I Kissed You Back

Chapter Ten

I remember being at work. Everything was normal. I filled out paper work, talked to angry customers, and rubbed my eyes until I thought I would go blind.

And then Maddox showed up.

I froze, looking him up and down until my eyes rested on his perfect face. I choked on air, grasping for words I couldn't find.

"Ari," he breathed, "It's been so long."

"Emerson's birthday just passed," I blurted, "You remember him, right?"

"My son?" he said softly, "How could I forget?"

"He...he's such a good boy. He does everything by himself and the people from his daycare love him."

"I thought so."

We stayed silent for a while, just staring at each other. And then, he said something I fainted over.

"I'm getting divorced."

I woke up in Remington's arms, his eyes boring into mine. I jumped and almost fell onto the floor again. 

"You heard what I said and fainted," he mused, "Is that good or bad?"

"I don't know," I whispered.

"What if I asked you to marry me?"

"I don't know," I said again.

"I'll woo you if I must," he said, and nuzzled my neck, "I love you."

My breath hitched, "Um... I don't know."

Jeez, I sounded like a robot on repeat.

His dazzling smile made me breathless, and pretty much speechless, all except for the  three words, 'I don't know'. I couldn't believe he wanted to... marry me. Be with me. Stay with me?

"How's Emerson? How's... my son?" he asked, saying the last part slowly, as if he were testing the words once more.

"He's wonderful. You missed his birthday. It was about a week ago."

"Is it too late to get him a gift?" he asked wistfully, but then became a little tense, "If I hadn't gone to the wedding, would you have kept him from me forever? Would you have hidden my son away from me?"

"Yes," I said quietly, "I didn't want him to be some bastard of a rich guy. That would make him... that would make me... it's just, you were married. And I didn't want Emerson to have to question why we weren't together and be confused."

"You love him a lot, don't you?"

"He's the center of my world. For a while... I was neglectful. Now... he's always on my mind. I'm going to meet his daycare worker later this afternoon."

"Mind if I... you know," Remington asked.

"I don't, but what if someone asks who you are? What would I say? What if Emerson asks?"

"Say I'm the father. Say that we're... getting married."

"Remington, I don't want to marry you," I said. It was a lie, but... it just wouldn't feel right.

"Why not? Emerson needs a father--"

"Excuse me, but we have been doing just fine, thank you very much," I said hotly, "I don't appreciate you sticking your rich-ass nose in where it doesn't belong."

The familiar fire I came to love shone in his eyes, "It is my business. Emerson is my son. You are... his mother."

"That's why I'm not marrying you!" I exclaimed, "You just want to marry me because you got me knocked up."

"That's not true! For god's sake, did you not here me just say that I love you? Did you hear that? I fucking love you."

"Yeah, and that's why you left. That's why you married her," I said sarcastically.

"It was a mistake! These past few years have been miserable! I can't stop thinking of us, wishing for something more with you. I want our family with the perfect house and white picket fence. The whole shebang."

"No! You left me, and now you can't just come back and pretend we're the same. Because we're not. I'm hurt."

And then, I realized just how deep the wound had been. I had let Remington do exactly what I swore would never happen. Shit. I felt the sting of tears and the lump in my throat. I hid my face with my hands and took deep breaths, trying to stop the flow of tears.

He inhaled sharply and gently tugged at my wrists, "Oh no, you're crying. Please don't. You're not allowed to do that."

I laughed, but it was a garbled sound, a laugh and a sob tied together, "Still as bossy as shit, I see. You asshole, I'll cry if I want to."

"I know," he looked at me with soft eyes, a tiny smile on his lips, "I am really sorry for leaving. And you're right. I don't have any right to just come crawling back here and demand things. I'll wait for you. Am I still allowed to go meet the daycare worker with you?"

"Of course," I sniffed, "Just because you made me cry doesn't mean I would take that away from you."

"Shit, when you say it like that I feel like a dick," he laughed flatly.

"That's because you are one, you dick," I smirked, unable to hide my returning joy. This... this felt right, "Now, I'll just finish up some of this and it'll be three by then. Just... feel free to wait around here."

So he did. I finished work quickly and my estimate of how long it would take me was about right. He didn't make us drive to the daycare in his super fancy Bugatti. He rode beside me in my plain old car. We tried to keep the dialogue light and brief because we didn't want the atmosphere for Emerson to be awkward.

When we arrived, Remington quickly ran around to my side of the car and opened the door for me.

I raised an eyebrow, "Fancy."

His cheeks pinkened a bit

Hello, guys! Wow, it's been a really long time. Summer is almost over and I haven't finished this book like I planned to. That's okay, because it's obvious where this is going... maybe I should kill Emerson.

Ha ha.

I'm so evil.