Dance Around - Susi Hawke Page 0,27

at myself in the mirror, I rubbed a hand over my belly and tried to imagine telling Dan he'd managed to knock me up after knotting me once. Yeah… going to be a real fun conversation. Especially after I'd gotten pissy and kicked him out of my hotel room.

Truth be told, he'd been correct to be proud of himself for actually listening and having the patience to talk things through. At the time, I'd been ready to say fuck it and beg him to claim me on the spot. Picking an argument and sending him on his way had been nothing more than a self-defense mechanism.

And I'd been angry with myself ever since. Knowing I needed to go to him with my proverbial tail between my legs since it was my turn to apologize was bad enough. But now I had to do it pregnant?

Scarlett O'Hara had it right. I'd think about it tomorrow. Today, I was going to have ice cream and do my damned best to bury my head in the sand and pretend everything was okay.

7

Dan

Three unbearable weeks later…

A month. One long, miserable month replaying every vivid moment of our magical night and the shitshow the morning after.

I was determined to work things out, but talking to someone who was dodging every attempt at contact was difficult.

Every text I sent showed as read. On more than one occasion, I'd seen the three dots blinking, showing he was typing a response. Except none had been sent.

Every phone call went straight to voicemail. I'd left so many messages over the past four weeks; I had to assume he was deleting them since the box was never full.

After two weeks of that shit, I finally went to his door. Only to be told he wasn't available. So I'd try again the next day. And the next. And… yeah. I'd tried.

"What's wrong, sweetheart? Did they turn you away from Blythe Manor again?" My mom ruffled my hair and kissed my forehead before taking a seat beside me at the patio table.

I reached for the tray in the center of the table and poured her a glass of the fresh lavender lemonade Isaac had delivered not long ago, when he noticed me sitting out here by the pool.

Mom took a long drink, then smacked her lips together. "My goodness, how tasty. I've seen pictures in the magazines, but I never could quite wrap my brain around drinking my lemonade with a flower in it. It adds a nice touch, though, doesn't it?"

Shrugging, I took a drink from my own glass. "I don't know. Isaac was going on about how lavender is good for stress and citrus for mental clarity. I guess this lemonade is supposed to help me fix my love life or something."

Mom threw her head back with a loud peal of laughter. "Oh, honey. It'll take a lot more than Isaac's magical lemonade to fix your romance problems. You simply need to find a way to get in front of Gil and apologize for being an idiot. And an asshole, don't forget."

"Idiotic asshole. Got it. I should've known better than to expect my own mother to take my side." I snorted and picked up my glass for another drink. I needed all the mental clarity I could get. "I never should've told you about our stupid argument."

"You have it wrong, baby. Informing me was probably the one smart thing you've done so far. Honestly, I don't understand why you didn't let me know about this twenty-three years ago when it happened. This is what happens when you put things off. Waiting until tomorrow to do what you should today only works if you're Scarlett O'Hara."

I nearly dropped my glass in shock. "I've never seen Gone With the Wind, but even I know the reference. Would you believe you're the second person to mention her in the past two days? Why is everybody quoting a million-year-old movie?"

"Because Clark Gable, honey. You don’t need to know any more. Google him and thank me after you wipe your drool."

I pulled back, giving her my best "what the actual fuck" frown. "Mom, I have seen Clark Gable. I was around at the height of his career, remember? I still say he looked like an arrogant bastard who'd be selfish in the sack. He had beady eyes and couldn't grow a decent mustache, if you ask me. No. If we're talking sexy actors of the silver screen era, it's going to be Cary Grant all