It took a while, but I was eventually able to book a flight back to California. Who knew so many people flew on Thanksgiving? It was close to nine when we landed at LAX, and by the time I got home, it was late. I dropped my bag at the door and made a beeline to my room. I climbed into bed and pulled the covers over me. I wanted to stay there forever.
Unfortunately, I had a business to run. I wasn't expected at the Sea Siren today, so I considered just hiding in my bed, but that made it too easy for the thoughts about Sam to drive me crazy. Thoughts likehad I made a mistake?
To make them stop, I decided to go to work. Because yesterday was Thanksgiving, the lunch crowd would be low, although our evening crowd would probably be back to normal. The busyness of it all would distract me.
When I arrived, everything was running smoothly. I couldn't decide if it was a good or a bad thing. It was good that all was well, but it proved that I was unnecessary in making that happen.
"Hey? We weren't expecting you back until tomorrow." Lucy came up and gave me a hug. But then, her smile turned to concern. "What happened? Oh, God, did he not take the baby news very well?"
God. One more thing to add to the growing pile of guilt. "I didn't tell him. I was planning to do it on Thanksgiving, but then everything went sideways."
I went back to my office, sitting in my chair as all the thoughts swirled in chaos again.
"What happened?" Lucy closed my office door and sat in the chair by my desk.
I looked up at her. "Sandra and Chelsea showed up on Thanksgiving."
She looked surprised, and then her face had an expression that suggested she understood. "Well, Chelsea is his daughter. His parents are the grandparents. I guess that makes sense."
I remembered how Sam told me he wasn't Chelsea's father. Why would he say that? "The girl called her Grandmother, and then Sam had the nerve to tell me he wasn't Chelsea's father. It was like déjà vu all over again. A punch to the gut."
She nodded. “I'm so sorry. I’m sure you confronted him about that. What did he say?"
This was where things got really confusing. "He turned it all around. He accused me of going to New York with him as a way to get back at him, to make him love me and then dump him like he did to me."
"Really?" Her expression showed the same amount of confusion I was feeling. "Did he say that? Did he say that he loved you?"
"It doesn't matter. You're missing the point. He lied to me."
"Did he really?" She arched a brow. "If I remember correctly, you weren’t very interested in hearing what he had to say about five years ago."
God, was she going to take his side too? “All his coming around and talking about second chances and how it was only me and always me, what else was I supposed to think?"
"Exactly that. That he loved you and wanted a second chance." She leaned forward, giving me a pointed stare. "But you have a tendency to make judgments around things that you don't have the information about and yet refuse to hear the information. It's not fair to him, and all it does is make you unhappy."
"It doesn't matter now." Inwardly, I cursed as I realized I was saying the words that Sam mockingly cast back at me. "I need to work."
She stood. "I know that in any other situation, you would completely close off to him, but you're having his child, Kate. You can't keep that from him."
"I know. I just want to think about it right now."
A sense of relief washed over me. When she left my office, I turned my focus on what I came to do—work hard and forget Sam, even if it was just for a few hours.
Of course, when I got home, all the thoughts came rushing back. All of them were telling me one thing—that I had messed up. I should have stayed and talked with Sam. Fear and pride had shut me down and driven me away.
I was about to get ready for bed when a knock came on my door. My heart stuttered and hope filled it. I rushed to the door, flinging it open.
"Ethan?"
"I'm sorry to just drop in like this, but I tried calling and sending a few texts, but I didn’t hear from you. Lucy says you came back early. She also told me about the baby."
I wanted to be mad at her for that, but they were married, and he was my brother. I let him in. "I don't know what I have to drink." I'd only been gone a couple of days, but it felt like a year.
"How about I make us some tea?" He went straight for my kitchen.
I followed him in and sat at the table.
"It sounds like maybe Sam didn't take the news well."