“Yes. Congratulations, by the way. I hope the birth goes well.” She was surprised she meant it.
“I bet the press would have a field day if they heard about this little conversation,” Nathan said. “But I might be persuaded to keep my mouth shut about it… for the right amount.”
Tired after all the stress and changes and a long week at work, she sat on top of the new Walmart comforter and flexed her swollen, aching feet. She missed her nightly foot rubs. Maybe, if she hired a massage therapist, she wouldn’t feel the empty longing in her heart.
Who am I kidding? I miss Cole.
“Brooke? Are you there?”
“Sorry. I was thinking about something else.” Brooke yawned and rubbed her eyes. “Go public, if you want to. I’m sure that’ll have an effect on whether you get stuck with child support payments or not. I guess that’s up to you.”
“Right… well… uhm…”
“Bye, Nathan. Have a good life.”
Brooke disconnected as the baby began some sort of calisthenics that distorted her belly, stretching one side as if she were trying to escape the confines of the womb. Brooke smiled, rubbing her tummy. She had her baby. Nothing else mattered.
It wasn’t quite true, but she willed it to be so. Cole’s actions, or lack of actions, since Sunday had solidified her decision to end the relationship early. Sure, she’d blocked his phone calls and he had no idea where she was living. But a part of her had hoped he would come galloping into Hayward Home on a white horse and carry her away to live with him, happily ever after.
That hadn’t happened.
Instead, she’d received a visit from Cole’s attorney at work Friday afternoon. He’d handed her a check for $250,000, along with a contract to sign, stating she had received the full amount of the settlement contracted in the prenuptial agreement. Her already broken heart ripped open, realizing that was all Cole was worried about, as if she would go after him for more money. Didn’t he know her better than that after all the time they’d spent together?
Blinking her tears away, she’d signed the contract and waited until Garner left before tearing the check into the tiniest of shreds. She’d scooped the confetti into her hands and dropped it into the black metal wastebasket, watching it flutter down like snow on a dark night.
Cole didn’t love her—that much was certain. The last of her hope shriveled and died, leaving a gaping hole in her soul.
CHAPTER 21
Two more weeks went by without another word from Cole. It was possible he’d tried to contact Harper, but she’d already blocked him, claiming solidarity or some such noble motivation. Meanwhile, the divorce had been delayed, as Cole’s attorney had predicted.
Brooke had canceled her appointment with Dr. Harrison, fearing Cole might show up there. It seemed like a waste to find a new ob-gyn in Houston just in time to move to Oklahoma. As she read the thirty-third chapter in Forty Weeks to a Brand New Life, she wondered if Cole was reading the same thing, following the baby’s progress. He might still care about the baby, but she was torn between wishing he would or hoping he wouldn’t. Mostly, she was tired and lonely.
She missed everything about Cole, but she was surprised how much she missed Gus. They’d developed a nightly routine. She would feed Gus while Cole cooked their meal. After dinner, she’d put her feet up on the couch and Gus would lie on the floor where she could scratch behind his ears. Cole had teasingly complained that she was spoiling him, but being around the dog seemed to lower her blood pressure. Part of her wished she hadn’t spent four months living with Cole and Gus so she wouldn’t know what she was missing.
At least her accommodations had improved a bit. The changes were subtle, at first. Nothing to raise suspicion. Her next-door neighbors moved out, resulting in the absence of drunken brawling that had been her nightly companion when she was attempting to sleep. Some new shrubs appeared in the planter boxes. The parking lot seemed emptier. The putrid smell had vanished from her bathroom.
She’d been relieved when the management posted a note on the outside of every door to set up a schedule for maintenance and updates, to include new paint and carpet. She’d been too drained to consider how unlikely it was for even these small changes to be taking place at the decrepit motel. It wasn’t until she stepped into the motel lobby to pay her fourth-week’s rent that sirens went off in her head.
She couldn’t see the face behind the newspaper, but the man’s torso looked all too familiar. Arms folded over her chest, she tapped her foot on the tile floor in front of him. “You might as well give up. They don’t make newspapers big enough to hide someone like you, Mack.”
The paper came down, and Mack gave her a grin as big as his neck. “What would you say if I told you I’m here to see a friend?”
“I’d say I think you’re lying.” She rubbed her temples as the ramifications of Mack’s presence sank in. “Will you give your boss a message for me?”
“Gladly.” He ripped his phone out of his pocket. “If he doesn’t fire me for getting caught.”
“Would he really do that?” She was horrified to think of Mack losing his job because of her. “Just don’t follow me anymore, and I promise he’ll never find out from me.”
“I’m afraid I can’t do that. He’s my boss, and besides, there’s a witness.” He tilted his head, his eyes darting toward the scroungy man at the lobby desk, who’d taken her check a few seconds prior. “That’s one of our men, Phil Mackenzie. Phil, meet Mrs. Miller.”
“Wait a minute. You work here. You’re here every time I pick up my mail. How can you work for Mack, too?” She didn’t mention he was so creepy-looking that she always kept one hand on the mace in her purse.
The greasy-headed Phil smiled, revealing horrible broken and decayed teeth. “Sorry for the subterfuge, Mrs. Miller. But I’m glad I don’t have to wear these anymore.” He removed the fake teeth, his white, perfectly-even ones appearing out of place on his grimy, unshaven face.
Cole had been spying on her, all this time, probably laughing at her efforts to get away from him.
“You tell your boss that—”
“Hold on!” Mack said, as he tapped on his phone screen and aimed it at her. “Now. Go ahead and speak your piece. This way, I won’t have to repeat it.”
She hesitated, a little intimidated to be recorded, but this was a great chance to let all her frustrations out.
“Listen to me, Cole Miller! I can’t believe you have your security team here spying on me! You have no right to interfere in my life!”
It felt good to yell at Cole. So good that she took a deep breath, preparing for another round. But his voice came from the phone’s speaker, and her heart performed a double flip.
“Technically, I’m not spying on you. I’m simply protecting my property.”
Mack flipped the phone, and Cole’s face appeared on the screen. Her breath caught in her throat. She’d already forgotten how beguiling his eyes were. But she had to stick to her guns, no matter how good he looked.
With his eyebrows arched to his hairline, Mack stuck his phone in Brooke’s trembling fingers. He jerked his chin toward Phil. “We’ll go wait outside and give you two some privacy.”
She stiffened, not willing to back down. “Married or not, I’m not your property.”
“Yes, but the Starlight Motel is.”
