A Monster's Beauty (In the Arms of Monsters #3) - Sam Crescent Page 0,56
see you, Robin. The relief, even with your memory gone, he was just happy to have you back. There’s more to Preacher than either of us will ever know, but his love for you, it will never be in question.”
“Thank you.”
“I’m going to let you get changed now. I’ve taken up enough of your time. Go and have some fun. You’re going to need it.” He left the room and as he did, she felt a little lighter, a little happier.
This hadn’t sucked big time. There was a chance for her and for Preacher. She just had to stop letting her nerves and past experiences get in the way.
After changing into her clothes, she met Randall outside where he gave her a small birthing package that he’d given her with the first pregnancy. Leaflets, helplines, information, that kind of thing.
She met Preacher at the reception desk and she saw him paying. Bethany was in his arms and she was playing with his jacket, chewing on it.
She stepped up to him with a smile.
“All done?” he asked.
“Yeah, I’m all done.”
She followed him outside to his waiting car. He put Bethany in her car seat and to stop her fussing, he handed her a little toy. “Is everything all good?”
“Yes. He can’t give me any guarantees of a healthy baby, but what he can do is be supportive and be there.” She lifted up her pack. “More stuff for me to read.”
“I wanted to talk to you about moving back in with me. I know you want your own space, but I think now you should be around someone. I can drop you off at work. Bethany isn’t ready for playschool yet but Anne assured me there’s no problem with having her at work with you in the play area. I can pick you up. We can have lunch.”
“Are you happy about the baby?” she asked.
Preacher jerked the car but quickly gained control. “Why the fuck would you think I wasn’t happy about the baby? Is that why you’ve been silent with me and looked fucking miserable when I came to pick you up?” he asked.
She wanted to soothe him. To not make waves but at the same time, she was tired of being the one to constantly be the voice of reason. “I told you a week ago.”
“Yeah, so?”
“Why haven’t I seen you? I told you and I haven’t seen you come near me. You haven’t called or texted me. You haven’t been by the library. You went completely silent on me and I don’t understand it. I know a baby wasn’t something we had planned.”
“When have we ever planned it?”
“This isn’t a time to joke around. I haven’t had a very good relationship between the fathers of my children and my pregnancies and to be honest, I’m trying not to freak out right now. I know I unloaded this on you and it’s a lot of pressure, but I’m dealing and I’m a lot younger than you.”
Preacher pulled the car to a stop and she wanted to storm out and walk away. It was what a child would do, but she didn’t have that luxury.
“If you must know, a moment hasn’t gone by when I haven’t wanted to talk to you. To hear your voice, to know you’re okay.”
“All it would’ve taken was a single phone call.”
“I know. I would’ve heard your voice and I would’ve come to you. You’ll always be the person I come running to, Robin. I love you more than anything in the world and it scares me at times.”
Tears filled her eyes at his honesty. She couldn’t recall him ever being this open with her, only when she didn’t have her memories, but that didn’t completely count, did it?
“Since you told me about the pregnancy, I’ve had a lot of shit going down. I had some business to attend to with Dog. I’ve also gone to see my lawyer about your ability to marry. He’s looking into your and Reaper’s marriage.”
“Oh.” She didn’t want to think about her marriage to Reaper. It had been something he’d forced her into and it didn’t exactly contain many happy memories. Her life with Reaper confused her. Whenever she thought about him dead, she was a little sad. How could she not be? Bethany would grow up without a father. But then she would allow herself to remember the first couple of weeks he’d taken her. The horror, the pain, the abuse. She’d suffered it all at his hands,