The Last Thing (15 page)

“There’s nothing to tell. We went on one date and it was
nice.”

“Like nice? Or
nice
nice?” She wiggled in eyebrows
suggestively.

“Oh gross, no. We are so not having this conversation right
now.”

“Come on. Things are so dull with Barrett and me. I need some
spice to get by on.”

I chose my words carefully.

“Things are different than it was with Bash…”

“How so?”

“Easier. It’s like we don’t even have to try. We’re just
comfortable together.  It’s hard to explain.”

“It’s love.”

She said the words as I took a sip from my cup, and a spray
of water shot from my mouth. “What?”

“It’s love. You love him. I can tell.”

“I don’t even know him. I didn’t even tell Bash I loved him
until we had been dating well over two years.”

“Apples and oranges, Quinn. You can’t compare the two relationships.
The sooner you figure it out, the happier you’ll be.”

The happier I’d be. Of course, happy was what I wanted.

Chase

The house was empty and quiet. All the lights were off, and Quinn
was cooking up a storm on the stovetop. She knew her way around a kitchen. She
poured in spices and flipped the eggs without hesitation. She’d make a perfect
mom. I could see her making dinners and after school snacks. Something that had
never turned me on before, but right now, oh, all I wanted to do was throw her
on the counter. Who cared if the food burned?

“Hungry much?” I joked from my seat on the barstool.

“Of course, I’m always hungry.  I throw all my food up
during the day so this is the only time I can eat.”

I made a face, not wanting to hear about her latest bathroom
antics. “Gross, Quinn.”

“You better get used to it.” She pointed a spatula at me
while she talked. “You’re about to see me at my worst. No make-up, fat, and all
kinds of moody.”

I stood up and closed the few feet of space between us before
encircling her waist with my arms. There was no way that she’d ever look
anything but absolutely gorgeous to me.  Most of the girls I’d been around
were obsessed with looking perfect all the time, but this girl right in front
of me wore nothing but an oversized t-shirt with her hair pulled up on a
ponytail and still looked miraculous.

“You’ll always look great,” I whispered into her ear. I
couldn’t see her face, but I could tell she was smiling.  Who would have
ever thought I would be settling down with a baby on the way? Not this guy,
that’s for sure.  She held up her hands and stepped out of my embrace.

“I don’t appreciate your lies,” she said sarcastically.

“Smells good though. What you cooking there?”

“Chorizo con Huevos.” She pointed to a plate of tortilla
warming in the microwave.

“Hell yeah! My mom used to make this all the time.” I rubbed
my rumbling stomach. I hadn’t had a taste of home cooking in a long time.

“After you told me your mother was Columbian, I wanted to
make you an authentic meal.”

“You’re turning me on so much right now.” I grabbed her by
the waist as she spooned the food on our plates.

We had spent almost every day together over the past
week.  I worked on set of
Timelines
during the day and spent time with
Quinn in the evenings.  I’d even gone to my first red carpet premiere
alone. Quinn didn’t want to take our relationship publically yet, and it didn’t
feel right taking another girl.  Papers buzzed with stories about my first
step out onto the red carpet without a girl by my side. There were even rumors
of a fight with my newest girl of the week, Chloe. They could talk all they
wanted.

 Every evening Quinn cooked me dinner, and we would eat
together while watching a movie. The night always ended with a simple goodbye
kiss. That was as far as I pushed her. We had spent a lot of time together, but
our conversations had never gotten personal. We needed to talk about the baby
and our future. Our plans. I’d been holding off on talking with my publicist
until we decided what we were going to do.

“I think it’s about time we come up with a plan of action,” I
told her as we ate.

“What type of plan?”

“Well, what we’re going to do for one. How are we going to
raise this baby? Are we going to live together or are you staying here? Do you
need any money?”

“Do we have to talk about this now?” She took a few bites of
her food and pretended to be engrossed in it. “I mean we’ve got plenty of time
to work out the details, so let’s just enjoy what we have now.”

Something in the tone of her voice, her body language, seemed
as if she was pushing me away. She didn’t want to commit, I understood that,
but that was supposed to be my role not hers.

“Are you at least going to quit your job?” I asked.

“No, why would I do that? I need to save up money. Babies are
expensive.”

I sighed loudly and put my hands on the side of my head. Why
wouldn’t she let me help?

“I’ve got plenty of money.” My entire body tightened up. She
wasn’t planning on letting me help at all. I was the father. I was supposed to
be there for everything, not abandon my family the way my own father had.

“I know but I want to be able to have my own money, just in
case.”

“Just in case what?” I snapped.

She pushed her plate away from her and leaned back against
her chair. “Just in case you decide to leave me.”

“Why would you even think that I’d leave you?”

“Look. We barely know each other, who’s to say you won’t find
someone better tomorrow? I can’t compare to all of those Hollywood starlets.
What if you decide that you don’t want to be around me?” By the time she
finished talking her voice dropped to almost a whisper.

“Quinn, I would never leave you.” I reached out to put my
hand on the back of her head and forced her to make eye contact with me. “Even
if things don’t work out between us, I’ll still be here. Can’t you just agree
to trust me?”

She gave me a faint smile; one that I didn’t see often.

 “Thanks, I really needed to hear that.”

“Sure thing, listen anytime you start to have doubts all you
need to do is talk to me. We are in this together now.”

“Really?”

“Damn fuckin’ straight, plus, I would never compare you to
those other girls. You’re in a whole other league.”

“You’re sweet. Not what I expected at all.”

“Let me guess. You thought I was self-centered, arrogant, and
a huge man-whore.”

“Yup.”

“I was, but I’m trying to be better than that.”

“Good.”

I let her finish the rest of her food in peace before we went
into the living room to watch a movie. She didn’t invite me upstairs, and I wasn’t
about to push my luck with her. As always, I’d be pacified with the living room
cuddle up for now. I couldn’t pay attention to the screen though. All I could
think about was her warm body next to mine. The way her head fit perfectly in
my shoulder. It was like we were two puzzle pieces perfectly matched.

“Do you work tomorrow?” I asked her halfway through.

“No, I’m off tomorrow.”

“I’ve been looking into buying a house for some time now. I
would love it if you would join me tomorrow with my realtor. My loft is way too
small for a baby.”

She hesitated before replying. “Will the paparazzi be
following you?”

I shrugged. They lined the outside of the nightclubs trying
to capture a shot of whoever came out, but other than that, they were never
around.  “I seriously doubt it. We’ll be visiting private properties
anyway. Do they scare you?”

She curled in closer to me. “Last week, Ginger and I were out
shopping and someone must have tipped them off. When we left, they surrounded
us. I don’t like large crowds.” She squirmed a bit. “They were swarming us from
all sides.”

“Well, my dear, Hollywood life is definitely out of your
future,” I said with huge dramatics and put my hands to my cheeks in shock.

She rolled her eyes and hit me in the shoulder. She winces at
the impact. Grabbing her hand, I ran my fingers over her scratched up palm.

“Did they hurt you?” I place a kiss on it.

“It’s nothing. Some guy knocked over in all the excitement.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me! Did you go to the doctor?”

“It’s just a scratch from the sidewalk. Nothing is broken.”

I take a deep breath to control the blood pumping through my
veins. “If you say so.”

She pulled her hand back. “Where are you looking to buy
anyway?”

“Beverly Hills.  I’m a sucker for gorgeous views, or
maybe Calabasas.” I wiggled my eyebrows at her, which only made her laugh
more.  I liked it when she wasn’t so tense. Maybe I could break down some
more of her walls.

“You really want to live so close to…that life?”

“What?”

“Big mansions next to big celebrities. Wouldn’t you want to
find something more low key?”

“I hadn’t ever thought about it.” I ran my fingers along my
chin in thought. Maybe living somewhere a bit more low key would protect my
privacy better.

“It was just a thought. By the way, I have a doctor’s
appointment next week. If you want to come along,”

Sighing, I sat up straighter and rubbed the back of my neck. I
wanted to be there, but scheduling conflicts had me in New York for the next
few weeks for a film.

“I can’t,” I told her with a sympathetic face.

“No problem. It’s not an important one anyway.” Her face
turned red from embarrassment, and she waved her hand as if she didn’t care. It
must have taken a lot of courage for her to ask me. I didn’t want her to close
up again.

“I want to be there, I promise, but I’ll be filming in New
York starting next week and it will be, like, eighteen hour days. I doubt I’ll
have time to fly back,” I explained.

She gave me the cutest little smile of relief, which made me
reach out to stroke the side of her face. Her skin was smooth like porcelain,
so fragile. I understood why she kept me at a distance; my past wasn’t
something I was proud of. Yet she knew all about it, it was her past that had
me curiously clawing for details. Why did she move so far from home with no job
or plan in mind? What happened to her ex-boyfriend? He had died, but it wasn’t
my place to ask why and she had never offered up the information.

“When are you going to tell me what you’re running from?” I
whispered into her ear.  She turned to me, her eyes cold. She looked
distant as if she were no longer here with me. 

“Let’s enjoy what we have right now and leave the past behind
us. I don’t bug you about all those girls you were with so give me the same
respect,” she snapped.  I moved back away from her on the couch.

“Sorry, didn’t realize that was such a touchy subject.”

“Well it is.”

Normally I would have let my temper get the best of me. I
would have said and done some hurtful things.  However, there was
something inside of me that ached, something that longed to save her from
whatever demons she hid.

“And when you decide to let me in, I’ll be here.” I leaned
forward and grabbed her hand.

She bit her lip, her eyes full of curiosity.  “People
always leave,” she stated before turning back towards the TV.

 I didn’t know what she meant, but deep inside someone had
hurt her more than she liked to let on.  I could be the one to show her
commitment. I would never be my father. I wouldn’t walk out on my family when
things got rough. I had to convince her to rely on me.

By the time the credits started rolling on the screen; Quinn was
passed out on my lap. Her breathing was steady and her hair fell softly around
her face. I picked her up and carefully carried her up the stairs. Having her
in my arms reminded me of our first night together and it took all my
self-control not to kiss her.

 I wasn’t certain which room was hers, but I found a room
with the door open. I noticed her work uniform on the floor by her dresser, so
I walked over to the bed.  She whimpered as I set her down, but didn’t stir. Her
huge shirt had ridden up to reveal her long creamy legs, which were getting
tanner from the California sun. I couldn’t see the baby bump yet.

I pressed my hand to the warmth of her stomach. It was in
there, a baby that belonged to us both. It was an incredible miracle that I
couldn’t even begin to fathom. I could do it. I could be a better man for them
both. There was no doubt that when I put my mind to something, I finished it.  Even
though she was sleeping soundly, I bent down to place a small kiss right
underneath her belly button. I lingered for just a moment, feeling her stomach
more with each breath. Moving my hand from her stomach, I went to cover her up
with her blanket. Suddenly, she reached out to stop me. She peered up at me
with heavy eyelids while her hand gripped me tightly.