Mindy Sue unlocked the new deadbolts on their door and walked into their dorm room with a huge smile on her face. She kicked the door closed behind her, executed a perfect pirouette on tiptoe, and did a rockin’ booty dance, shaking her butt with her hands in the air. She stopped abruptly with her right hip cocked out to the side when she spotted Brooke lying on her back in bed. “What happened?”
Brooke pressed her phone to her chest and let the tears fall in a torrent. Mindy Sue sat beside her, pulled her up by the shoulders, and wrapped her in a hug. Brooke held on for dear life.
“What is it, sweetie? Tell me. Is it the stalker? Did he send you that bracelet with the heart charm?”
Brooke grabbed the silver box off the desk beside her and threw it against the wall. “It’s not that.”
“Okay. Definitely pissed at the stalker, but that’s not what’s making you cry.” Mindy Sue leaned back and met her gaze. “Is it the baby?”
“No.” Brooke put her hand to her slightly swollen belly and sobbed harder. “Cod-dy.”
“Has something happened? Is he hurt? What about Cody, Brooke?”
She sucked in a deep, shuddering breath. “He left me a message.”
“Finally. One of you needed to make the first move. What did he say? Does he want to talk about what happened?” Mindy Sue leaned back again. “Did you finally tell him you’re pregnant?” Mindy Sue thought Brooke should have called him the second she found out she was carrying his child.
Cody deserved to know he was going to be a father—twice over. But Brooke had made up her mind when she found out she was having his baby that she’d wait until after the wedding so she didn’t spoil his day. It was just a month.
But now…June!
She didn’t want to wait that long.
“I missed the call because I was on the phone with campus security about the damn bracelet.” Brooke released Mindy Sue and flopped back on her pillow. “He called to tell me they moved the wedding to the end of June. June! He wants me to come to the wedding. He says he and Kristi are in the same place in their lives and they want the same things.”
“Well, you expected this right? She’s pregnant.”
“She lost the baby.” Brooke wrapped her arms around the baby she carried like she could protect it from nature.
Mindy Sue shot up to her feet. “What!” She sat down heavily and made Brooke bounce on the mattress. She took Brooke’s hand and held it in hers. “Oh my God, Brooke. This changes everything.”
Brooke wished that were true, but that wasn’t the message Cody left her.
“Not in Cody’s mind. They’re still getting married and plan to have a family later. He said I have school and my life here. Obviously, he lovesher.”
Brooke’s heart broke over that yet again. “He said I could bring whoever I’m with to the wedding. He thinks I’ve simply moved on.” She was too upset to even process or understand why he’d think that he was so easy for her to replace.
“Asshole.” Mindy Sue held tight to Brooke’s hand. She leaned down and kissed her on the belly and said to her slightly swollen stomach, “I’m sorry, baby. But your daddy isn’t being nice to your mommy.”
Brooke smiled despite how upset she felt about the call.
She couldn’t wait to be a mom. The pregnancy was going well. She tried to find joy in it despite not being able to share it with Cody.
Mindy Sue teased her about her middle-of-the-night cravings for ice cream and oranges.
Though she still had seven months to go, she’d already started working on lists of things to buy for the baby, what she needed to bring to the hospital, pediatricians’ names back home, and daycare centers near her new apartment. She wanted to be a good mom and have everything set up and perfect by the time the baby arrived.
Brooke hated the idea of leaving the baby in daycare, but she’d have to at least a few hours of the day if she was going to work in the bookstore and expand her business into other ventures over time.
Of course Cody would be a part of their child’s life. From the beginning, she planned to tell him about the baby— after he got married.
Now, she’d have to wait until she was only a few months from her September due date.
Mindy Sue took the cell phone and held it in front of her. “Call him. Tell him you’re pregnant. He’ll dump her. You and he can raise the baby together.”
Brooke took the phone and wiped more tears away. She held her finger over the call button, but didn’t tap it.
Instead, she let the fantasy play out in her mind. She’d call him. He’d come immediately. He’d be happy about the baby, especially after losing the one with Kristi. They’d get married and raise their child together on the ranch. She’d spend the rest of her life making him happy. He’d never regret marrying her. They’d be happy together. Forever.
