CHAPTER 21
Rylie looked up as Jarrett and Matthew came out the door. Instead of the bloody noses she’d expected, they were smiling. Matthew even patted Jarrett on the back. She wasn’t sure what accounted for Jarrett’s good mood. Was it solely the fact Gabe was going become his legal son? Or was it also because he and Carlie now had another chance at a relationship?
The way Rylie saw it, she had two choices. Option one was to fight for Jarrett’s attention and manipulate him into a permanent relationship. She could point out that staying married to her would mean not having to share custody of Gabe. And she certainly wouldn’t mind kissing him again. But what would happen when their physical relationship progressed to that of a true husband and wife? Wouldn’t her heart be bleeding on the inside, always wondering if he regretted his decision? Wouldn’t she worry that Carlie was always on the back of his mind?
Jarrett had denied being attracted to Rylie due to her resemblance to Carlie, but could he truly know? Sure… when he’d kissed her, there was nothing fake about the attraction between them. Yet Rylie had no desire to forever be the poor copy of Carlie Malone that Jarrett had settled for when he couldn’t have the real thing.
Now was not the time for Rylie to be selfish. If she loved Jarrett, she had to let him go. Deep in her soul, she knew what was best for him. He needed to spend time with Carlie and decide once and for all if he was in love with her. And for that to happen, Rylie had to let him have his divorce.
Besides, his words from earlier kept playing over and over in her head. “God has someone else for you. Someone who will love you the way you deserve to be loved.”
Had her longtime obsession with Jarrett kept her from finding the man God had chosen for her?
Jarrett took her hand and tucked it in the crook of his elbow, humming as he walked her to the elevator.
“I’ll be in touch,” Matthew called, all smiles as he waved goodbye.
Once the elevator doors closed, Rylie tried to withdraw her hand, but Jarrett held it fast.
“Can you believe it?” he said, ignoring her continued attempts to wriggle her hand away. “God answered our prayers! We’re going to be Gabe’s parents!”
“Yes, it’s a miracle. That’s for sure.” She gave up on getting her hand free. “You’re going to be a great father. You already are.”
“And you’re going to be a great mother.”
“On the weekends, I guess, once the divorce is final.”
A ding announced their arrival on the ground floor and the doors slid open.
“I don’t want a divorce,” he said, moving off the elevator without relinquishing her hand. “And I hope you don’t want one either.”
It was so tempting to simply agree with him, but she had to be strong.
She lengthened her strides to keep up with his. “A divorce was what we planned from day one. Nothing’s changed.”
“I disagree. Everything has changed.” Evidently, his walking speed increased in direct correlation to his irritation level because she was practically jogging to keep pace.
“If you walk any faster you’re going to be dragging me on the ground.”
“If caveman style is what it takes, that’s fine by me,” he said, with a lilt of humor, but he slowed slightly.
“Fred Flintstone has never been my type.”
“What is your type?” he asked as he led her through the revolving door. “What’s the other guy like? The one you want to be with so bad you’re willing to throw away everything we have?”
“Everything we have is fake!” She jerked, finally getting her hand away, and stomping ahead of him on the sidewalk. “There’s nothing to throw away.”
“It started out fake, but there’s nothing fake about what we have now. And you know it!” He caught up with her, his limp more apparent than usual. “Look, Rylie. You’re overthinking this. I know that’s what you’re doing, because I do the same thing.”
“Exactly. We’re too much alike. That’s why you’re in love with Carlie.”
“That’s enough!” A tug on her elbow yanked her to a stop. The cold fury in Jarrett’s expression told her she’d gone too far.
“Stop telling me how I feel! I’m not in love with Carlie.” He paused, his searing dark eyes holding her captive. “In fact, I never was.”
What was he saying? It didn’t make any sense.
His phone rang, and he gave an exasperated groan. He ripped it from his pocket, his face blanching as he viewed the screen.
“It’s Lottie.”
The fear in his voice was palpable, and icy fingers gripped Rylie’s gut. It was the first time their babysitter had called them since she’d started watching Gabe, and it could only mean bad news.
“This is Jarrett. What’s wrong?”
Rylie watched his face with growing dread as he listened to Lottie’s response.
“We’ll meet you at the hospital.” He disconnected and turned worried eyes Rylie’s direction. “Gabe’s temperature is 103.5. And he’s been crying. Says his stomach hurts.”
She grabbed his hand, and they raced for the car, Jarrett’s limp unmistakable without his running prosthesis.
“He’ll be okay, right?” she asked.
“It’s an infection of some sort.” The strain in his tone matched the expression on his face. “We knew it could happen.”
They made it to the car, climbed in and buckled the seatbelts, the earlier topic forgotten as Jarrett backed out and sped through the parking garage.
