The Suspicious Proposal (7 page)

Lena rubbed her head. "Honey, please don't be so hard on yourself. You were conned. You were tricked. You had no way of knowing that it was going to go that way. How could you have known he was using you in some elaborate plot and scheme? He fooled all of us!" she said with a deep frown. “He's just a dog who loves money more than people."

Brittany leaned up and looked at her. "He didn't fool you. You said he was up to no good. You knew it! I just didn't listen to you. I let myself fall so much in love, and look where it got me. I haven't left my bed in two days and I've done nothing but lay here with a broken heart and a hurting head. I'm such a wreck!"

Lena looked down at her and nodded. "You do look like hell, and this certainly explains why I haven't heard from you in a couple of days. You should have called me right away, though, honey. That's what friends are for. They are there for you during the hard times as well as the good times. I'm always going to be here for you. You are just going to have to get up and shower, though, because I can't let you lay in bed and drown in your own agony. You are a mess. Now, come on."

Lena made her get up. She climbed out of bed and the first thing she did was throw up. Lena helped her clean herself up and made her take a shower.

Brittany came back out of the shower clean but still in misery.

"I'm getting tired of throwing up," Brittany said miserably, as she wrapped her robe around her and climbed into her bed again.

"What do you mean getting tired of it?" Lena asked curiously, as she walked into Brittany's closet and pulled some clothes out for her friend to wear.

"I threw up the other day when Darren brought me chocolates," she said quietly as she stared off into space.

Lena frowned. "Chocolates don't make you sick. Did Darren eat any of them?" Lena asked her.

She nodded. "Yeah, he ate a few of them, too."

"Did he get sick?" Lena asked quietly, walking to her and placing her hand on Brittany's forehead.

"No," she answered. "He didn't. He took them with him, though, when he left, so maybe he got sick later."

Lena sighed. "Oh no... " Then she walked over to the door and picked up her purse. "I'll be back in a little bit. You stay here and get some rest. Take it easy. Is your phone off?" Lena asked, narrowing her eyes.

"Yeah, it's off," Brittany answered.

"Good. No one who should be talking to you is going to call you. I'll be back in a little bit,” she said and disappeared.

"You have your key?" Brittany called out after her.

"I got it,” Lena answered, and then she heard the door close and lock.

Brittany stared off into space for a while and then fell asleep again, and didn't wake up until Lena was shaking her awake.

"Get up, you gotta get up, honey. Come on now,” Lena said, moving her hand over Brittany's shoulder.

"I don't want to get up,” Brittany answered in a quiet voice.

"You don't have a choice. I want you to do something right now,” Lena insisted, pulling Brittany up by her arm.

Brittany sat up and looked at her. "What? What are we doing?" she asked with a grumble.

Lena picked up a bag off the end of the bed and pulled two boxes from it, handing them both to Brittany.

"
Bathroom. Now." 

Brittany looked at the boxes and her eyes grew wide. "Oh no! No... That’s not what's wrong with me! I just got sick because of the chocolates, and because I was upset... I... no! This isn't what's wrong with me at all!" she insisted adamantly.

"Well, we'll know in a minute, won't we?" Lena said, pulling her from the bed and walking her to the bathroom. She pushed Brittany inside and closed the door.

"I'll wait for you right here,” she said firmly. "Get busy."

Three minutes later, there was a loud cry from the bathroom and Lena opened the door to see Brittany standing over the sink with both tests in her hands and both of them had a little blue plus sign on them.

Lena sighed and shook her head, wrapping her arms around Brittany.

“It's alright. You're going to be alright. We're going to get you through this together, and you are going to be just fine. People have babies every single day,” Lena told her in a soft comforting voice.

It didn't help much. Brittany felt like her whole world had caved in even further than it had already been. It couldn't be possible that things could be worse. It couldn't be possible that she could hurt more. It couldn't be possible that anything could have made her whole ordeal with Logan worse than it had been.

Then it was possible.

Lena took her from the bathroom after carefully examining both tests, and led her over to her bed and they both climbed into it and sat side by side.

Brittany began crying all over again.

"What am I going to do?" she asked miserably. "I didn't think it could get worse. It's so much worse!"

Lena shook her head. "We are going to have a baby and you are not going to do it alone. Not any part of it. I'll be here for all of it, and you will make it through, and someday you're going to look back at this and not feel like it was one of the worst days of your life."

Brittany buried herself in Lena's hug. "Do you promise?" she asked as she wept.

"I promise,” Lena told her softly as she rubbed Brittany's back and leaned her head on her friend's head. "Someday this day will have become a blessing."

"You have to promise me that you are going to keep this a secret,” Brittany told Lena. "I don't want anyone to know. Not even Darren, at least, not for a while. Please?" She looked up at her friend and begged her, and Lena sighed and agreed.

"I was surprised that you let him back into your life as much as you have, which isn't much, but I thought you'd have kept him out completely. I'm glad you two are becoming friends now. That's good. I think you two are good for each other, at least as friends, just for now."

"I don't want anything more with him. I don't want anything more with anyone,” Brittany said quietly. "I just need to be by myself."

"Well, you're going to be by yourself, but not for long. You're going to have a little one to take care of soon enough, but between now and then you can try to heal on your own. I'll be here though, of course,” Lena said comfortingly as she held her friend. "We'll make it through, together. We will. I promise you."

Chapter Five

Another two days passed and Brittany returned to work, though she just told everyone she had a stomach bug and she refused to talk about it to anyone. A few people noticed that her ring was gone and she told them that it hadn't worked out, that she had moved too fast and she needed more time. They all said they understood.

She went home one day after work and saw Darren sitting on her doorstep waiting for her.

"What on earth are you doing sitting there?" she asked in amazed confusion.

He shrugged. "Well, I talked to Lena and she told me that you and your guy broke up and I wanted to come give you some support and comfort." He chuckled a little and shook his head, showing her his empty hands.

"I didn't bring chocolates this time, and I'm sorry I made you sick before. I was just trying to be thoughtful. This time I thought I would just come and try to make you feel better just by being a good friend. How are you doing? Did you want to break up with him?" Darren asked, obviously uncertain about how personal he should get with her.

She sighed and sat beside him on the stair in front of her door, both of them looking at the street as the sun shone down on them.

"I didn't want to break up with him. I wanted to keep him, I loved him. I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him, but he was a liar and he wanted to use me and trick me. He wanted me for lousy reasons, and I am not letting any man use me or treat me poorly again. Ever." She looked at him meaningfully and her sentiment was not lost on him.

"What if there was a mistake?" he asked her quietly.

She shook her head. "There was no mistake. I overheard him talking to someone else about it. He was using me, and he wasn't done using me. I was a stupid fool to be with him and both you and Lena tried to tell me that, but I wasn't listening to either one of you, so I'm the one who was caught in the middle. I am the one who got hurt.

“You were right the whole time. I never should have trusted him. I never should have believed anything he said. He was lying to me right from the beginning and when Lena and you tried to tell me, I just wouldn't listen. I was stubborn and I wanted to believe in the love I felt, but I was wrong, and I got hurt pretty bad."

She patted his leg and stood up, looking at him. "It could have been worse, though. I could have found out after I married him."

Darren shook his head. "See, that's what I was trying to warn you about, but now you know. Now you have yourself all straightened out and you're okay."

She knew she was far from okay, but she wasn't about to share that information with him just yet. If they were still friends when she started showing and there was no way for her to hide her growing baby belly from him, then she would tell him, but not before. If he faded away before then, then she wouldn't have had to tell him and she could save a small amount of her dignity.

Darren looked up at her. "So, now that you are done being with him, and you and I are a little closer, do you think that you might consider giving me a chance to win you back? I've changed and I'm not at all like I used to be. I can be a good partner for you now, Brittany. I know you just broke up, so you probably aren't looking for anyone to fill up that space yet, but I want you to think about it carefully and give me some fair thought, okay?

“Consider giving me a chance. We could make it work. It could happen." He looked at her with a hopeful smile. "I can heal your heart if it's broken and I'll be so good to you this time. You won't believe how good I can be this time. Just promise me you'll think about giving me a chance, okay?" His eyes implored her.

She shook her head. "That's really sweet of you, Darren, and I know that you mean it and that you're being genuine with me, but this isn't a good time. I do have a broken heart, but there's more to it than that, and I have to think of... other things... right now.

“So, thank you. I'm glad that we are friends, but I think that's all that we are going to be. I think that's all we are ever going to be, and you need to try to let go of any other hopes or ideas that you might have. Okay?"

She spoke to him gently and he nodded and looked down at the ground as he stood up.

"I understand. It takes a while to heal from a heartbreak. This is going to take a while, but I am going to be here for you through it all. I want to be here for you. When you feel a little stronger, maybe you will feel a little different, and then we can talk about it again. In the meantime, I am here for you if you need anything at all, okay?" He reached his arms around her and hugged her closely, and she hugged him back tightly and meant it.

"I'm glad you understand, and I am glad that we are friends again. I just think it's the best way for us to be. Okay?” 

She didn't want him to know about the baby, and she didn't want to think about what it might be like trying to be in a relationship with him while she was pregnant with Logan's child. It was already much more complicated than it ever should have been, and she needed much less stress and complication in her life, especially since she was having a baby.

Darren hugged her tightly, holding her close to him and he spoke gently in her ear. "I'm here for you if you need anything at all. Don't you forget that."

She nodded and he let her go and turned away from her, walking down the sidewalk waving at her as he left. "I will talk with you soon."

"We'll see,” she said, as she walked into the house and began to rub her belly. She had taken to talking to her child and it had become normal for her already.

"You may not have a daddy, but I think you may have an uncle who will be around for you. I don't know how we are going to make it on our own, little one, but I promise you that I will do everything I can to make it work. I will work so hard to make your life good for you. I'm going to make up for you just having one parent."

She walked into the kitchen and made herself some hot tea. As she was pouring it, she heard a knock on the front door and she rolled her eyes, thinking that Darren might be harder to convince than she had originally thought of her just friendly intentions with him.

She set her tea down and walked to the door, wiping her fingers on her jeans. She reached for the door handle and opened it, a small smile on her face as she said his name.

"Darren, I really don't think-" she stopped speaking.

Darren was not standing on her doorstep. Logan was standing on her doorstep, and he looked as terrible as she felt.

His blue eyes raised up to meet hers and she could see that they were tired and bloodshot. She moved back to close the door on him and he reached his hand out and held the door with it, forcing her to keep it open.

"Wait! Please! Please wait... I have so much to say to you. Please just talk to me!" he insisted, stepping up into her home.

"Get out! I don't want you here!" She looked at him with a hateful glare.

He shook his head. "I had to come. You won't take my calls, you haven't checked my messages, it's like complete radio silence and I can't take it. We have to talk!" he insisted.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "We do not have to talk. You have to leave. There's no reason for you to be here."

"You're here, and that is reason enough for me," he told her, shaking his head. "Just hear me out, okay? Please? You can't just let me go on trying to reach out to you while you ignore me. Give me a chance to tell you what happened, okay? You owe me that."

She felt heat flush in her face. "I do not owe you a damn thing. Get out of my house!" she insisted again.

He sighed. "Please, just hear me out, and then I will go. I promise."

She shook her head. "I don't want to hear anything you have to say to me!" She faced him angrily, crossing her arms over her chest as she held a solid stance.

Logan shook his head, his eyes locked on hers. "Yes, you do. You need to hear that I love you, and I can't lose you."

She stared at him. The entire time they had been together, he had never said it to her. Not once. He showed her with the things he did, and physically loved her, especially being tender and caring with her, but he had never said it, not even when she asked him, or when she told him that she loved him.

It had been one of the things about him that hurt her the most, and now here he was standing before her saying it and meaning it. It was incomprehensible to her. She almost thought that she must be dreaming or at least that she had heard him wrong.

"What?" she asked him incredulously.

He held his palms up in the air and said it again, slowly, his bright blue eyes holding hers almost in a trance.  "I said that I love you, and I do. I love everything about you; I love your beauty, your passion, your strength and dedication, I love your loyalty and your sweetness. I love your silliness and your kindness.

“There is no end of things to love about you, and I love them all and I never told you that, but I should have all along, right from when I began to feel it for you, except now I realize that if I had told you, you wouldn't have believed me. Now I can tell you and you have to believe me because I came all the way here to tell you that and I've never said it before, and you know I wouldn't say it if I didn't really mean it."

He lowered his head in shame and shook it remorsefully, and then looked back up at her, taking a deep breath to continue.

“I screwed up, Brittany, and I know it. I screwed up so bad. I lost my dad just before we began to date, and I didn't tell you about that. He and I weren't close and so it was something I was dealing with in a strange way.

“His attorney sat me down and told me that my father wanted me to have a family before I inherited anything, so that I would have someone to share it with, but he never seemed to want to share his affection, time, or anything with me, so it was strange to me that he insisted on it.

“When I found out about the will, it was right after we had started dating, and you brought up being a couple, but I knew I couldn't promise you that right away, because I knew I was going to have to make a choice. I thought I was going to have to let you go and find someone who would work out for me to have a child with as my wife, so that I could get the inheritance. But the more I was with you, the more I needed you, and the more I fell in love with you.

“I knew I would be taking a big chance that you might say no to me, and then I'd have even less time to find someone, but the more you and I were together, the more I knew that I didn't want anyone but you." He took a step toward her and she held her ground and continued to glare at him.

"I knew I had to take a chance with you, and so instead of breaking up with you and finding someone else to do it, I decided to ask you to marry me. I did actually want to spend my life with you, and then you said yes, and I was so happy! I was so completely elated because I knew that you loved me and I loved you, and it was going to work out so much better than I thought.

“Then Sherman told me that I had to have you sign the prenup as part of the requirements of the will and I hated doing it. I hated it, but then I told myself that we were never going to get divorced, so it wouldn't matter anyway. I knew I was going to have to get you pregnant, but that just seemed like a sweeter part of the deal.

“The more I thought about it, the more I wanted a family with you, so it was just all going to work out anyway, at least as long as I got you pregnant before the wedding, and at the rate we were going, I was expecting it, though it hadn't happened yet."

He walked toward her and she stared at him, watching him in silence as turmoil raged war throughout her. She could not believe that he was standing in front of her telling her that he loved her. She couldn't believe that he had come to talk to her and try to explain what was going on; unless of course, that he was only trying to get her back so that he could get her pregnant and win his inheritance. There was the possibility that that was exactly what he was doing.

"I thought it was all going to go so great, and then the worst thing in the world happened, and you just seemed to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and hear the worst possible thing you could hear." He shook his head. "I wish so much that you hadn't heard that. It really wasn't meant for you to hear, but it did open up the doors of honesty for me.