Replace Me (Kin #2)(11)
Author: Jennifer Foor

“What do you want from me?”

“I want you to promise that you’ll never go to Parker. If you need somethin’, you come to me. From now on, that baby is ours. The truth can never come out.”

She stared out at the barn for a few minutes, I guess to consider that she had no other options. “Fine. As long as the baby is loved, I don’t care if you want to be some hero. I’m not the one who has to live with themselves for the lie. You do. I never should have slept with your brother that night. I guess it doesn’t matter who the father is now, since it won’t ever be Ford.”

“Yeah, I know that upsets you. Look Ash, I’m not goin’ to lie and tell you that I’m goin’ to be great at this, but I will make sure the child wants for nothin’.”

“I hope you do, Shayne.”

When I got out of her car, I felt like I was going to puke. There wasn’t a bone in my body that wasn’t shaking. How could I have made such a serious decision without thinking it through? I’d just signed over my life to raise a child that wasn’t mine.

My entire future had changed in the blink of an eye. Having a child was going to change everything. Knowing that she didn’t want marriage or any sort of commitment I couldn’t give her, I’d still be free to date, but who would want to marry a loser with a kid?

Before I went through with it, I had to talk to Lacey one last time. I needed her to know that I was wrong for what I’d done to her and this time I needed her to listen. She needed to hear that I was sorry, before I told the rest of the family, including Ford.

Lacey

“I saw you talking to Joey last night. Don’t tell me that there’s nothing going on between the two of you. You can lie to Ford about it, but not me, so start spilling.” Sky wasn’t going to let up, even when there was nothing to tell. A couple weeks had passed and he was hitting on me every chance he got.

He wasn’t giving up on trying to get me into his bed. Following his moving in, he made a point to pop in to Ford and Sky’s place every weekend, making sure I knew where I could find him, if I was ever ready to admit that I wanted him.

His cockiness never let up, nor did my relentless attitude to prove that he was wrong.

“I have nothing to hide, I swear. Yeah, he’s sexy as Hell, but I can’t get passed how much of an ass**le he is. It’s not just that. I know you think it’s pathetic, but I’m still not over Shayne. I miss the little things, you know?”

She shrugged and took some finger food out of the oven. “I guess. It’s been a while, though. Do you remember telling me that I should hook up with some strange guy to help get over Mack? Maybe you should do the same. It doesn’t have to mean something with Joey. He’s not a stranger and has made it clear that you would enjoy it.”

“Ford said he gets around.” I didn’t want to be some whore. Friends having an arrangement was different than random hookups. Sure, I’d spent time with him, but all I knew was that he thought he was this great prize. As curious as I was, I also wasn’t about to stoop to that level yet. I needed another reason to go and sleep with someone like him. It couldn’t just be because he said it was going to happen.

“Lace, I’m not saying you should ask him to go steady, but you could at least live a little.”

“You’re asking me to spread my legs for someone. That thing with Mack was different. You needed to get over him cheating. You didn’t want to break up with Mack, but his actions set it into motion. I broke up with Shayne, because I wanted to.”

“No you didn’t!” She shook her head and leaned on the counter, giving me that look like I couldn’t fool her. “You broke up with him because he kept things from you. You didn’t do it because you wanted to end things. You loved him. Shit, you still do. Look, I’m not saying that you should jump into bed with Joey. Maybe that’s a terrible idea, but it, at least, helps you move forward. How long do you plan on moping around, wishing you could turn back time?”

I look down, unable to admit that she was right. We both knew it though. Sky walked into the other room and started straightening up to prepare for her guests to arrive. She wasn’t expecting many, but the apartment would be filled for sure.

Ford walked in with a bag full of groceries and met her for a kiss before coming into the kitchen. “What’s up, Lace?”

“Hey.” I walked out of the kitchen, passing Sky as I made my way to the door. I needed air.

Sky was right. Even if I didn’t sleep with Joey, I still needed to move forward.

Joey’s voice caught me off guard. He was inside of his place, with the door cracked. “Lace, you think you could help me for a sec?” All I could see was that he was standing there, shirtless and his jeans were undone.

My mouth dropped when I stared at the small patch of hair that started at his belly button and trailed down below his underwear line. He cleared his throat, causing me to look up at his smiling face. I tried to play it off; by playing the same role that I’d gotten accustomed to using. “I’m not coming in there so you get me in your bed, Joey. How many times are we going to go over this?”

He leaned against the doorframe and traced the wood with his fingers. “I need someone with small hands to reach behind the couch and get my remote. When I try to move the couch, it bunched up the carpet and I don’t want to risk tearin’ it, but thanks for reminding me how we’re never goin’ to hook up.”

Okay…I felt like a moron.

I threw up my hands and walked toward his door without commenting. When I got inside and he’d closed the door, he pointed to where the remote had fallen behind the couch. “I guess I need to stop putting it on the back of the headrest.”

I got down on my knees and went to reach for it. “Why didn’t you just use a broom or something to pull it out?”

“Because the broom wouldn’t look as good as your ass does stickin’ up in the air.”

I swung my body around and tossed him the remote. “You’re such a dick!”

He was already laughing. “Thanks for your help, and for the show.”

I got up in his face. “This is why you’ll never have me.”

He grabbed my arms and pulled me close to him as I was trying to pull away. I fought him, with no result. “I will have you, Lace.” He put his lips up to my ear and I tried so hard not to like the heat that was igniting from his touch. “It’s only a matter of time before you come beggin’.”