Meanwhile, Corrie strokes my curls again. “I know, sweetheart. Zane is an asshole, and you deserve so much better than him.”
“But why?” I sob in a muffled tone. “Those weeks we spent together were the best in my life, and I thought we had something special between us. How could I be so stupid?”
Corrie stops and turns me so I’m facing her.
“Listen to me, Jem. You are not stupid. Zane is the idiot. He evidently is living in another century, and if he got hung up on a woman’s virginity, then he doesn’t deserve you.”
I sniffle and wipe my eyes. “But it feels like it’s my fault,” I moan. “Maybe if I’d come clean sooner, things would have ended differently. He wouldn’t have been so upset.”
Corrie sighs, her expression sad. “Hon, it sounds like he was going to be upset no matter what. He’s that type of guy.”
I snort through my snobs.
“Yeah, because he’s an asshole billionaire who always gets whatever he wants. How foolish I was to think that he’d like me even I came clean.”
I start crying even harder, as Nora toddles into the room.
“Aunty Jem-Jem?” she asks, her bottom lip trembling. I look up and the toddler’s sad face breaks my heart.
“It’s okay, Nora. Your aunt is just a fool.”
But that only makes the toddler begin to wail, and soon there are two of us letting out our agony in the room as Corrie tries to soothe us both. But then, a banging on the door makes us stop momentarily. Corrie rolls her eyes.
“Justin probably forgot his key again. I’ll be right back.”
She goes to let him in, but instead of Justin’s voice, I hear the unmistakable rumble of Zane’s snarl. He steps into the living room, huge, handsome and very, very angry.
“Zane?” I blink. “What are you doing here? How did you even find me?”
“I remembered you told me your hometown, and I did some digging until I found this place,” he manages in a stiff voice. “It wasn’t easy, but I’m here. We need to talk. Do you mind giving us some privacy?” he asks Corrie.
My buddy crosses her arms belligerently. “Hell no! This is my house! And not if you’re going to break my friend’s heart again.”
Zane looks at me, looks at her, and then back at me before seeming to make up his mind. Then he drops to his knees before me on the carpet. I gasp, my eyes wide, as Corrie sweeps her baby girl into her arms. But to Zane, they’re just part of the scenery because his blue gaze is fixed on me, burning with intensity.
“Jemima, I’m so sorry,” he croaks, “and I’m here to beg you for forgiveness. I never should have treated you the way I did, nor should I have had those ridiculous notions about virginity. I love you, no matter what. I don’t care if you’ve been with a thousand men before me because you’re the best thing that’s ever happened in my life, and I can’t lose you.”
My hands cover my face but then I drop them, my expression stern.
“Are you serious, Zane? You came all this way to tell me this?”
He looks a bit stumped.
“Yes, and I hope you’ll forgive me for being such an idiot. I got caught up in what I thought I wanted, and I guess you could say I’m a billionaire asshole who’s so used to people kowtowing, that I couldn’t deal when something didn’t go my way. I know this is a surprise but I tried to find you at the hotel yesterday, but it was too late. That’s why I’m in Wyoming now.”
I stare at him.
“You are an asshole one hundred percent. You know that, right?”
At least he has the grace to look ashamed.
“I am, Jemima,” he acknowledges. “There’s no excuse for the way I behaved.”
I take a deep breath before fixing him with a look.
“And you’ll never do that again? Storm off and leave me humiliated in a public setting?”
Two spots of color are high on his cheeks.
“I went back to find you afterwards, but you’d left. God, I could kick myself for acting like such a fucking dumbass because I love you so much, Jemima. My heart crashed when I thought I’d lost you forever.”
I nod.
“Okay fine. I suppose I forgive you then.”
He looks a little surprised.
“You do?”
“I do,” I say in a grim voice.
Zane looks totally perplexed now, and I can tell the huge man has no idea what comes next. He’s still on his knees on the carpet, dressed in an expensive suit, with Corrie and Nora looking on breathlessly. Then, I tell him my secret.
“And by the way, I’m pregnant too. And I love you as well, Zane. I will never let you treat me that way again, so take that as a warning of sorts. Otherwise, this baby and I are out of your life forever.”