His Change of Heart: Unexpected Pregnancy Romance (2 page)

     He had politely excused himself when he saw Melissa getting too clingy with him or when he saw her coming his way. But it hadn’t been enough to deter Melissa. She had still sought Will out at every opportunity she got and continued to flirt with him. She remembered the other Lawyers had teased Will, and made reference to Melissa having the hots for him, but Will had assured her that he would never get involved with Melissa or cheat on her with another woman for that matter.

   And she had believed him. She thought their relationship meant more to him than that. And she didn’t want to spend her time obsessing about whether or not Will was cheating on her. She knew it wasn’t healthy for their relationship. And if she ever had the slightest inkling that he was unfaithful to her, she would have dumped him without a moment’s hesitation—there was no way she would have stayed with him all this time.

   Cheating was an absolute deal breaker with her. She would never be with a man who was two timing her, no matter how much she loved him. So, yes, she would be devastated if Will was having an affair with Melissa and she knew nothing about it, especially after he had spent months denying it.

    Will look at her with an incredulous look on his face.

    “What? god, no! How could you even think something like that? What kind of man do you think I am? I thought you knew me better than that, Ave. Melissa is the last woman I would get involve with. Ingram got rid of her a long time ago. He doesn’t respond well to blackmail. Ingram probably spent a drunken night with her and Melissa was using it to coerce him into an exclusive relationship. He fired her right away, especially when he realized there was no way she could sue him or the firm for sexual harassment. They were two consenting adults. As far as I see it, Melissa had her sights set on every lawyer at the firm. I think she was looking for a huge pay day, but it all backfired on her big time.”

    “Well, that’s really nice to know,” Avery told him with a huge sneer.

   Will came and sat on the bed next to her and took her hand. “Look, Ave, I should have said something to you about the job, but I didn’t. I’m sorry. But given the circumstances, I had very little time, and I’m certain you would have done the exact thing if your career was on the line here.”

    “No, I wouldn’t,” Avery shouted at him, pulling her hand away from him, wiping the tears angrily away from her flushed cheeks. “I would have had the decency to run it pass you first before I decide. I would have found the time. We are in a relationship, Will. We are supposed to make certain decisions together, especially when they affect us. I wouldn’t have kept you in the dark about something this important. And I most definitely would not have sprung this on you at the very last minute. So, don’t you dare tell me what I would have done. I’m not you, Will. That’s for sure.”

   Avery was sobbing now. Hot tears running uncontrollably down her face, her bare shoulders shaking. She felt like such an idiot for crying, but Will’s sudden announcement had caught her so completely unaware that she didn’t know how else to react to it. She had no idea he was planning on leaving New York, and most definitely without her.

    She wasn’t expecting him to announce out of the blue that he was taking a job hundreds of miles away, and they would be apart for god knew how long. She didn’t see any of it coming. He had blindsided her in the worst possible way. Maybe if he had said something to her before, like when he’d found out that he was in the running for the job, she would have had more than enough time to get use to the idea of him not being around anymore, but he didn’t. He had purposely avoided telling her.

   So, yes, she was entitled to cry her eyes out if she wanted to. And she hoped Will was feeling just as badly as she was, but she doubted he was. He seemed calm enough, sitting there, looking at her with mild astonishment, as if he was surprised by her reaction. He was certainly displaying enough composure for both of them. And she felt like reaching up and slapping the smug look from his face.

  He probably didn’t expect her to lose her cool and started crying, either. He probably thought she would jump into his arms and smothered his handsome face with kisses, tell him how happy she was for him, and send him on his merry way with good wishes to conquer corporate America. But she was far from feeling anything like the supportive girlfriend right now. Her heart was aching. She felt like a jilted lover, someone who had been lied to, dumped, left at the altar.

   Will reached over and held her, drawing her close to him so that her head was resting on his chest. She could smell his Calvin Klein cologne and feel the warmth comfort of his body through the cotton shirt he was wearing. And in spite of the seeping anger she was feeling for him, her body responded to his touch in an entirely different way. He has always had that pulsating effect on her. She could never resist him, his touches, his kisses, even when she was mad as hell at him.

And Avery surrendered herself completely to him, giving in to the pleasurable tingling surging through her thighs and the warm sensation rushing through her entire body. For some reason she couldn’t quite understand, she wanted Will. She wanted to feel his touches, his caresses, she wanted him to posses her, all of her like he had never done before. She wanted to feel his hands on her body, making her forget what was going on in the room between them—the tears, the tension, the feeling of abandonment, what he had just said to her about leaving her behind and moving to another city.

   And before Avery realized what she was doing, her fingers reached up and she began unbuttoning Will’s shirt, her hand making its way inside to the warmth of his body. And she ran her fingers slowly through the smooth mass of hair on his chiseled chest, lingering on his hard nipples, and down the front of his jeans. She wasn’t surprised that he was aroused. And she allowed her fingers to linger deliberately on the firm mould of his erection under the jeans, rubbing it slowly, over and over.

    Will lifted his head and gazed knowingly into her eyes, his gaze dropping to her heaving breasts that were on full display. He lowered his head and kissed the top of her breasts before passing his tongue over her taut nipples, taking them into his mouth and sucking them. Avery gasped and tilted her head back, gazing longingly into his eyes.

    And she saw that he was filled with as much yearning for her as she was for him. He wanted her. There was no way of him denying what he was feeling for her. His swollen manhood was a dead give away. They have always had that intense attraction for each other, even when they fought, and this time was no different.

   Avery reached for Will’s hand and she guided his fingers to the moisture between her legs. And she moaned as he caressed her, gently slipping his finger in and out of her suppleness, as his lips searched hers, kissing her, his tongue reaching deep inside her mouth.

   Then suddenly, Avery heard him groan. “I’m sorry, Ave.” He pushed her away, gently, and stood up. “I really am. I shouldn’t. We shouldn’t, not this way,” he said to her, running his fingers nervously through his damp hair. “It will only make things harder for us. I don’t want to hurt you. I wished none of this was happening, but sadly, it is.”

  Will let out a deep whistle and began pacing the room. Avery hated when he did that. It was a nervous habit he had that drove her absolutely crazy at times. There must be something else he wasn’t telling her. He looked serious enough, as if he was about to face off with an opponent in court. But she wasn’t his rival—she was far from it. She was the woman who was deeply in love with him, and she wanted to believe that he felt the same way about her too. They had shared so much over the last thirteen months that Avery thought she knew everything about him, but now she was beginning to wonder if she really did.

    “But you are hurting me, Will,” Avery said to him, looking him directly in the face.

  “God, this is harder than anything I have ever had to do in my entire life.” He whistled loudly.

  “What’s going on, Will. Is there something else I should know about, something you are not telling me? Can you stop pacing? You are making me nervous.” Avery looked at him, waiting for him to answer her. “Did you even think about what would happen to us when you leave? Long distance relationships don’t always work out. Couples grow apart—they don’t survive the long separation. They break up.”

   Will looked away. He couldn’t look her in the eyes. He looked right pass her instead, as if he hadn’t heard a word she had said to him. Avery knew then that that he was going to say something that she didn’t want to hear from him.

   “Oh, my god!” she remarked through a new set of tears. “So that’s it—you are breaking up with me, aren’t you? I should have known. I can’t believe this. No wonder you didn’t tell me about the job in Chicago. You had it all planned. You wanted to break the news to me and then run away like the coward you are. Get out! Get the hell out of my apartment, Will! I don’t want to see you—just leave—get out!”

     She got out of bed, and without bothering to cover herself, she went over to where Will was standing and tried to push him from the room. He didn’t budge. She was no match for his athletic frame and bulging muscles.                                                                                                                                     

   “I didn’t want things to end like this.” He held onto her hands, and looked earnestly into her eyes. “But I couldn’t turn down this job offer. It’s too important. It would’ve been career suicide if I did.”

   “I don’t want to hear your stupid excuses, Will. I really don’t. You are a coward and I was a fool for not seeing it before. You have made your intentions perfectly clear. There’s nothing left for you to say. Just get out and leave me alone.” Avery struggled to get out of his hold.

    “I don’t want us to part ways like this, Ave, I really don’t. I want you to know that I agonize about asking you to come with me to Chicago, but I just didn’t think it was the right thing to do. I couldn’t ask you to give up your job, the life you have here, your friends, and move away with me,” Will said to her, ignoring Avery’s futile attempts to push him out the door. “You would only end up hating me if things don’t work out between us somewhere down the line. I have seen it happened to a lot of people I know.”

    “We are not like other couples, Will. In case you haven’t noticed. We had something more special, what many people don’t have, or so I thought. And you should have left that decision up to me. You should have allowed me to take that chance, find out the hard way if need be. I thought we were in this relationship together, as a couple, but clearly, that wasn’t the case.”

    “I care about you, us.”

    “You care, and you didn’t even have the decency to discuss any of this with me. You accepted the job and made plans without letting me know about them. The way you handled this entire thing speak volume of the man you are, the person you have become. You certainly aren’t the person I fell in love with.”

    “I’m still that person, Ave. The way I went about this has absolutely nothing to do with what we had together, what I feel for you. I’m still in love with you, Ave, but at times we just have to make hard decisions and the people we love most are the ones who get hurt in the process.”

   “Save your self righteous garbage for someone who cares, because I don’t want to hear it! And you certainly have an awful way of showing your undying love for me. You are breaking up with me for god’s sake! You are leaving for another city in a few days!” Avery shouted at him.

    Then she began pummeling him on the chest, lashing out at him as hard as she could. She wanted him to feel some of the pain she was feeling because of him. Will grabbed her hands and circled her naked body with his, drawing her close to his manhood, but this time, being that close to him didn’t excite her. She was too angry to feel anything for him.

   “Don’t touch me,” Avery screamed at him. “Let go of me.” She struggled to get out of his grip.

    Will released her. And Avery went over to the bed and sat dejectedly on the edge, pulling the sheet around her body to cover it, wiping the tears that were pouring down her face.

    “You are one of the most selfish and self righteous people I know, Will Chandler. And I hope I never see you again,” she said to him, giving him a very hard stare.

    “You don’t mean that, Ave. I understand you are upset, I deserve it.”      

    “But I do mean every single word of it.”  She glowered at him even more.

  Will made an attempt to come towards her, and Avery threw the pillow she was cradling against her body at him. The pillow fell close to his feet. And she watched in awe as he turned and walked from the room, and out of her life for good.

Two

  
 
A
very wished she had seen the break up coming. More importantly, she wished she had been prepared for it, but she wasn’t. How could she have known that Will would break up with her so suddenly and the way he did? There was no way she could have known that he was planning to take a job in another city, moving hundred of miles away from her, tossing her conveniently aside. She couldn’t have predicted any of it happening. And he had been so completely nonchalant about the way he had ended things with her that Avery was beginning to wonder if the last year had meant anything to him—if he had ever loved or even cared about her.

    So, yes, she was devastated. And she had every reason to. She also felt betrayed, to some degree. She still couldn’t wrap her brain around the fact that Will had kept something this important from her. It seemed like he had deliberately gone out of his way to keep her in the dark about his plans. She thought their relationship meant more to him, but obviously she was wrong.

  She honestly didn’t know how to deal with any of it, because she had never gone through a break up of such a personal magnitude before. She had always been the one ending things with the guy especially when she knew the relationship wasn’t going anywhere. And she had even remained friends with one or two of her exes. They still called each other once in a while to chit chat about their lives, sometimes to meet up for coffee.

     Besides, she had never been in love with any of them the way she was with Will. Now, she was beginning to wonder if Will had ever felt the same way about her. She was such a fool for not seeing it before. But how could she?  She was blinded by her love for him. And Will had always treated her as if she was special to him—and now this!

    He had dumped her with such calculating precision that Avery was beginning to think he wasn’t the man she had met and fallen head over heels in love with, and still loved. She didn’t want to believe that he would deliberately hurt her this way. She wanted to think that he was better than that. It was the only way she could rationalize what she was feeling at the moment.

   She was still lying in bed almost an hour after, staring up aimlessly at the ceiling and around the room at the partially bare, white walls, when the loud shrilling of the telephone startled her, and she jumped. She didn’t want to believe that it was Will calling her. She didn’t think he would have the nerves to contact her, and certainly not this soon, after the way he had treated her. She would like to think that he had more sense than that.

    She stared blankly at the portable phone on the night table as it continued to ring, and she decided to ignore it, hoping the call would go straight to voice mail. The phone rang a second, third, fourth and fifth time, consistently, before she decided to answer it. She let out a deep sigh and reached over the bed to grab it.

     “Ave...”

    It was Will, and the uncertainty in his voice told her that he didn’t know how she would react to hearing his voice on the other end. She held the phone close to her ear and listened to him. She wanted to hang up, but she couldn’t bring herself to do so. A huge part of her wanted to hear what he had to say to her, mostly out of curiosity. She didn’t think he was going to apologize, but she still wanted to give him the chance to talk. After, she would yell at him one last time, with a few obscenities thrown in between for good measure. She wasn’t into swearing, but this was one of those times that she felt it was necessary—that she should let loose and bring out the sailor in her.

    “Ave, are you there?”

   “Yes, I’m here. What do you want?” she asked him in an annoyed, low voice. She was tired, mostly from crying.

     “I want to make sure you are okay before I leave. I’m downstairs, can I come up? I hate the way we left things. I want to talk to you. It will only take a minute.”

   “No. I don’t want to see you, Will. And I most definitely do not want to talk to you. I have nothing to say to you. And I swear to God that if you come to this door, I’ll call the cops and press charges for harassment.”

    “Fine. I understand you are mad at me—hell, I deserve it, but what I have to say will only take a second. I’ll stand in the hallway if it’ll make you feel better. I just want to talk to you.”

   Silence.

   “Ave, please say something.”

   “Fine, you have a minute—one minute,” she told him angrily and hanged up the phone.

   Will was at the door in seconds. He must have been on her floor when he called her. Avery opened the door reluctantly and let him in.

   “You have sixty seconds,” she reiterated to him in a firm voice. “Say what you have to say and get out. I’m starting to think that allowing you back here is a huge mistake—one that I’m already regretting.”

    She felt like punching him as hard as she could across the face for hurting her the way he did, but getting violent with him wasn’t something she wanted to do. She would like to think that she had more self control than that. Besides, she didn’t think he was worth it. She also didn’t want to cause a scene and gave her neighbors something to talk about, especially on a Sunday morning. She had her reputation in the building to consider. She had only been living there a few months.

   “Are you okay?” Will said to her, as he came inside, ignoring the hostility in her voice.

   “Jeez, Will, funny that you would ask me such a ridiculous question!” Avery’s laugh was short and caustic. “Do you really think that I’m okay?” She turned to face him, glaring full on at him in the process. “You sprung this break up on me, and then you come back here wanting to know if I’m okay. Well, I refused to justify your moronic question with an answer.”

   There was heightened anger in Avery’s voice as she glowered at him.

   “I do care about you, Avery. I can’t overlook what we’ve shared in the last year.”

  “That’s pretty ironic coming from you.”

  He came nearer to her and took her hands in his.

   “I care very deeply for you. I want you to know that,” he repeated to her again, his eyes holding hers.

    “Well, you have a very remarkable way of showing it. Is that what you came back here to tell me? You should have saved yourself the trip.” Avery tried to withdraw her hands from his, but he wouldn’t let her.

   “Yes. I sat in my car for the last while, thinking about you, unable to drive away. I want to make things right between us.”

    “That’s very noble of you, Will, but you have already made your intentions perfectly clear. It’s a little late for your apologies or whatever you are here to say. And if you are here out of guilt or pity, you can leave, because I don’t need either. I certainly don’t need you holding my hands. I can take care of myself.”

    Avery pulled her hands away from him.

     “I realized that.”

    “Then why are you here?” she asked him again.

     “For you—to try and save what we had before.”

     Avery looked at him and brush away a fresh set of tears from her cheeks. She hated herself for crying, but she couldn’t help it. She was just feeling so damn miserable.

  “Oh, Ave, Honey.” Will pulled her in his arms, and she didn’t resist.

   He lifted her almost weightless body into his strong arms, and Avery buried her head into his chest to muffle her sobbing as he carried her to the bedroom. He laid her down gently on the bed, his eyes not leaving hers. Her robe fell apart at that very second, exposing her breasts and the rest of her naked body, and she couldn’t help noticing the look in Will’s eyes as he glanced at her.

    “I hate what I’m doing to you, Ave. I hate to be the one causing you this much pain,” he said to her, kneeling at the side of the bed.

    Avery looked at him and continued to wipe the tears away without speaking to him. Will reached up and took her hands, using his own to brush her tears away instead. Then he lowered his head close to her chest and spoke in a low voice.

    “You were right. I’m selfish and insensitive as hell. I realized that now. I went about this whole thing the wrong way. I shouldn’t have put my job before us, our love. I don’t know what came over me.”

   “What are you trying to say, Will?”

    “That I want you to come with me to Chicago. I want you there with me, Ave. It won’t be the same without you. I won’t be the same. I realized that now. I’m starting to miss you already. I don’t know what it’ll be like for me without you there.”

    He raised his head to look at her. And there was a lot of emotion in his eyes as he gazed at her, and if she didn’t know better, Avery would have sworn that he had been crying when he left. His eyes were red and unusually swollen.

    “It’s a little too late for that, isn’t it, Will.”

   “I don’t think it is, not for us, Ave.” He leaned in and kissed her on the lips. “Please don’t turn me down—say you will come with me,” he whispered to her. “I know it’s what I should have asked you to do before.”

    Avery sat up and looked at him. Funny, if he had asked her that exact question before, she would have dropped everything and followed him, jumped at the opportunity to be with him, but after the incredible stupid stunt he had pulled on her, she wasn’t certain she wanted to take that chance with him again, and certainly not at this moment.

     “Let me see if I’m hearing you correctly—you broke up with me less than an hour ago, then you suddenly had a change of heart and decided that you want to be with me after all.”

    “I made a terrible mistake. I can push back the move to the end of the week, or even next week, give you time to handle things here.”

    “You don’t have to do that, Will, because I’m not coming with you. You weren’t willing to do it before, so why now? Don’t have a change of heart on my behalf.”

    “Please don’t look at it that way.”

   “There‘s no other way to look at it. I’m not an after thought, Will. We were in a relationship for a year for god’s sake! I thought that counted for something, but clearly I was wrong on that one. That’s why I’m going to decline your offer.”

    “Will you please, reconsider?”

    “No.”

   “So, this is goodbye then.”

    “Yes, it is. Goodbye, Will.”

   And feeling suddenly empowered, Avery climbed out of bed to walk him to the door. This time she made certain her robe was pulled tightly around her waist, because she didn’t want it falling open again. Will reached in to kiss her and she stood stoically as he pecked her quickly on the cheek.

    “I really wish you would think about it,” he said to her coolly.

   “I have, and my answer is still, no.”

    “Okay, I have no choice but to respect your decision,” he told her in a resigned tone.

    She could see that he was disappointed, but at this point, she didn’t care a damn. He had brought this entire thing on himself, and on her as well. She also wished that none of it was happening. But it was.

   Will walked out the door without turning to look at her again. She closed the door and lock it behind him. She was trying to be brave, god knew she was, but it was hard. It had taken everything in her to turn him down. Another thirty seconds—another move, or even a touch from him, and she probably would have said yes, threw in the towel and forgave him, but she was glad that she didn’t. It was too late for them. The damage had already been done. As far as she was concerned, their relationship was finished. It was irreparable. There was no going back now to what they once had.