I took a deep breath in and let it out slowly.
“That’s all you can do. Wait. ”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
JEFF
I knew Ari was going to be pissed when I got back. I shouldn’t have left without talking to her. Fuck! I slammed my fist on the steering wheel. By the time I got to Rebecca’s apartment, a friend had gotten her text message for help and showed up. Right as I was pulling up, I got a text message from Rebecca, saying she didn’t need me. Too fucking late now.
I parked and started to get out of the Jeep.
“Jeff! I’m so, so sorry, honey. I tried to send you a text as soon as I could. I hope this didn’t cause too much trouble for you,” Rebecca said.
“No, it’s okay. ” I looked over at the guy who was doing something to Rebecca’s battery. I started to walk over and he slammed the hood shut right before I got to it.
“It’s okay, dude. I took care of it. Nothing that a little bit of Coke on the battery posts won’t fix. ”
I just looked at the guy. He seemed nervous. I turned back around and looked at Rebecca, who had a huge smile on her face.
“Well, since you’re here do you want to see the baby’s room?”
Fuck me. “Sure, but I really need to leave in like two minutes, Rebecca. Everyone is waiting on me. ”
Smiling she hooked her arm with mine and led me into her apartment. After we walked through the living room, she opened up the door to a room that was pretty much filled with boxes and shit that looked like it needed to be put together.
“Wow, what the hell is all of this stuff?” I asked.
Rebecca let out a giggle and started to walk into the room.
“Well, it’s the crib, basinet, changing table and other things like that. I have a hard time leaning over and such, so I haven’t had a chance to put it together. My brother was going to help me, but he never seems to have the time. ”
I looked around. There was a ton of shit. The walls were white, and I remembered her saying that she wanted to paint them.
“Don’t you need all this stuff out of here to paint the walls? Who’s going to move all of this? You can’t do it, Rebecca. ”
When I turned to look at her, the smile on her face was almost one of victory. I was beginning to think that Josh was right. She’d planned for this to happen. This was all just a way for me to get over here to see all this shit and feel sorry for her. Fuckin’ A.
“I know I can’t move it, Jeff. That’s why I was hoping that you would be able to help me. The sooner, the better before the baby comes. ”
“Well, you have until the middle of August. It’s just the middle of June, so you have two months. ”
Rebecca frowned. “Yes, I know, but I don’t want to wait until the last minute. I’m getting bigger by the day. I need this taken care of, like, soon. Are you free sometime next week, maybe?”
I hate this. I was so torn. For the sake of the baby, I wanted to help her, but I knew Ari was going to flip the fuck out.
“Let me talk to Ari, and I’ll get back with you. I really have to go. ”
As I turned to walk away and she grabbed my arm.
“Wait a minute, Jeff. This is your baby. What do you need to talk to Ari about? I mean, is this how it’s going to be? If we have a birthday party, are you going to have to ask Ari if it’s okay for you to be there? This is not going to work. ”
I just stood there looking at her. Is she serious?
“Listen, Rebecca, you dropped a huge bomb on me last weekend. My whole goddamn world has just been turned upside down. What I thought was going to be my future has just possibly changed. So, yeah, Ari is a big part of my future. My goal in this life is to not hurt her. If that means talking to her about any decisions I make regarding this baby until it’s born then so be it. ”
“I’m sorry, Jeff. I didn’t mean to seem insensitive to Ari. Of course, I understand your need to talk to her, but for fuck’s sake, we’re talking about painting and putting together some baby furniture. I’m not asking you to move in with me. I feel guilty for not including you in things up until now. I mean, you missed out on feeling the first kicks, the sonogram, and discovering that it was a boy. I’m just trying to make it up to you by including you in all of this. If Ari can’t see that… well, I hate to say this, but that’s her problem. If she was more secure in your relationship, then she would understand. ”
“Ari is not insecure in our relationship, Rebecca. Listen, I really have to go. Let’s plan on doing the baby’s room next week. I have someone coming out to the ranch to take a look at the horse stables. I’m not sure what day he’s coming. After I find out, I’ll get with you, and we’ll plan something. ”