Baby Number Two
Nina Ford
A Second Chance BWWM
Pregnancy Romance
For Adults
Chapter 1
"I can't do this anymore. It's just … it's not working out."
CRUNCH.
Joy balled up yet another wedding invitation and tossed it across the empty classroom she was grading her sociology professor's exams in. Angry tears welled up in her eyes as she recalled the soul crushing conversation she'd had with Dallas at breakfast that morning. In a crowded cafeteria surrounded by dozens of their closest peers, he'd expressed wanting to put an end to their four-year relationship, a revelation that blindsided her considering they were just a few months' shy of graduating and walking down the aisle.
Serves me right for falling for a guy named after a city, Joy thought, somber and just a tiny bit bitter. They were all commitment-phoebes in their own way. Dallas just hid it well, or at least he did until he ditched her for some high school girl he'd met at one of the many parties his fraternity was known to host. That's right. A high schooler. The man couldn't get more despicable if he tried.
Joy cringed inwardly. Shaking herself from her funk, she resumed the process of trying to convince herself that none of it really mattered. That he didn't matter. That at the end of the day, she needed him about as much as she needed cancer. And maybe that's just what he was. A slowly spreading cancer that hit her heart first and everywhere else last. A lowdown, two timing, not-even-that-sexy waste of time.
Telling herself she'd be fine without him was the easy part though. It was actually believing it that was proving difficult.
Joy blinked a couple times, snatching up another invitation and hurling it at the trash. She repeated the process until her desk was clear of them, glad to be gone of the last glaring reminder of everything she'd so quickly lost.
Plus, she had to release all this pent up rage somehow, and she sure as hell wasn't about to cry. The infamous Dallas Andre might have been worth his weight in gold, but he wasn't worth her tears.
Joy's heart betrayed her though, and she felt her eyes well up as she once-again pictured Dallas gallivanting from one football-centric city to the next with his latest prize on his arm. It wasn't fair, dammit! She'd given up the greatest years of her life for that asshole, and what did she get in return?
The overwhelming urge to hit something, and the brutal reminder that she was that much more removed from settling down and starting a family.
Joy didn't have any wedding invitations left to ball up, so she settled on plain old printer paper instead, watching with a sort of odd satisfaction as each crumpled ball bounced off the rim of the trashcan before falling in. It was nice to pretend that it was Dallas's face even if doing so didn't really help her situation at all. That stupid, no good, lying son of a-
"Nice arm."
A cocky voice put an abrupt end to Joy's pity party, causing her to groan inwardly. The very last person she wanted to deal with right now was Silas Sullivan, and yet, there he was.
Joy turned to find Silas standing in her doorway with one of the balled up wedding invitations in hand and a mischievous smirk pulling at his lips. He tossed the ball casually at the trash can, his smirk widening as it went in with a nearly-silent swish.
Joy rolled her eyes and turned away from him, in no mood to deal with his obnoxious attitude. "Whatever," she muttered, shaking her head.
Silas must have picked up on the sadness in her tone though, because when he spoke next, all traces of sarcasm were gone. "Hold up," he said, taking a tentative step towards her desk to get a look at her face. "Shouldn't you be packing for spring break?"
"Nope," Joy told him, her voice flat. In his defense, she was supposed to be on a redeye to Miami with Dallas tonight. The entire reason he broke up with her when he did was so that he could revoke her ticket and give it to his newest squeeze at the last minute. Chivalry, it seemed, was completely lost on him.
Silas frowned. "But you're going home with Dallas, aren't you?"
"No," Joy said, her voice firm. "I'm not going anywhere with him ever again."
Silas's eyes widened. Joy thought she saw concern in them, but it was gone before she could be sure. "What happened?" he questioned, sounding more curious than empathetic.
"Nothing," Joy said, eager for him to leave. It was just her luck that he didn't. Instead he advanced into the room even further, taking a seat on the edge of her desk.
"It's cool," he said. "Trust me … I get it."
And really, he did. Dallas might have been his teammate, and in that respect one of his closest friends, but that didn't mean he necessarily liked the guy. He was actually kind of an ass, and he most definitely didn't deserve a girl as good as Joy. She was so out of his league it wasn't even funny.
Joy wasn't entirely sure why it happened, but suddenly the dam holding back her tears broke. Not wanting Silas to see her at her most vulnerable, she buried her face in her hands and fought to get herself under control.
"I'm fine," she whispered, shrugging him off when he tried to reach out and comfort her.
Except she wasn't.
Not even close.
***
"So what're you gonna do for spring break now?" Blair questioned, handing Joy one of the two cans of Diet Coke she'd just grabbed from the front of the caf.
"No clue," Joy said as she popped the seal and took a drink. "I'll probably just stay here. Maybe get a head start on my thesis."
Blair gave her friend a sympathetic smile and leaned back in her chair. "God, Dallas is such a dick," she proclaimed, shaking her head. "I wish there was something we could do to get back at him. I just … I hate that you're gonna be here alone all week."
The mere mention of Dallas was all it took to make Joy wince, but she kept her wits about her and didn't react. There wasn't any point. She'd already wasted enough of her tears on him.
"It's fine," she assured her, her expression neutral. "You have fun in Atlanta. It's just a week. I think I can manage."
Blair started to respond, but she didn't have a chance to before Silas sauntered in the caf, slapping hands with a few of his teammates before making himself comfortable at their table.
"What's up?" Blair asked him, watching as he helped himself to a few of her fries. The two were so close that they were practically siblings.
"Not much," Silas said, looking past her at Joy. "You should probably start packing though," he said, nodding at her.
Joy and Blair exchanged a look, their expressions equally confused.
"Excuse me?" Joy challenged, narrowing her eyes at him. "I already told you. I'm not going anywhere."
"Correction … you weren't going anywhere."
"Meaning?"
"I called my dad. He said you could come spend the week in Ocean City with us," Silas explained, ignoring the incredulous looks both women were giving him. Quickly, he added, "you know, if you want..."
Silas fell silent then, bracing himself to be shot down by her. When several seconds passed without her giving him a response, he sighed and started for the door. "Forget it," he called over his shoulder. "I just figured I'd ask."
Silas left the caf and was halfway back to the apartment he shared with a few of his teammates when he heard Joy approach him from behind.
"Wait!" she called out, short of breath. "I'm sorry. You just … you caught me off guard..."
Fighting the urge to laugh at how adorably flustered she looked, Silas kept quiet and waited for her to continue.
"Yes," she blurted out. "If the answer still stands … then yes. I'll come."
Silas raised a brow. "Really?"
"Yeah," Joy said, reaching up to adjust her glasses on her nose. They'd gotten knocked out of place somewhere between the courtyard and the caf. "So long as I won't be intruding … "
"You won't be," Silas assured her. "Trust me … my dad's place is more than big enough for the both of us."
Joy didn't doubt that. She was well aware of the fact that Silas came from old money, a reality which became all the more apparent at times like this. "Well alright then," she said, beginning to walk alongside him. "I'm in."