Ransom Drysdale could count all the things he loved on one hand-his money, his pride, himself, and Juliette Reyes. So when one thing is threatened, you can damn well bet that there's nothing he wouldn't do to protect it.
How far would you go for lo...
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JULIETTE'S MOM WAS FLYING IN FROM FLORIDA AND RANSOM WAS NOT LOOKING FORWARD TO IT. The two had quite the relationship. At first, the woman didn't like him. She knew his mother since their fathers were best friends, so she knew that he was too arrogant for his own good. But after a few months, she realized that he was serious about her daughter and made an effort to actually get to know him. When the pair were together, they were thick as thieves. She was his second mother—having shown him more love and affection than his own. Which was why he was terrified of her coming over to stay with them.
He couldn't go with Juliette to the airport. He liked that though. He was able to prepare a speech and brace himself for a scolding. He just hoped that his mother in law didn't hate him for what he'd done. He also hoped that his pants were wide enough to conceal his ankle monitor.
Juliette was also dreading her mother's arrival. It was no secret that the woman was nosey. She always asked questions, demanding answers to be given to her. Juliette knew that she'd grill her about Ransom's arrest the second she gets into the car. She hoped she was wrong.
As Juliette walked through the airport, she rehearsed what she was going to say. 'No, Ma, I didn't know about what he was doing,' and 'go easy on him, he knows what he did was wrong.'
Her thoughts were cut short when she saw her mother walk through the arrival gates.
As soon as Mariah Reyes saw her daughter, her face lit up in joy. She walked over to Juliette, placed her hands on her swollen belly and smiled down at it. "There's my lovely granddaughter," she exclaimed happily. She lifted her head to look at Juliette. "Oh, and you're here too."
Juliette shook her head with a chuckle and brought her mother into a hug. "Good to see you too, Mom."
"Dios mío, you're so big now!" Mariah gave her daughter a squeeze before pulling away.
Juliette took the handle of her mother's luggage and started walking through the airport. "Well, I am thirty-eight weeks pregnant."
"I can't believe my baby is having a baby!"
The two women walked out into the parking garage and found Juliette's car quickly. Soon enough, they were en route to the large glass house.
"So," Mariah started, breaking the comfortable silence between them, "how's Ransom?"
Juliette could hear the tone in her voice that she wasn't just asking out of innocent curiously. "Ma... Don't do that."
"Don't do what, mija?" Mariah knew exactly what she was talking about.
Juliette sighed, knowing it was better to just indulge her. Her eyes locked on the road in front of her. "Ransom is fine. He's on house arrest and has sessions with a court mandated therapist every few days." Mariah went to open her mouth but Juliette cut her off. "And before you ask, no, I haven't forgiven him yet."
Mariah turned her head to look at her. "Why not?"
"I'm not ready to," Juliette confessed. "I know he's trying, and I can tell his apology was sincere, but I just—I can't yet."
Mariah knew her daughter. She knew that Juliette wanted nothing more than to fall into Ransom's arms and let go of everything that happened. But she also knew that Juliette had a big heart and took responsibility for Ransom's actions. "My love, you are not responsible for Ransom. He is a grown man. You can't hold onto the guilt you have for something you didn't do."
Juliette forgot how well her mother knew her. "I know, but—"
"No, I'm talking." The car pulled into the long driveway. Juliette out the car in park as her mother continued. "You don't know when the last day is the last day. Life is too short to hold grudges."
Juliette's eyebrows furrowed. "Ma, someone died."
"And the universe will handle his punishment. You said he means it when he says he's sorry?" Juliette nodded. Her mother gave her a sad smile. "Please don't punish yourself like this, Juliette."
Their conversation was cut short when the front door opened, revealing the man they were just talking about. He walked out of the house and Juliette popped the trunk. He grabbed Mariah's luggage from the back, then came around to Juliette's side to help her out of the car. He greeted his mother in law, fearing the worst, but instead she greeted him with a hug.
"You and I are going to have a long talk later," Mariah said firmly. Ransom gave her a tight smile as he pulled away, not looking forward to what he knew would be a long lecture about making good decisions.
"It's good to see you too, Ma."
━━━━━━━━
JULIETTE WAS READING IN BED WHEN RANSOM ENTERED THE ROOM. She looked up from her book and a smirk made its way onto her face when she saw his tired expression. "She really wrung you out, didn't she?"
Ransom fell onto the bed, staring up at the ceiling. "You know, sometimes I wish your mom was like my mom and just didn't care about me."
Juliette rolled her eyes at his dramatics. "Your mom cares, she just doesn't show it well." She closed her book and placed it on the bedside table. Ransom rolled over so that he was facing her and propped his head up on his arm.
"She clearly doesn't care enough to give me a forty minute scolding." Ransom pushed himself off of the bed and started changing into his sleepwear.
Juliette watched him as he moved around the room and disappeared into their washroom. Her mother's words floated throughout her mind. Life is too short to hold grudges. Like always, she knew her mother was right. She needed to forgive not only herself, but Ransom too.
With newfound determination, Juliette got out of bed. "Hey, Ransom?" she said as she approached the bathroom.
He looked back at her through the open door. "Yeah?"
Juliette crossed her arms and leaned against the doorframe. Her head rested against the wood. "Can I tell you something?"
He turned and nodded, unable to speak since he was now brushing his teeth.
"So I was thinking about something my mom said earlier, and—" She was interrupted by a mild popping feeling that erupted in her lower abdomen. Suddenly, she felt a gush of fluid between her legs that she couldn't control.
Ransom spit into the sink then turned to her with an expectant gaze. When he saw her wide eyes, his expectant expression morphed into one of confusion. "What is it?"
"I think my water just broke," Juliette said quickly.
Ransom's eyes widened. "What?"
"I think my water just broke," she repeated, this time slower.
Ransom wasted no time calling for Mariah. The older woman came running into the room, ordering Ransom to call his lawyer to deal with his monitor while she got Juliette into the car.
"Mom, she's not due for another two weeks," Juliette panicked. "I didn't get a chance to pack a hospital bag—we don't even have a name! We're not ready!"
Mariah opened the car door and helped her daughter sit down. "Amor, don't worry. I will pack a bag and meet you there, okay? I'll take your car, I'll be right behind you."
Mariah shut the door before Juliette could protest and turned to Ransom who was rushing out of the house. "All good?"
Ransom ran over to the car and opened the driver's side door. "All good."
"Good," Mariah said with the nod of her head. "I'll be right behind you guys. Try to keep that baby in until I get there."
Ransom nodded and got into the car. As he pulled out of the driveway, he placed a hand on Juliette's. "Let's go have a baby."
