Like I thought Reed did.
“Let’s get some grub,” he says, saving me from myself.
I don’t want to be with someone because I’m hurt and have no confidence. I don’t want to use Mitch like that. Until I know that Reed is a lost cause, giving myself to Mitch or to anyone else is just wrong.
I still love him.
“Let’s do it,” I agree.
I unhook my seatbelt and get out of the car, slipping my keys into my pocket. Mitch usually drives, but said he just wanted to be a passenger today. Which is fine because I really like driving. He walks around the front of the car to meet me, but he keeps looking over his shoulder.
“Hey, Callie? How about we go for pizza instead? I’m in the mood for some of that cheese bread from Moonie’s,” he says out of the blue.
“What? You were gung-ho for some of Mavis’s chicken fried steak, remember? “
“Yeah, I know,” he says, glancing over his shoulder. “I’ve just suddenly started craving spaghetti, what can I say?” He turns back around and he’s smiling at me, but it doesn’t touch his eyes. Gone is the fun-loving, happy Mitch that is always making me happy, too. This Mitch almost looks pissed.
“You said you wanted cheese bread a second ago, not spaghetti. What’s going on with you, Mitch?” I ask him, trying to look around his large frame.
He puts his hands on each of my arms, keeping me from moving. I frown, jerking away from him.
“Come on, Callie, please? Let’s go to Moonie’s.”
I narrow my eyes. Something is wrong, and I have a bad feeling it’s whatever Mitch is trying to hide from me.
“Move out of my way, Mitch.”
“Callie,” he says.
“Now.”
He looks sad for a minute, but he moves to the side. I look in the direction Mitch was doing his best to hide and there I see it.
Reed is standing by the diner, talking to Chasity. He’s dressed in dark jeans and one of those t-shirts he loved to wear when we went out together. Chasity is cleaned up, wearing a flowing sundress, too. Her hair has been fixed nice—most likely from a salon. I guess date night is included in room and board, because they definitely look like they’re out on a date. That hurts, but it’s not the worst of it. Reed has his hand on her stomach. Chasity has hers over his. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to tell they’re feeling the baby kick. I know because I’ve done the same thing to Katie’s stomach. Katie might be showing more than Chasity, but their due dates are similar, because Katie got pregnant at prom, too.
My heart feels like a rock, and it plummets to my feet. I stand there watching, feeling everything rush back at me—the pain, the hurt, the betrayal. It all rushes back to the surface and that feeling only gets worse when Chasity goes up on her tiptoes and kisses Reed.
In my head I’m begging him to push her way, to pull his hands from her body, to spit at her and rub his mouth to show he’s disgusted. Instead, they keep kissing.
And my dreams of Reed begging me to come back die a horrible death.
“Let’s get out of here,” I mumble, unshed tears stinging my eyes. I’ll fix us dinner at home.
“Okay, baby. Okay,” he says, kissing my forehead and holding out his hand. I don’t have to ask. I know he’s asking for my keys. He doesn’t want me to drive when I’m upset.
At least one of the Lane brothers cares about me. I get in the car after giving him the keys, feeling like an idiot. Sadly, we have to drive by Reed and Chasity. They see my car coming and Reed holds his hand up in a wave. I stare at him, hating him with everything I am. I don’t even think. I flip him off, thankful Mitch wastes no time in leaving Reed in my rearview mirror—which is exactly where he needs to stay.
In the past.
44 Mitch
Six Weeks Later
“Mitchie the jig is up. Tomorrow Reed is going to the clinic. I’ve put it off as long as I can,” Chasity says. “Personally, I’m glad. To be hot like he is, he’s boring as hell. I thought I might have some fun with him, but he won’t even give me a chance.”
“That’s okay, now that Callie’s living with me, it should be okay,” I tell her, smiling.
I was right. The only push that Callie needed was to see what she thought was Reed and Chasity kissing. She came to me for comfort, and I’ve made sure to be available constantly since. She’s made it almost too easy. I’ve been replacing her birth control for months—even before we started sleeping together—with fake ones, I purchased over the internet. I have access to everything now that I’ve persuaded her to move in with me. She’s been living in our trailer for two weeks. Reed has no idea. I’ve been careful to keep it quiet. I told Callie I was doing it because I know she doesn’t want another confrontation. Really, I just don’t want him to know until he comes to her, thinking he can have her back. She may not be pregnant yet, but it’s going to happen. Callie will never trust Reed enough to go back to him—I’ve done my best to feed her distrust of him, too.