“Ladies, you’re back sooner than I expected.” He flashes us a wide happy smile, but all I see is the bag he’s packing.
“Where the hell are you going?” I ask. I hear the desperation in my voice, I know I sound like a complete lunatic, but I can’t make it stop.
“Uh,” He frowns at me and pushes his hand through his soft, dark blonde hair. “Nowhere. I was going to ask Jules if she would take Sophie home with her for a few hours so you and I can have some alone time.”
“Of course I’ll take Sophie!” Jules says from behind me. “Nat, will you help Isaac finish loading the baby’s bag while I help Stacy upstairs with her stuff?”
“On it.”
Isaac looks at the three of us like we’ve lost our minds. “What’s going on?”
Jules just leads me up the stairs as I hear Natalie say, “You guys really need to talk, you dumb ass.”
Chapter Three
“So, talk to me.” Isaac walks into our bedroom and crosses to me, planting his hands on his lean hips. Jules and Nat just left with Sophie and we’re all alone.
“No, you start talking. I want to know who you were talking to last night. And who the hell did you intend to send those text messages to today?”
Yes, I sound like a nagging, bitchy wife, but I can’t stop it. I pull my coat off with jerking movements and throw it on top of the bags on our bed and turn back around to face him, crossing my arms over my chest.
“Stacy, what are you accusing me of?” he asks in a low voice, his blue eyes narrowed.
“I’m not accusing, I’m asking. Again. I’ve been asking since last night.”
“I spoke to Brynna last night at Luke’s, Stacy. She was in trouble and is on her way here.”
What? Brynna is my cousin, but we were raised as sisters.
“She’s on her way from Chicago?”
“Yes.”
“But the kids…”
“Are with her.”
“Is she driving?”
“Yes.”
“What the hell, Isaac? Why didn’t you tell me this last night?”
“Because I didn’t want to worry you. It was Soph’s first Thanksgiving, and Matt and I have it taken care of.” He runs his hands through his hair and paces away from me toward the bathroom.
“Why is she coming here?”
“I don’t know all the details yet, I just know that she was scared and said she needed to get out of there fast and was heading here.”
I just stand and blink at him. Brynna, the person I’m closest to in the world, is coming home and is in trouble and I’m just now finding out?
“Isaac…”
“Yeah, I know, in hindsight I probably should have said something, but you would have worried, and I wanted you to enjoy the holiday.”
Okay.
“Where is she now?”
“I’m not sure, she’s taking it slow because of the weather and the kids, but she should be here by the middle of next week. Matt’s keeping close tabs on her.”
Isaac’s brother Matt is a Seattle cop, and I know he’ll do everything in his power to help Brynna. The Montgomery men take care of their family, and because of me, Brynna is family too, so I trust that she’ll be safe.
“Now, about the texts,” Isaac mumbles and my anger sparks again. “Let me see your phone.” He holds his large hand out expectantly.
“Why? So you can delete them?”
“Jesus, Stacy, what is wrong with you? Just give me your phone, please.” He appears exasperated and worried, but not like he’s feeling guilty, which gives me hope, so I hand him my phone. He locates the texts and frowns as he reads through them.
“You got them all out of order.”
“You think?”
“I hate being on two different cell services.”
“Isaac, I don’t think the fact that we have two different plans is the point right now. Who did you intend to send those to?”
“You.” He passes the phone back to me with a frown. “Who else would I send sexy messages to?”
“You tell me.”
“What has gotten into you? I just wanted to send you some fun texts to spice things up a bit. I’m fucking flirting with my wife, that’s all!” Now he’s pissed; fiery blue eyes, jaw set in a grim line, hands back on his hips.
I feel like a complete idiot. I close my eyes and sit on the edge of the bed, lowering my head and bracing my face in my hands.
What is wrong with me?
“Baby, talk to me.” Isaac kneels in front of me and pulls my hands away from my face. He cups my cheek in his hand, brushing his thumb along my skin and I feel tears well in my eyes.
“I thought…”
“I know what you thought, and it pisses me the hell off, but tell me why you went there, Stace. This isn’t who we are.”
I close my eyes again as relief surges through me and I grip his wrist with my hand, keeping his hand against my cheek.
“Since Sophie was born, we seem different,” I whisper and open my eyes. “We’re so busy with her, you with the company, and me with the blog, and we’re always so damn tired. I just miss you. And I know that we don’t make love like we used to, and well…”
“You assumed I’d go looking for it somewhere else.”
It’s not a question. I cringe at the cold edge of his voice and focus down at his chest.
“I’ve never given you a reason to believe that, Stacy.” God, he sounds angry, and I can’t blame him.
“You’re right, and I’m sorry. But you seemed to be hiding something from me, and the texts were a shock. You haven’t flirted with me like that since long before the baby.”
“I know.” He runs his fingers down my cheek before gripping my hands tightly in his. I love how big and strong his hands are. “When we were in Tahiti for the wedding, you were so relaxed and fun, and I realized that I miss you too, babe. The sex was great, and we laughed like we haven’t in a long time. It’s time to reconnect. I want to start dating again.”
“Dating?” I giggle.
“Well, yeah. I want to do things with just the two of us. It doesn’t have to be all the time, because Sophie is part of us, but we have a huge family who would love nothing more than to keep her once in a while, so I say we take advantage of it and spend some time together.”
And I melt. This is exactly what we need, what I’ve been missing.