Ripe: A Stepbrother Pregnancy Romance (16 page)

“You’re a real piece of work, you know that?” Elise stated. “You sabotaged my date on purpose, but even worse than that is the fact that you stood Isaiah up.”

“Well what did you expect? I couldn’t just sit back and watch you go on a date with that slime ball.”

“That’s isn’t your place!” Elise shoved Jesse in the shoulder. “Who do you think you are?”

Jesse looked down at Isaiah.
I’m his father,
he wanted to say, but he didn’t dare. She was already pissed off at him enough as it was.

“Come on, Isaiah. Let’s go.” Elise gave Jesse a scalding look before grabbing her son by the hand and heading back towards her car.

Elise acted like she didn’t see Jesse when she walked past him on her way into work the following morning. This annoyed him beyond all belief. He spent the day being short tempered with all of his co-workers, and word quickly spread to leave him alone. To everyone but Davis, that is. After lunch, he walked into the office with his ever-present air of confidence and his head held high, sliding into his desk as he began telling Robert about his date.

“So it went good, then?” Robert asked with eager inquisitiveness. The awkward man had begun to live vicariously through Davis' pursuits ever since he started working at Stone.

“Well, no, not as well as I’d hoped,” Davis started to explain. “Her kid was there. Apparently something happened with her sitter.”

Jesse smirked. He couldn’t help but feel satisfied with the role he’d played in sabotaging Davis’ plans.

“Damn, that blows, man,” Robert empathized.

“Tell me about it. And her kid…dude, he was so ADHD I couldn’t stand it. I was about ready to spank him myself.”

Hey!” Jesse swiveled around to face Davis before he could stop himself.

“What?” Davis shrugged, holding up his hands. “No offense man, I just don’t like kids. Never have.”

“Then here’s an idea, genius,” Jesse spat back at him. “Don’t date women who have them.”

“Dude, chill,” Davis said, shaking Jesse’s comments off and turning his attention back to his conversation with Robert. “Anyway, after she put the brat to bed, then it was
really
on.”

Jesse clenched his fists beneath his desk in order to restrain himself from punching him. The board certainly wouldn’t like
that
very much. They had their heads all the way up Davis’ ass. For all his shortcomings, he was a savant when it came to closing cases.

Robert let out a low whistle. “Are you serious?” he breathed. “You guys hooked up?”

Davis sat back and nodded smugly. “I don’t know if I’ll be seeing her again though, at least not unless she sends that psychotic brat back to whatever mental institution she plucked him up from.”

“That’s it!” Jesse threw the stack of paper in his hands against the wall and went to grab Davis up by the collar. “Listen jackass, you’d better watch your mouth.”

“Man what is your damage?” Davis laughed and glanced over at Robert. “Last I checked, I’m not talking about anything that concerns you, now am I?”

“The hell you aren’t,” Jesse spat. “That’s my son you’re talking about!”

Davis pulled back when he saw the irate expression on Jesse's face. “Sorry, man,” he said, holding up his hands. “I didn’t know.”

“Wait a second,” Robert spoke up. “So does that mean Elise is your—”

Jesse stormed out of the office and entered the bathroom before Robert could finish his sentence. He splashed a stream of cold water on his face before looking at his reflection in the mirror. He’d lost his temper, an action that, if his past had taught him anything, was always met with negative consequences.

He was sure this situation wouldn’t be any different.

Chapter Twenty-Five

When Elise dropped Isaiah off at Deanna’s the following morning, she was dealt a blow she wasn’t prepared to deal with.

“What’s wrong?” Elise asked when she climbed out of her car. Deanna was standing on her porch wringing her hands, and she could tell by the expression on her face that it wouldn’t be good news.

“I should have called you last night,” Deanna stammered out. “But it was late and I just figured I’d talk to you this morning.”

“What’s going on?” Elise questioned, glancing down at her watch. If she didn’t take off soon, she’d be late for work. “Are you not going to be able to watch Isaiah today?”

“Oh, no, I can watch Isaiah. I wouldn’t cancel on you at the last minute. It’s just that…one of my friend’s from that summer I spent abroad in Italy is here,” Deanna continued, leaving out the fact that Isabella also happened to be her lover. “She’s going to be staying with me for awhile.”

“Okay?” Elise shrugged, not entirely following. She really didn’t understand what had Deanna so worked up. “I don’t get it. That’s a good thing right?”

“Elise,” Deanna said, clearing her throat as she attempted to find the right words. “She’s here because she’s helping me get my things in order. I’m moving there.”

“You’re what?” Elise was sure she hadn’t heard right. “Italy? Jesus, Deanna. How could you keep something that major from me?”

“I didn’t mean to. It’s just…you’ve been going through a lot lately, you know, with your job, and Jesse being back. I just couldn’t figure out a way to break it to you. I was going to wait until Isaiah started school to tell you…but…I just got an offer on a job there. I’m going to be teaching English at a small school in Florence. I start at the beginning of next month.”

“You already found a job?” Elise was having trouble comprehending the information. Not only was she losing her best friend, but she was also losing her sole support system. “Jesus, Deanna, I didn’t even know you were still in contact with anyone in Italy!”

“Well, aside from Isabella, I’m not. Look, I wasn’t expecting to find work so easily. I thought I’d have plenty of time. I’m sorry, Elise, I really am. I can get you through the next few weeks…but then I have to go.”

Elise was at a loss for words, but she also felt terrible that Deanna had gotten herself so worked up with worry on her account. She had a right to live her own life, after all.

“Alright,” Elise finally spoke up, meeting eyes with her friend. “Look, you don’t have to worry about me, or Isaiah. We’ll be fine, I promise.”

“I know you will,” Deanna said, pulling her into a hug.

Elise swallowed down the worry and uncertainty that was building in the pit of her throat. Time wouldn’t allow for more conversation, so she said a quick goodbye to Deanna and sped off to work. The very last thing she wanted to deal with when she arrived was Davis, but as soon as she got settled at her desk, she looked up to find him walking her way.

Elise noticed that he looked slightly uneasy about something and groaned internally. She didn’t feel like being confrontational, but there was no way she was going out with him again. It was obvious enough that he didn’t like Isaiah. There was no use in even entertaining the idea of being with him.

“Uh, hey, Elise,” Davis began, rubbing his neck. “Look, I wanted to apologize for not calling you…”

“Oh, it’s really no big deal,” Elise said, speaking honestly. She tried to give Davis a signal that not only said she was beyond the point of waiting around for his call, but that she’d never been there at all. “I’ve been really busy anyway.”

Davis didn’t take the hint. “Well, the thing is,” he continued. “I was thinking that it would probably be best if we just stayed friends. I mean–”

“You’re completely right,” Elise intervened, wanting to diffuse any awkwardness before it even began. “I’m really not in any place to be dating right now anyway.”

“Phew,” Davis said, relaxing a bit. “I’m glad you’re cool with it, because I don’t think we’re really…I mean—I think we’d just be better off as friends…you know?”

Elise nodded. “I know, and trust me, I completely agree,” she said, plastering a fake smile on her face and pulling on her headset before he could get out another word.

When Davis finally turned and walked away, Andrea looked him up and down and smirked. “Yum,” she said, flicking her tongue over her lips. “That is one delicious man, let me tell you.”

“Trust me, looks aren’t everything,” Elise stated, although even she couldn’t deny how visually appealing Davis was.

“Uh-oh,” Andrea said. “I’m guessing dinner didn’t go that well?”

“I told you he wasn’t for me.”

“Oh right, I forgot,” Andrea said, rolling her eyes. “The kid thing.”

“The
kid thing
?” Elise shot back. “Andrea, I’m a mother. What am I supposed to do? Just switch that off?”

“No, but you being a mother doesn’t mean you have to be romantically dead, either. It’s not like every man you climb into bed with has to be a potential father figure for Isaiah. Just have fun, you know, while you’re still young and hot. If I were in your shoes, I’d definitely be taking advantage of it while it lasts. What are you, like twenty-four? Trust me, sister, it’s all downhill from there.”

“Yeah, well, my idea of
fun
isn’t spending time with a man who looked at my son like he’s a vessel for the bubonic plague.”

Andrea snorted. She took in the expression on Elise’s face and immediately felt sorry for the young woman. Week after week, she always asked Elise what she was doing over the weekend, and it was always the same thing: spending time with Isaiah. Not once did she ever talk about doing anything for herself.

“Elise, why don’t you leave Isaiah with your babysitter for a few extra hours tonight and you and I can go light this town on fire?” Andrea suggested with a smile.

“Can’t,” Elise muttered. “I have Isaiah’s school orientation tonight.”

“Can’t you blow it off?”

“Uh, no,” Elise said, giving her an irritated glare. “That would be really shitty of me. Isaiah is excited about it. It gives him a chance to catch up with friends he doesn’t get to see over the summer.”

Speaking to Andrea about the orientation reminded Elise that she needed to let Jesse know that his visit with Isaiah would have to be rescheduled, which was easier said than done considering she wasn’t speaking to him at the moment. Setting her pride aside, she sought him out at lunch.

Much to her surprise, he found her first.

Chapter Twenty-Six

“Can we talk?”

Elise nodded and followed Jesse out to a secluded spot on the cafeteria patio. He turned to face her, taking note of her disposition before he spoke. She wasn’t sneering at him, and her arms weren't crossed, so he took that as a pretty good sign to continue.

“I wanted to let you know that you were right,” Jesse admitted. “I was completely in the wrong the other night. Who you date is your business and yours alone, and I’m sorry if I messed things up between you and Davis.”

“Thank you,” Elise said. She didn’t want to give Jesse the satisfaction of knowing he’d been right about Davis.

“Although I still think you’re way too good for him…”

Elise resisted the urge to smirk. Instead, she cleared her throat and got right down to business. “Actually, there was something I needed to talk to you about too. I won’t be home tonight. I have to take Isaiah to this thing at his school.”

“I thought he was out for the summer?” Jesse questioned, obviously skeptical. There was no way he was going to be jipped out of his time with his son without a legit explanation.

“He is,” Elise continued. “It’s just an orientation. He gets to meet his teacher and the kids that are going to be in his class next year.”