Page 83 of The Sacrifice
She tilts her head. “Yes, I think so. It was such a whirlwind at the time.”
“I’m sorry.” Andrew rakes a hand through his hair. “I shouldn’t have interrupted.”
“No. Shit.” I cross my arms over my chest. “My teammates are throwing me a baby shower, and you’re acting like an asshole.”
“Maybe you should have invited me.”
I arch my eyebrows. “Maybe you shouldn’t have walked out of my house blaming me for your sister breaking up with me.”
“You’re right. Can we talk now?”
“Sure.” I nod and walk behind him to a quiet corner of the bar. If it was a Saturday night, there wouldn’t be a peaceful space in the place.
“I shouldn’t have barged into your party.” He shoves his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “Mia and I were eating and saw Ashley hanging all over you.”
“And you thought I was screwing some random chick?”Mia is here?My heart drops to my feet as I scan the room looking for her, but she’s nowhere to be found.
“Yes.”
“Thank you.” I meet his gaze.How could she believe I could move on that quickly?“I might be upset with your sister, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to screw someone else. I meant what I said. I love her, but I respect her wishes and aim to resolve the situation with Roxanne as quickly as possible. At least, I was planning to, but if neither of you believes in me, then I don’t know if there’s a future between us.”
“That’s bullshit. I’m the one that read the situation wrong. Not Mia. And she would only think that because she’s afraid of getting hurt. Not because she doesn’t believe in you. She’s worried everything moved too quickly between the two of you, and you’ll decide she was a mistake.”
Mistake. How could she think I’d consider her a mistake? Yes, things moved fast, but that was because it was right. “Where is she?”
“She left. She didn’t want you to see her upset and feel sorry for her.”
I growl under my breath. The woman and I will have a long talk about love, devotion, and her worth. “I got Roxanne to sign over custody, and my court date is next week.”
“Dude.” He smiles and shakes his head. “You’re amazing. How in the hell did you get her to sign over her rights? And so quickly. Mia was worried it would take months.”
“Please.” I smirk. “I’m the king.”
“Of blowhards.”
After I fill him in on Cade and Lola’s trip to Vegas, he stands across from me with his mouth gaped open. “You are the king.”
I shrug. “It wasn’t that hard. Roxanne is predictable, and Truman is a retired Navy SEAL commander. His team could manipulate anyone into anything before they even knew they wanted to do whatever it was.”
“I’m happy for you. Hadley deserves to have a safe and happy home.”
“When is Mia leaving?”
“She isn’t.”
Thank God. “She’s not taking a job out West?”
“She’s not leaving.” He waves the bartender over to us and orders us drinks. “She opted out of her contract and got a job at the stadium’s daycare. Today was her first day.”
I rub my jaw as different scenarios play out in my head. Do I make her wait? Tell her now? The bartender drops off our order, and I take a large swig of the aromatic alcohol, which is draining down my throat.
Ashley.I march across the room as the wooden planks pop under my weight. “I need the biggest favor you could ever give me. How big of a prick was your dad?”
“Total asshole.” She smiles.
“Perfect.”
“Tell me what you need.”