His Best Man's Baby (17 page)

She cried out, and clutched her stomach, tears spilling down her cheeks. A man who had been strolling to his car turned around, saw her, and rushed over. “Are you having the baby? What do we do? Call the police? Somebody help!”

Tae fought to get control. She willed her breathing to slow so she didn’t hyperventilate, but the pain of Jax being hurt bore heavy on her emotions. “No, please,” she panted. “Don’t. I’m fine. I just need to sit down.”

She wound up back in the doctor’s office, a cup of water in her hand, and a nurse taking her vitals.

“Really, I’m okay,” she insisted.

“Can’t be too careful, Ms. Croft. You’re only seven months. Did something happen after you left?”

She refused to admit her fears. “No.”

“Well, Dr. Chen doesn’t want you leaving on your own. Is Mr. Hart picking you up?”

She almost burst out crying at the mention of his name and the fact that they knew him well enough to know he was always with her. “I’m going to call my…other friend. He’ll be here soon.”

“Okay.” The nurse rubbed her back and straightened. “I’ll be back in a few minutes. Dr. Chen will want to talk to you again. You stay right there, and when your friend gets here, he’ll need to come inside to get you.”

Tae stared down at her phone with the favorites on screen. She hesitated over Daniel’s shortcut, remembering him asking her to call him if she needed him. Then she moved on to Zerita’s number and pressed that. The phone rang several times and went to voice mail. She hung up and called Zerita’s office line. Her friend’s assistant picked up.

“Zerita Fox’s desk. This is Pamela. May I help you?”

“Hey, Pam. Is Zerita around?”

“Hi, Mommy. How’s it going?”

Tae gritted her teeth. Pam’s teasing was the last thing she felt like dealing with at this time. “Fine. Is she there? It’s kind of important.”

“Nope, sorry. She’s in another endless meeting. I don’t know how she gets writing done, but don’t tell them I said so.”

“I won’t.” Tae ended the call with a few assurances that she would keep everyone updated on herself and the baby. She dialed Daniel.
Jax is fine. Jax is fine.

“Baby?” Daniel breathed into the phone. His gentle tone unleashed the floodgates. She cried like a fool, blubbering incomprehensible words. Even as she noted the sympathetic glances from the nurses and confused annoyance from a few patients passing by, she couldn’t quite pull herself together.

“Where are you?” Daniel managed to break through the onslaught.

“At the clinic.”

“I’m on my way.”

He disconnected the line without another word. All she could do was sit there and wait, holding on to the hope that her baby’s daddy was fine. Twenty minutes later, she’d already spoken with the doctor again, and Daniel walked through the door where Tae waited. He paused just inside the entrance, and she would have signaled to him, but stupid emotions overcame her. He scanned the area, spotted her, and then headed over. When he stooped to touch her cheek, she cried some more like an idiot. Daniel drew her into his arms and rubbed her back. He asked nothing while she sobbed it out.

“Oh good, your friend is here,” the chipper nurse said. “Mr…?”

Daniel stood up and drew her to her feet to tuck her close to his side. “Daniel Elliott. Is it okay to take her home?”

“Yes, definitely. Dr. Chen spoke with her. Looks like it’s just emotional. Pregnant women get that way sometimes. Everything seems to overwhelm us, especially in the last trimester. Please, be kind to her and let her deal with it her own way. Call us if you need anything, Ms. Croft.”

Tae ducked her head. Embarrassment kept her mute. Daniel led her to the front of the clinic and out to where he’d parked. She pretended to fall asleep while they rode back to her apartment, but when he saw her inside, he confronted her.

“What’s gong on, Octavia?”

“Don’t talk like that,” she snapped.

He drew her to the couch and placed pressure on her shoulders until she gave in and sat down. She tried to draw away when he took her hands, but he held on. “Talk to me, baby.”

“Please, Daniel.”

“I can’t help if you don’t talk to me.”

She sniffed and looked at him. “Why didn’t Jax pick me up? Is he hurt? You can tell me the truth.”

Daniel looked away from her and then hesitated. “He’s not hurt. He and I were talking. He didn’t want me to tell you but…”

Her heart constricted.

“He can’t look after you the way you need. He intended to talk to you tonight—”

“What do you mean he can’t look after me? I’m not a fucking child!”

“Tae.”

She jerked her hands out of his. “Get out. I’m going to rest. You did your good deed. Now you can go. I’ve been letting you two act like nursemaids, vying for my attention all these months. Well that ends today. Jax should have manned up and told me this was all too much and he was pulling out.” Her voice wobbled, but she cleared her throat. “He just asked… Never mind. I want you to go, Daniel.”

He stood up as well. “I can stay.”

“No, I’m working from home today, so after my nap I’m going to be editing.”

“Have you thought about my proposal?”

She clenched her hands at her sides and spun away from him Putting off telling him about her decision was the last thing she wanted to do, having learned her lesson with Jax. “I’m sorry. I can’t marry you.”

“You can’t, or you won’t?” He walked up behind her and turned her around to face him. For the first time, she felt Daniel’s strength and saw real anger in his face, directed at her. “Is it because of him? Because it’s obvious he doesn’t give a damn about you, Tae. He left you stranded at the hospital.”

“This has nothing to do with Jax.”

“How can I believe that? You fucked him when my back was turned.”

She glared at him and wrenched free of his touch. “Excuse me? When your back was turned? I believe you were marrying another woman, and I was not in a relationship with you. Further more, I’m
still
not. So you can get down off your high horse.”

“I already told you, Tae.”

She tossed her purse on the couch and then removed her sweater. “Already told me what?”

A finger beneath her chin made her duck away, but Daniel wouldn’t be put off. He grabbed her by both arms and drew her closer. For an instant it seemed like he didn’t even care that he pressed too hard on her belly. She opened her mouth to tell him where to go, but he covered her mouth with his. Tae punched at his chest, but he caught her hands and pinned them between them. She couldn’t get away. Her grunts of protest and squirming in his hold went unheeded, and a slice of fear stole her breath. He released her mouth and rained kisses across her cheek and down her neck.

“I’m not letting you leave me,” he whispered in her ear, and a tremor raced down her back. “You love me, and I love you. That should be enough. No, that
will
be enough.”

The front door slammed hard, and she jumped. Daniel took his time raising his head from where he nuzzled her neck and turned half-closed, lust filled eyes toward Jax. Tae looked too, and her fear turned to anger. She managed to break from Daniel’s hold and charged across the room toward Jax.

“I guess I’m interrupt—” Jax began, but she cracked him across the cheek with an open palm. She drew back to do it again despite how her hand stung, but Jax stopped the attack. He frowned at her. “What the hell is your problem, Tae?”

“What’s
my
problem? What’s yours? You left me stranded. You didn’t call, and you…” She clamped her teeth together. No way was she crying again or showing him how scared she was something had happened. He seemed to see it anyway, her terror and devastation. His strong grip on her wrist turned soft, and he drew her over to the couch to make her sit down. When she did, she didn’t look at him, instead blinking rapid fire at the table lamp.

Daniel stood above them, clenching and unclenching his hands. Tae sensed his frustration, but she didn’t give a damn at the moment how he felt. He’d forced himself on her, and if she had thought one signal from her would have made him back off, then it wouldn’t have been an issue. Daniel had crossed the line.

“Tae, please forgive me. Usually when you have that procedure it lasts another hour.”

“So that’s your excuse for abandoning me?”

“I didn’t abandon you.”

“That’s not what I got.”

Jax cast a glance at Daniel, his expression full of suspicion. “What did he tell you, baby?” He focused back on Tae, and she began to wonder.

“Did you tell Daniel you can’t handle me and the baby anymore?”

“Why would I do that when I asked you to move in with me this morning?”

“You did what?” Daniel roared. “Maybe you don’t understand the fact that Tae loves me, and you’re in the way.”

“No, you don’t understand. She’s mine, and she’s carrying
my
baby.” Jax jumped to his feet, getting into Daniel’s face. They were a close match in height and build, and Tae had seen them fight. She knew the damage both could do.

“Only because you’re a lowlife who fucks another man’s woman the first chance he gets.”

“Stop!” Tae moved between them and faced Daniel. “I need you to leave.”

“Me?” He glared over her head at Jax. “What about him?”

“I need to talk to him.”

He didn’t move.

“Now, Daniel, or do I need to call the police?”

His eyes widened. “Tae, you know—”

“Yes, but I asked you to go.
Please
.”

With slumped shoulders, he crossed to the exit and wrenched open the door. She thought he’d look back at her, but he kept moving and disappeared. The door slammed behind him. Jax’s hands came around her waist, but she shoved him away and sat on the couch.

“You’ve got two minutes to explain to me why you thought ignoring me because usually I take longer at the doctor was fine and dandy. In that time, you explain to me why Daniel told me you’re…you…” She coughed, clearing the lump from her throat. “You’re leaving me.”

Amid her protests, Jax raised her up, sat down, and drew her onto his lap. She beat at his chest, and he let her do it. When he didn’t respond and she panted exhausted, she stopped and laid her head on his shoulder.

“I thought you were shot again.” A sob escaped her. “I can’t do this, Jax.”

“I know, baby.” He lifted her chin and made her look into his eyes. “That’s why I was at a job interview.”

She gasped. “A what?”

“First, let me show you this.”

A lot of thoughts ran through her mind when he dug into his pocket, and her stomach knotted as she waited. No squeal of delight bubbled up in her throat when Jax brought out his cell phone. She blinked at it and then at him.

His lopsided grin made her want to find a baseball bat.

“It’s dead,” he explained. “Remember I dropped it on that last case, and I told you the connections were spotty?”

“Yes, you hung up on me a million times.”

He chuckled. “I promise I didn’t, baby. It’s the phone, and now it won’t hold a charge. I was going to take you with me to pick out a new one since this one is crap. I’m so sorry. I thought I had more time. The interview went longer than I expected, and by the time I drove to the clinic you were gone. They told me Daniel picked you up. That one red-headed nurse didn’t look too pleased with me dropping the ball like that.”

“Yeah, nobody’s pleased with you. Least of all me.”

“I beg your forgiveness and promise it won’t happen again.”

“Stop making promises you can’t keep.”

He held up a finger. “This time I can. I got the job.”

“What job?”

“A desk job where I will be safe to come home to my wife and son every night.”

“Your what now?” Tae’s head swirled, and she thought she might fall over.

Jax stood her on her feet. “Come on. It’s time for your afternoon nap, and isn’t this your scheduled day for working? Don’t want to fall behind. We’ll talk at dinner.”

She mumbled protests, but he shuffled her along, kissed her forehead, and shut her into the bedroom. Tae cursed him out under breath and decided to accept him putting her off. If he didn’t mean what he insinuated, there was no sense in her pushing him to explain. The fact remained that Jax got a regular job for her and their child. The man was one in a million.

Chapter Fifteen

Tae stood in front of the full-length mirror as she often did and examined her body, also the norm. Her belly had dropped considerably, and any day now she would go into labor. The knowledge scared her and excited her at the same time. The bedroom door opened, and Jax strode in. “I forgot what you said to—” He stopped cold, his gaze on her nipples.

Tae rolled her eyes. “You act like you’ve never see a naked woman before.”

“Baby, I see you naked every day, and every day is the first time.”

She glanced down and found a tent in his jeans. Men could not fake it. She grinned. “Well stop looking. I just got out of the shower, and you’re not going to get me dirty again.”

He took a step in her direction. “Are you sure about that?”

She retreated. “I mean it, Jax. You act like a horny teenager.”

“Of course. You stopped denying me. I’m making up for lost time. Besides, my job is very hard, and I need a reward.”

“Boy please, you head up the Special Investigations Unit at that insurance company. You’ve got lackeys to do the hard stuff, and they pay you well for it.” When Jax had shared the details of his new position and the salary amount, she’d let loose a whistle. Not only would he do some of the same work he used to do, but it would be steady pay with less danger. In addition to that, he got to train rookies in the field, and they actually looked up to him. The fact that she could tell he was happy in his new position was what did it for her more than anything and took away the guilt.

“Mental anguish from dealing with idiots?” he suggested. “I need your tender loving care.”

“Not falling for it.”

He went into a long diatribe of why she should give in to his charms while he inched closer like she hadn’t noticed. Tae reviewed in her own thoughts how he hadn’t broached the subject of her being his wife again, but they were in the act of moving in together. Jax seemed to think that settled things. She saw it differently.