Reckless Redemption: A Bad Blooded Rebel Novel (Bad Blooded Rebel Series) (21 page)

“Is
this about the baby? You two can raise it together without being married.”

“I
know this, and no, this isn’t about the baby. I have wanted to marry Danni from
the second she decided to give me another chance. I’ll level with you, I know I
fucked up badly when we were in New York, I’m sure you know that.”

“I
do,” he answered. “Danni told me what happened.”

“I’m
sure she also told you that I fell into a bottle of any kind of whiskey I could
get my hands on for the next six months after that, didn’t she?”

“She
did.”

“Well,
the whole thing in New York never would have happened if I’d just told her then
that I loved her. I could have saved myself some awful nightmares, some
horrible things I didn’t even realize I’d done, and a whole lot of throwing
up,” I said, trying to lighten the mood. “How you and Brenda can even stand to
be around me after what I’ve done I’ll never know.”

Dan
uncrossed his arms and scooted the chair closer to the table.

“I’m
going to let you in on a secret Beau, one that Danni to this day doesn’t know
and I prefer she never find out. Maybe this will explain why I instantly liked
you when Danni first told me about you.”

“Okay,”
I answered, listening intently.

“Brenda
and I have been married for thirty years and they have been some of the best
years of my life. But they didn’t start out that way. When we first got
married, everything seemed great for the first year. I was already in the Navy
when we met, and Brenda tried to keep in touch as possible when I’d be on base
far away from her. It started to wear on our relationship after we’d hit our
one year wedding anniversary.

“It
was hard on both of us and we ended up spending most of our time when I was
home on leave fighting instead of enjoying each other. Eventually I started
hanging out in bars on my nights off instead of checking in with Brenda.

“One
night we had a particularly bad fight and she told me that she wanted me to
move out. I felt like she’d ripped my heart out, and before I hung up the phone
I told her that I was done fighting and she’d get her wish. After I hung up I
went to the bar and met a girl,” he said, pausing. This was a story that
sounded all too familiar to me.

“Her
name was Katherine. That’s the only thing I can remember about her other than
the fact that she had dark hair and dark eyes. I can’t really remember much
else because I got so drunk that night the next thing I knew I was waking up in
her bed.

“I
felt like shit…I’d never felt so low in my life. I loved Brenda with all my
heart but she had told me she wanted me gone. In the light of day I knew she
hadn’t meant it. I was disgusted with what I’d done and I knew I wanted my wife
back. But I also knew I couldn’t go to her and pretend everything was fine when
it wasn’t. It didn’t matter what our problems were because I’d screwed up big
time. I didn’t think there was any way of getting her back once she knew the
truth.

“I
called her that morning and told her I was coming home and that I needed to
talk to her. I had been granted leave by my superiors for that weekend anyway,
so I knew if I was going to face this, I had to do it in person. Brenda agreed
to see me and I drove all the way back here, ready to accept the fact that my
marriage was more than likely over.

“When
I got home, I knew she could sense what I was going to tell her before I said
it. I sat down next to her and told her the whole truth; that I’d cheated on
her. I will never forget the expression on her face when I told her. It still
haunts me to this day.

“That
day I learned that I married the most incredible woman on Earth. Because
despite what I’d done she took me back with open arms. Brenda said that she
would always be hurt by my infidelity, but that it took strength few men had to
come home and tell her face-to-face. She told me she knew she’d not made it
easy on me and even though that didn’t excuse what I’d done, she still loved me
and would fight for us every single day for the rest of her life. Despite
everything, she believed in us. I think I cried for the first time in a long while
when she let me hold her again. About six months after that we finally made
love again and that’s when Danni was conceived.”

I
sat there stunned. I couldn’t believe what I just heard…Dan had cheated on
Brenda long ago and she forgave him because she didn’t want to lose him. She
saw more good than bad in him and loved him through it all. Just like Danni had
done with me.

“Now
you know why I had an instant soft spot for you, Beau. Yes, you screwed up in
New York, but Danni did too. I love my daughter very much but when she told me
the whole story she wasn’t so innocent there either. She used that Jake fellow
to try and stoke your jealousy, and unfortunately it worked a little too well.
I was on her ever since all of that happened to give you another shot but she’s
stubborn.”

“That
she is,” I finally managed to say.

“So,
to answer your request, yes Beau, you have my blessing to propose to my
daughter and I’m sure you have Brenda’s too. When you and Danni were together
before she was happier than I’d ever seen her. Now that you are back together
and having a baby…well, a father can only hope to see his child be as blissful
as she is every day, and it’s all because of you. Congratulations,” he beamed,
reaching his hand out to me.

I
took his hand and gave it a hard shake.

“Thank
you, Dan, this means a lot. Don’t worry, I will take care of her and protect
her with my life. I love her so much and I promise there won’t be a day that
goes by that she doesn’t know that.”

“You’re
a good man, Beau,” he said, smiling at me.

We
sat in silence for a few moments, drinking our sodas.

“So,
when are you thinking of proposing?”

“Well
I had originally wanted to do it while we were here in town but I haven’t bought
a ring yet. I’ve looked at a few but it’s been hard to get away without her
knowing what I’m planning.”

“Yeah,
it would be hard to do especially when you are a famous rocker,” Dan replied,
winking at me.

“I
was actually thinking about the Fourth of July. The guys and I usually take a
yacht out on the Ohio River, and I thought maybe I could do it when the
fireworks start.”

Dan
smiled at me. “I think that sounds pretty romantic.”

“I
would actually love it if you and Brenda could be there too. I’m sure Everleigh
would love to see you both and I wouldn’t want you to miss out on this special
occasion.”

“Danni
did mention the other day that she wanted us to visit, so I think that sounds
like an awesome idea. If there’s anything you need me to do to help, you name
it.”

I
smiled at him and gave his hand another shake.

“Thank
you Dan,” I said, and before I knew it he stood up and pulled me into a hug.

“You’re
welcome, Beau.”

We
broke apart and he said, “What’s say we get going on this barbecue before our
girls get back, huh? You’ve got a pregnant fiancé-to-be that will be ravenous.”
Dan patted me on the back and we got to work on the food.

Before
long Brenda and Danni returned looking relaxed and happy to have spent the day
together. Danni showed me a bunch of things Brenda insisted on buying for the
baby. I watched her as she held up all the little unisex sleepers, pacifiers,
and bottles, and my heart melted at how much she was glowing. She was already so
excited about our baby and after looking at all the baby stuff, I had to admit
I couldn’t wait to hold the little life that would be small enough to fit into
those tiny clothes.

July

“So,
today’s the big day, Daddy, are you excited?” Ryder asked, clapping me on the
shoulder.

Today
was the day of Danni’s ultrasound and hopefully we would find out if we were
having a boy or a girl. I really didn’t care either way, but I knew Danni was
anxious to know so we could start buying things to get ready for the baby.

It
was also July third, the day before the big proposal; Dan and Brenda were
already on their way to Cincinnati. They would be arriving while we were at
Danni’s ultrasound so Sadie offered to meet them at my house. Danni still
hadn’t decided if she would move in with me or not, even though we were fully
committed to each other. I was hoping that would change by tomorrow night.

“Yeah,
I can’t wait, man,” I answered. “I know Danni’s going crazy waiting.”

“Oh,
I’ve been there. Evie was going nuts that whole morning of her ultrasound. I
think the wait while they were checking things out was the hardest part for
her.”

“You
mean for you,” Jude joked. “You just wanted them to say the sex of the baby so
you could brag that you’d been right all along.”

“I
knew I was right from the minute the doctor said we were pregnant,” Ryder
stated smugly. Ryder and Everleigh had found out last month that they were in
fact having a boy. Max Matthews was officially on his way into our little
family and would hopefully be here right after Halloween.

“How
much longer until you have to leave?” Jude asked me.

We
were all at the recording studio making some final changes to the track that would
be our newest single once we decided on a release date.

I
looked down at the time. “Shit, I’ve got to run. Her appointment is in thirty
minutes.”

Kris
patted my back as I pulled my keys out of my pocket.

“Good
luck, man. Let us know what you find out.”

“You
know it. Oh yeah, Jude, can you make sure Sadie calls me when Dan and Brenda
get there?”

“No
problem, man. Now go get your girl to the doctor,” he said.

I
waved at them and practically sprinted to my Charger. Once I was inside, I
started driving and practically broke the speed limit to get to Danni’s
apartment on time. Just as I pulled into her driveway, she was locking her
front door. I smiled at her as I got out of the car to help her down the steps.

“Hey
baby, sorry I’m a little behind.”

“No
worries. We should still be able to make it there on time,” she said, but I
could tell she was irritated.

After
this appointment I planned on taking her shopping for most of the gender
specific baby items she wanted so badly. Hopefully that would put her in a
better mood.

“Well,
let me get the door for you.”

I
held her hand as I walked her to the car. We quickly got inside and drove the
short distance to Dr. Mitchell’s office, Danni and Everleigh’s obstetrician. As
soon as we parked, I got out and came around the car to open her door. She
seemed to have thawed a little on the drive over and she took my hand as we
walked into the office.

“Let’s
go see our baby,” she said excitedly, and practically pulled me to the office
door. We stepped inside and she quickly signed in. We had barely sat down
before we were called back to the exam room.

I
stood in the corner of the room while the nurse told Danni to lie on the exam
table and to pull her pants down under her belly as far as they would go. As we
waited for Dr. Mitchell to come in, I walked back to her and said quietly, “You
still mad at me?”

Danni
sighed. She smiled at me and answered, “No, I’m not mad. I am just excited
about this appointment and I was worried we’d be late. I didn’t want to miss
this.”

“I
wouldn’t have let you. Listen, I was going to make it a surprise but after this
is over and if we find out what we are having, I want to take you shopping for
the baby.”

“Really?”
she asked.

“Really.
I know we aren’t exactly living together right now, but we will need things for
the baby no matter whose place it is,” I answered, hopefully hinting to her
strongly that I wanted her to make a decision.

She
bit her bottom lip.

“Yeah,
about that…can we talk about it after the holiday? I want to have fun with
everyone for the Fourth and then maybe we can figure it all out,” she answered
with a hopeful smile.

I
was bummed that she didn’t want to talk about it yet, but I shook it off. This
was about to be a big moment for us so I let it go for the time being. I leaned
in and kissed her.

“Sure
baby, we’ll talk about it later.”

I
moved down to her stomach and kissed the now very noticeable round belly that
was already starting to make her belly button pop out.

“I
can’t wait to see you today, Jelly Bean. You need to make sure those tiny
little legs are open wide so Mommy and I can know if we need to paint your room
pink or blue.”

Danni
giggled and combed her fingers through my hair.

“I
love you,” she laughed. I kissed her belly one more time before there was a
light tapping on the door.

“Come
in,” she said, and Dr. Mitchell walked in with a nurse behind her wheeling in a
big machine.