took time out of your busy lives to read something that I wrote is mind boggling and very appreciated! Mwah!

I love to hear from my readers and you can find me on Facebook and Twitter.

https://www.facebook.com/DawnStantonauthor?ref=tn_tnmn

@authordstanton

Continue on for a sample chapter of Chasing Cassidy by D. Kelly.