Love After Marriage (Forever After #2) (5 page)

It was time to go home.

I exited the bar and jumped into my car as thoughts raced through my head. What an asshole move——to storm out of the house right when she revealed she was pregnant. I hadn't contemplated my reactions, I just reacted, which was the story of my life. I always acted on impulse. It was a quality I couldn't shake, and that's why I needed to leave. I didn't want to flip out on her any further, or say something that I wouldn't be able to take back later.

The drive took no more than ten minutes and before I stepped into our place, I dropped my head and pinched the bridge of my nose to calm my racing thoughts. I hoped she wasn't awake. This was one time where I didn't have any of the answers and it was too damn early in the morning to start a full on fight.

All I knew was that I'd have to deal with everything one at a time. But not tonight.

When I flipped on the lights, my eyes zoned in on Beth curled up in a ball on the couch. Guilt rose within me, the type of guilt I couldn't shove down.

Her hair was splayed across her cheeks and both her hands clasped together against the side of her face, a barrier to the cushions. It was like a sucker punch to the gut, realizing that I had just upped and left her. I came closer and watched the slow rise and fall of her chest. A thickness formed in the back of my throat, making it difficult to swallow. She was sleeping soundly, probably bone tired from waiting for me.

She looked like an angel.

With the back of my hand, I lightly stroked the side of her cheek, needing to feel the softness of her skin. "I'm sorry," I whispered.

She was an angel. My angel.

And I was the devil, tearing this angel apart.

I brushed her hair away from her face. She seemed peacefully asleep, but I knew she was anything but. She had been crying. I could tell by the puffiness of her eyes and the redness in her cheeks.

I gathered her up like a small child in my arms. When she stirred, I kissed the top of her head and promised myself that I would be better, do better. I'd always been one to fly off the handle in my previous life, but that was before her.

I exhaled a shaky breath and pulled her closer, feeling the warmth of her body against mine. "It's okay, baby. I'm here. I've got you."

Her arms came around my neck and, when she sighed heavily into me, my chest expanded as I breathed her in.

Was there anything more beautiful?

If there was, I'd never seen it.

When I laid her under the covers, she curled to her side.

After brushing my teeth and getting out of my clothing that reeked of alcohol, I scooted under the covers right next to her, then I spooned her from behind and took a deep breath, smelling her sweet shampoo. Apples.

Holding her reminded me of everything I had, and I didn't want to do anything to screw things up.

I kissed her head and pulled her tighter against me. I couldn't embrace the reality that would be happening in my very near future. It was too much to take. Too much responsibility. A baby? I didn't think I could handle it.

But for tonight, all I wanted to do was hold my beautiful wife, my angel. Everything else, I'd deal with tomorrow.

* * *

B
eth
:

The warmth was overwhelming. I wondered if we had turned up the heater last night. I tried to kick off the covers, but I couldn't. With the palms of my hands, I rubbed my eyes and awoke to Kent's leg draped over my lower body in a tight vise. Both of his arms were snaked around my shoulders. He was hugging me as if I was his body pillow, dead asleep and snoring softly. I slowly maneuvered from under him to turn off our alarm.

I didn't know what time he had decided to make an appearance last night, but the reek of his liquor-filled breath told me what he had been up to.

"Hey, get up." I tried to wake him, but he didn't budge.

My blood boiled, thinking about last night. I swung my knees over our bed and made my way to our bathroom to get ready for work. When I was showered and changed, I nudged him to get him moving. "Kent," I said, giving his shoulder a little push. "It's time for work. You'll be late."

He stirred in his sleep and hugged the pillow, which now replaced where I was once sleeping.

"Kent," I said, a little louder.

He only dug his face into the pillow. I could’ve tried harder to get him up, but I didn't. I was still angry with him for leaving me in the middle of our argument. And then he’d gone and gotten wasted to the point that he couldn't get up for work. His fault.

There were important topics we needed to discuss, but I wasn't ready to talk about it this morning. There wasn't enough time before work.

I stomped into the kitchen, pulled out a pad, and left him a note. After grabbing my keys and laptop bag from the counter——for the first time in a very long time——I decided to leave without him.

I got into my car, the silver Porsche Cayenne that I had picked out for my birthday, then I glanced back at the empty second spacious row and pictured a baby car seat behind me. A soreness emanated in the back of my throat. The reason that I had purposely handpicked a truck was because it was a family car, a car that we could use in the future. Who would’ve known the future would already be here?

The sky was tinged with orange, hues of pink and red as the sun rose in the background. I drove downtown and laughed without humor as I literally saw red in front of me. My blood boiled again at Kent for taking away my happy moment and for not comforting me when I needed him. Didn’t he realize this unexpected surprise was stressful for me too? Didn’t he realize that I was scared out of my mind about the months ahead? I knew nothing about motherhood and babies. My childhood was one big circus with my mother as the Ringmaster. It was a miracle that I had turned out somewhat normal. I had no idea the first thing about raising children.

I wasn't fully myself yet as I trudged through the glass revolving doors of Plack Industries, but I did feel lighter. Work occupied me, kept me busy, and gave me purpose. In just shy of a year, I'd have a new purpose in life.

The last few weeks, I had trudged around like a zombie. I guessed I had a reason now. Who knew that pregnancy could knock a woman out cold? After stepping into my office and hanging my suit jacket behind the door, I booted up my computer and fired away, answering emails. Before I knew it, I glanced up from my monitor and lunch time was here. I wondered if Kent would get me for lunch. My shoulders tensed because I didn't want to have our heavy-hearted conversation during our lunch hour.

I stood and made my way to the printer outside my office and picked up my printouts, when I heard someone speak my name. "Well. Well. Well. Hello, Miss Bethany Casse."

I flipped around as the familiar voice I hadn't heard in years filled my ears. "Oh my word. Jason?" I squinted, realizing it was really him, before I fell into his hug. "What the heck are you doing here?"

He patted my back, tugging me in a tighter embrace. "Working." When he pulled back, his eyes assessed me. "You're a sight for sore eyes. B, I haven't seen you in years. You still look the same. Still beautiful, I see."

Jason’s hair was short and spiky. His former lean self was now stockier, built like a football player.

I chuckled at him. "Funny, you're not the same Jason I remember. That Jason had two earrings." I took a step back and smiled. "Anyway, what’re you doing here?"

"I work here now. I mean, I’ve been working for Plack on a contractual basis." One thing that hadn't changed was his boyish good looks.

I tipped my head. "I didn't know you worked for Plack."

"Well, as you know, half of Bowlesville works for Plack." Plack Industries was the major manufacturing plant that occupied Bowlesville, the small town I’d grown up in.

He ran one hand through his hair, a mannerism that hadn't changed over the years.

I smiled. "I thought you moved. Last time I heard from Kendy, you were working with a mechanic in Clanes." Clanes was one town over from Bowlesville.

He playfully narrowed his eyes at me. "B, are you keeping tabs on your ex-boyfriend?"

I laughed. "You wish," I said, slapping his shoulder. "God, how long has it been? Seven years, at least. What do you do for Plack?"

"I guess racing and fixing cars when we were in high school paid off because, when I started at Plack, I was trained to fix their heavy duty packaging machines, and now I'm managing a team there, overseeing the operators of those machines."

"No way." My eyes widened. "That's so great."

"What? Did you think I'd be racing cars the rest of my life?" He raised one dark eyebrow and chuckled.

"No." Yes. But I didn't voice that.

At one time, Jason had been perfectly fine staying in his comfort zone in Bowlesville. That had been one of the main reasons we never worked out. I wanted the big city lights, which had brought me to Chicago. "It's just so odd that we’re working for the same company. That's nuts."

"Even though you weren't keeping tabs on me.” His tone turned playful, yet his eyes were serious, never wavering from mine. “I certainly can't avoid keeping tabs on you, Mrs. Bethany Casse-Plack, controller of Plack Industries, CFO-in-training. Married to Kent Plack, COO of Plack Industries."

Warmth spread to the tips of my ears. The situation could not have been more odd. My ex-boyfriend was basically employed by my husband.

"Look at that blush," he said, grabbing my shoulders. "Don't be shy. You really did good for yourself. All your hard work has paid off. You were always good with numbers."

"You didn't do too bad yourself, Mr. Manager."

"Well, when some girl left me to move up in the world, it really was my wake-up call to make more of myself. Maybe it was my way of trying to win her back. Guess it’s too late now, huh?" His eyes shined with pride and something else...longing?

I shied away, shaking the thoughts from my head. "Jason, that was like eons ago." I averted my eyes, wanting to change the subject.

"Hey, are you free for lunch right now? I was going to grab something to eat?" He glanced at the clock on the wall, then looked to me for a reply.

I forced a smile on my face while my vision clouded with a figure behind him.

* * *

K
ent
:

There was no right or wrong side of the bed for me, but there was a right way to wake up and the wrong way. The right way was next to my wife, before my wife got up, almost every day since we'd been together. She had always been the heavy sleeper, and I was always the one getting up before her, showering, and making her breakfast.

So when I woke up embracing a cold pillow instead of my wife’s warm body, I knew this day was not going to be a good day. It didn't help that I had a massive headache and it felt like there was a firing squad doing their drills in my brain.

When I finally strolled into the office around lunch time, I scanned the area for Beth. My mood had plummeted from bad to worse as I watched her hug a taller, broad male that wasn't me nor my father.

Tension rose to my neck, and I fisted my hands at my sides. But I maintained composure.

All instincts in me wanted to rip her away from him. Who the hell was he anyway? It took all of my self-control to stay in one spot as I observed their interaction. Internally, I went down my list, wondering if there had been an announcement of a new employee starting. If there was a memo sent, I obviously missed it.

She smiled at something he said, and that tension in my neck rose further as my face strained with irritation.

I hadn't seen her genuinely smile like that in forever, and it made my blood boil that this male was getting this reaction out of her that was usually directed toward me.

When he grabbed both of her shoulders, all self-control was lost. After loosening my collar, I charged across the room toward them, like a bull out of his pen seeing red.

B
eth
:

"I'd love to have lunch today, but I can't. I’m so behind with work. Rain check?" I said, smiling up at Jason.

"Sure thing, B." Disappointment crossed his facial features, which made me rethink my rain check. Could he still have feelings for me? There was no way. It had been seven years. I was sure we were past that.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Kent stomping toward us, and my stomach dropped. I recognized this side of Kent. If looks could kill, Jason would’ve been dead on the floor.

I had never known Kent to be the jealous type when we were merely friends, but boy was I wrong now that we were married. Kent was jealous if someone sneezed in my direction. If I even talked to anyone of the opposite sex that he didn't know, he would be right beside me. Even at the office, he had sworn up and down that the mail boy had a thing for me. I had told him he was crazy and the next thing I knew, a female mail carrier was delivering my mail to my desk.

His rushed pace slowed to his normal casual swagger right before he passed Jason.

Smooth. Real smooth. I tried not to roll my eyes.

He pulled me to his side. "Baby, you going to introduce me to your friend?" He leaned down to kiss my cheek, staking his claim.

Annoyance prickled my skin, and I moved slightly from his grasp. He noticed my rejection and the fake smile on his face faltered. "Well?" Kent prompted.

I blatantly ignored him, still not settled from his outburst last night. I was just glad he had lost his alcohol stench.

Jason’s eyes darted between us when I didn't answer right away. "Hi, I'm Jason," he said, extending his hand to break the awkward silence.

"Kent Plack. Beth's
husband
." The slow way he enunciated husband was clearly for Jason to hear. Kent reached for his hand with a firm grip and sized him up. I exhaled an annoyed sigh. When would men get that girls didn’t go for the whole ‘whose balls are bigger’ antics? Since I'd been with both men, I wanted to break off Kent's grip on Jason's hand and tell him, 'Relax, you've got the bigger balls'.

"So how do you know each other?" Straight and to the point with no small talk. That was my husband.

"From high school," I replied. The minute it slipped from my mouth, I regretted it.

From the small minuscule change in Kent's stance, I knew he knew who Jason was. 'The Jason'. Of course he knew. I'd only been with one man before Kent.

"Jason Timson?" His voice tensed and the muscle in his jaw jumped.

Only Kent would remember the last name of my ex-boyfriend that I had probably mentioned only a handful of times. Great. His select hearing barely remembered the chores I reminded him to do, but of course he remembered Jason’s last name.

"Yes, sir.” Jason nodded. “That would be me. My regular place of office is in the Bowlesville plant, but I'm down here for a couple of weeks. I'm a hired consultant overseeing the new machinery that was just installed six months ago. I'm at corporate for a while to familiarize the execs with the next wave of packaging machines in the market."

"Well. Great. Welcome," Kent said, with a smile that didn't reach his eyes. He turned to me. "So, Beth, are we going to lunch?" His stance turned authoritative, and I didn't appreciate his caveman behavior.

I took a step back, my eyes tight. "I can't today, Kent. I've got too many things to do." Even though Jason was in the vicinity, I couldn't tone down the attitude. I was far beyond annoyed to even care.

I turned back to Jason. "Jason, it was great seeing you. I'll see you around okay? Rain check for sure," I said, giving him a small smile.

"Later, B," he said, letting me pass. "Kent, it was a pleasure meeting you." Jason seemed sincere and instantly I felt sorry for him that he had to experience Kent’s rude behavior when he had done nothing wrong.

"Yeah." Kent's voice was curt and I knew he didn't care that he was acting like a jerk. That was Kent——jerk, spoiled, and entitled.

I heard his footsteps behind me as I strolled to my desk. I didn't meet his eyes as I pulled out my chair and positioned myself in front of my computer screen, ignoring him on purpose.

"Did you get my message? I told your secretary to have you call me."

"Yeah, sorry I was busy."

A muscle in his jaw jumped. "Yeah, I saw that."

My eyes flipped to his, angry, but he changed the subject so fast it almost gave me whiplash. "What’re you working on that's too busy for lunch?" he asked, his voice terse.

I turned back to my keyboard. "I need to finish these financials for Stanton. They're due at the end of the week."

He stood silent behind me, and all I could hear was my fingers tapping away. I tried to ignore his presence, but he just stood there, lingering and breathing down my neck.

I flipped around, still aggravated and hurt. His interaction with Jason had not helped my mood. The baby was a surprise, yes. But when Kent had stormed out, leaving me a mess, it had awakened memories of my childhood. Ones where I was abandoned by own mother at the age of five and left to my dear Nana. I had never met my father. He hadn’t wanted me either for the exact same reason——I’d been an unwanted surprise.

"Yes?" I asked. My face pinched into an annoyed expression. "Did you need something?"

"We need to talk." He leaned in and pressed his palms on the edge of my desk, his eyes expectant.

"Okay, now? On your terms. I see." I turned to face my computer again and let my fingers type away. The hurt from my past was bleeding into the present, and I vowed to myself that I wouldn’t repeat history. My jaw tightened as I said, "We could have discussed things last night, but wait...you decided to leave me and get drunk."

He huffed loudly. "I'm sure you don't want me to talk about our private matters in the office. Let's go to lunch."

"Yes, you’re right, but no to lunch. I'm busy, like I told you."

He sat on my desk, right next to my computer. "Is that why you left me this morning? Did you have a busy meeting with your ex-boyfriend?"

I pushed back my chair and flipped around to face him. "Are you serious right now? Really?" I reached for some papers on my desk and marched to the copy room. I decided I would ignore him. His question did not even deserve a response.

He followed behind me and shut the door.

"So?" The intensity in his lowered voice was annoyingly harsh.

"I'm not answering your stupid question." I placed the papers on the copy feeder and watched the paper flow through the machine.

"I want to know why you left me this morning."

"Simple. You were too drunk from 'thinking’.” I lifted two fingers in air quotes. “And you wouldn't get up. Plus, I didn't want to be late."

"Did you know Jason worked for Plack?" he prompted. "Did you, B?"

I narrowed my eyes at him. He never called me B; only Jason did.

I jutted out my chin and lifted my nose in defiance. "I'm surprised you didn't know. I would’ve thought you would know all about Jason Timson." I laid out the heavy sarcasm as the sounds of the copier echoed through the small room. "Of course, you would make this whole thing about my ex-boyfriend, when it has nothing to do with him. We have bigger issues than my ex working for Plack!" I yelled.

"Fine.” His jaw was set, his gaze alert. “I want to talk about our issues, so we can get all of this behind us."

He sounded like a broken record that I couldn’t fix. "I'm not ready to talk right now, especially not at work." The office was not the place to talk about something this serious.

"I don't want to drag this on any further, Beth.” There was a desperate edge in his voice. “I think we should discuss this and just get it over with."

"I told you, I don't want to talk about this here, and I'm not ready. One discussion is not going to solve this. This," I pointed to my stomach, "is going to be with us, with me for a long time. It's not something you just get over!"

He flinched and my heart plummeted to the floor. I bit my cheek hard, trying not to let the emotions show on my face.

He ran both hands through his hair. "I'm sorry, okay? There, I said it."

"Great apology there, bud. What’re you sorry for exactly? I know.” Though my tone screamed sarcasm, tears were seconds from spilling over. “You're sorry that you couldn't put a cap on it and here we are. That's what you're apologizing about. That's why you ran out of our place like someone had set it on fire." The first of my tears broke free. Damn it. "Well, you know what? I'm not sorry. Not one bit." Yes, the baby was unplanned, but I would never be sorry for him or her. I tore my gaze from my husband’s. "Sorry is not going to fix this, Kent. It's not going to make things go away." I shook my head. "I told you I don't want to talk about this right now and definitely not here. Please. Just leave me alone.”

There was a knock on the door, and Dad peered in. I wiped the corner of my eyes with my fingertips and straightened out my skirt.

"Kent. Beth. Everything okay in here?"

"Yeah, Dad, everything's fine," I said, mustering a small smile. This was exactly why I didn’t want to have the baby talk at work.

Kent’s gaze dropped to the floor.

Dad stared at both of us for a second before speaking.

"Both of you. In my office. Now."

* * *

K
ent
:

I'd been to the principal's office numerous times when I was in high school, but from the way Beth sat at the edge of her seat and wrung her hands tightly together in her lap, I knew she'd never been in trouble with authority. My father served as the principal at Plack Industries, and here we were in his office, getting reprimanded. I had a sudden urge to reach for her hand because she looked like she was nervous but more than that, it was as though an overwhelming sadness had consumed her. Sensing her melancholy mood was like a punch in the gut because I knew that it had everything to do with me.

Jack Plack sat behind his wide mahogany desk, one leg propped against his knee. Behind him, on a matching mahogany bookshelf, were pictures of me when I was younger, pictures of my mother, and pictures of Beth and my wedding day, all displayed in gold frames.

"I don't know what's going on, nor do I want to. It's really none of my business." He scanned both of our faces. "I've been married almost forty years, and I know that sometimes you guys will have your tiffs. God knows, me and your mother have gone through ours. Either way, you guys will get through whatever it is you were fighting about." He scooted his chair in closer so we would have his undivided attention. "But I highly suggest you don't settle this at work. You both have been very professional about keeping your private lives separate from your work life so far. I assume this one time is an isolated incident?" He raised an eyebrow, his eyes flickering toward Beth, then focusing on me.

We both nodded in unison.

"And I assume this will not happen again, correct?"

I leaned in, blocking Dad's view of Beth. Maybe her nervousness would ease. "Dad, it won't. I take full responsibility. Beth didn't want to discuss our issues at work, and I can't function when we’re fighting, so I wanted to resolve it."

"Alright then." Dad nodded and stood from his seat. "Since this is settled, I have to get back to work."

"Sorry. It won't happen again," Beth said, with a firm gaze.

We both got up to leave, but stopped when I heard my father call my name. I was familiar with his tone——the tone that told me that I was in deep shit. "Kent, I need a word with you."

With one last look, my wife shut the door behind her, leaving my father and me in the room together, alone.

I took a seat and let out an exaggerated sigh.

If he heard it, he ignored me as he continued. "I'm going to talk to you as your father now, not as your boss." My father propped on the edge of the desk, nodding toward the seat I had formerly occupied.

My father always had this look on his face when I was about to be talked to, or more so, lectured to. When I was in high school, I'd learned how to tune him out yet still look like I was paying attention.

"I've been married a while so I know a few things about marriage." Dad folded his hands in front of him. "I know it's not easy, and I know marriage is a lot of give and take. It also takes loads and loads of compromise. But in the thirty eight years that I've been married to your mother, I've only seen her cry a handful of times. Most of those tears were happy tears, like on your graduation and wedding day, but some of those tears were not so happy tears. And I'll be the first to admit, I'm an ass sometimes."

If I could nod in agreeance without seeming like an ass myself, I would have. My father’s work and his drive to succeed consumed him. When I was younger, his time was focused on work and I knew that was what frustrated my mother the most.

My father’s firm eye contact met mine. "I'll admit it. Sometimes I'm not giving her what she wants or not listening to her needs. It breaks my heart, and I hate it when I see my wife cry because I love her beyond words. Every time she does cry, I know it's my job to make it better, to fix it. It's what I promised on our wedding day in front of God and the whole congregation. For better or worse, it's my job to fix it, to erase those tears and to make her happy."