The pic on the side is of Jace's tattoo.
"Is my tattoo gross?" Jace asks as we drive to Maine.
"No." I kiss his bicep. Kaden is sleeping in the back seat.
"I'll get it removed." He says.
"I don't want you to get it removed. I love it baby."
He smiles suddenly.
"I can't wait for you to see where I grew up. It's such a nice little town!" he grins.
"Same house?" I ask.
"Yeah." he says.
****
I must fall asleep, because Jace is tapping my knee.
I open my eyes.
"We're here." He whispers.
I open my eyes.
The house is right on a cliff, and the ground is covered in snow.
Down the hill, almost the whole neighborhood is having a snowball fight.
"It's beautiful." I whisper.
He grins and gets out of the car, getting Kaden from his carseat.
He pulls me with him to the porch.
"What if they don't like me?" I whisper.
"All you have to worry about if my Dad. Everyone likes who he likes. Plus, you saved his daughter. Why wouldn't he like you?"
"But I seem like a whore. I have a kid with a different guy."
"That wasn't your choice. Addison...she already blabbed." He bites his lip.
"Can we just go home?" I blurt.
"No." he pecks my lips. "My family is very fun. Trust me, they're going to love you."
I open my mouth to protest, but he walks in the house, grabbing my hand, he pulls me in with him.
Everyone looks up.
It takes all my willpower not to burst out laughing.
They put plastic on the floor, duct taped two twister boards together, and put paint on the appropriate colors.
Everyone is covered in paint, tied in knots.
"Jace, my son!" a man with short blondish brown hair and blue-gray eyes jumps out of the knot of people.
He pauses.
"Wait..." he eyes me. "This isn't..." he trails off. "Is this the famous Rylee?"
"Yes."
"Oh, wow, you're even prettier in person!" he hugs me, covering me in yellow, blue, green, and red paint. "Oh, is this your little baby?" he takes Kaden from his arms, covering him in paint. "Don't worry, I'll wash the paint off." He says.
"Uh, Dad..." Jace hesitates. "Rylee and I eloped..."
Everyone gasps.
"And she's pregnant." He pauses. "And you're holding your grandchild."
Mr. Rivera raises his eyebrows.
I look at the floor, nervous.
"Well that's wonderful!" he says. "I'm so happy for you guys!" he hugs both of us. He pauses. "Jace, just so you know, and I don't want you to freak out, but your-"
He cuts off when an evil voice hisses, "You!"
Everyone looks by the staircase.
My eyes rest on Jace's Mom.
Fuck.
Jace narrows his eyes.
"Don't be nice to her!" she says. "Jace, how could you be so blind? She's a criminal! She stole your sister!"
"She's not a criminal, Jessica." Mr. Rivera says.
"She saved her from you." Jace snaps.
She opens her mouth to bitch, but Mr. Rivera opens the door.
"Leave my house."
"My children are here."
"Your children chose for me to be their parent in the divorce. You have no legal custody."
He shuts the door in her face and turns to me.
"Don't let her get to you. Good riddance, right?" he laughs.
"Yes." Jace says. "you're allowed to say yes." He sighs. "She thinks you guys don't like her because Kaden is not biologically my kid."
"Oh god no!" an elderly women says. "I'm his grandma, trust my darling, we don't care. Especially after what you've been through. You're so strong."
I look at my arms. "I'm not, really."
Jace starts laughing. "She's talking about mentally, not physically."
"Oh..." I look down.
"I promise once she's comfortable you guys will love her." Jace says.
"I already do." Addison gives me a hug.
I hug her back.
"Can I take a shower?" I ask. "I need to get him clean before he eats paint." I say.
He opens his mouth to say something when my phone chimes.
Nikki: I'm pretty sure you're in danger
"Why would you be in-" Jace is cut off by my phone ringing.
It's Nikki. I press answer.
"Why am I in danger?" I ask.
"Well you and Kaden." She says.
I fear the worst.
"Nikki, what did you do?"
Jace grabs my phone and puts it on speaker.
"Well, about a half hour after you left, this guy came to the door and asked if you were home. I told him no. He asked where you were and I...I gave him the address of Jace's Dad's house."
I pinch the bridge of my nose.
"So why am I in danger?" I ask.
"Because Adam was sleeping when he showed up. He just woke up like ten minutes ago and I asked if he knew the guy and told him what he looked like and he...he's really, really mad at me, Rylee."
"Why, Nikki?" I ask.
"I don't know!" she says.
"Well what did he look like?" Mr. Rivera asks.
"I don't know...short brown hair, like a military cut. He has stubble..." she trails off.
I sigh slowly.
"What kind of shirt was he wearing?"
"Short sleeved. It was a gray color. He also had a sleeve tattoo on his right arm."
"Was it blue?" I ask.
"What? His shirt? No, I said his shirt was gray."
"Not the shirt, his tattoo."
"Yeah! Yes, it was blue. He had a weird design down his left arm as well."
I sigh slowly.
"Rylee, if it's Marcus, I'll cry."
I don't answer her.
"Rylee!" Nikki shrieks. "Was it Marcus? Ry?"
"Yes dammit!" I say. "It was Marcus."
"I'm getting on a helicopter and I'll get a sniper or something."
"Don't bother. He doesn't scare me. Plus he has a restraining order again Kaden and I, so I'll just call the cops."
"Wait, you're not even going to argue with him?" he asks.
"Oh course she isn't!" Jace says as I say, "Of course I am!"
Everyone looks at me.
"Rylee," Jace begins.
"This is my problem." I say. "He won't touch me." I say.
"He did before." Jace argues.
"I promise he won't touch me." I say.
"You have to let all of us come outside."
"Well someone has to stay with Kaden. I'm not letting him see what he looks like."
"if he says something that pisses me off, can I hit him?" Jace asks.
I hesitate. "No." I say.
"But baby!" he whines.
"Marcus will get you arrested." I say. "I'm not kidding."
"Will he get you arrested?" he asks.
"No." I shake my head.
"I'll stay with Kaden, but I'm watching from the window." Jace's Grandma says.
"Don't let Kaden near the window though." I say.
"I won't."
I stand up and walk outside.
"I'm gonna go Nikki. I'll be fine."
"Call me when he's gone, okay?"
"Okay."
Everyone stays on the porch and I sit on the hood of Jace's car. He still has his motorcycle but he doesn't ride it a lot in winter.
Adam texts me.
Adam: is it marcus
Me: yes. Don't be mad at nikki. She didn't know
I hear the purring of a motorcycle
It gets louder and louder.
Adam: I wont. Please be careful and call nikki when it's over. Shes sobbing her eyes out
Me: I will
Someone clears their throat loudly.
"You don't need to clear your throat to announce your unwanted arrival, Marcus Baine." I say, irritated.
"Well someone is in a bad mood."
"I was in a great mood until you showed up. What do you want, Marcus?"
"I want you." he says.
I scoff. "Fuck off."
His eyes harden.
"I said I want you." he says intimidating.
I don't even blink. I stare at him with a blank expression. "And I said fuck off."
He grits his teeth.
"Where's our kid." He says.
"The baby isn't our kid." I grit my teeth. "The baby is my husband and I's. And nowhere near you, nor will the baby ever be."
"You can't make my kid hate me."
"Oh, the kid is going to be able to make it's own opinion of you, but it's going to know what you did."
"What did I do?" he snaps.
"You know what you fucking did, Marcus."
"Just come with me." He begs.
"No! Go away!"
I dial 911 and flip the phone over on my lap so he doesn't know.
He reaches out to grab my arm, and I kick him in the balls.
"Marcus, go to hell."
"You should make your husband come fight me."
I laugh. "He could kick your ass in three seconds flat." I say. "And he's not coming to fight you because he's not going to jail."
"He wouldn't go to jail."
"I guarantee he would go to jail for murder."
"And then you would bail him out." He says.
"No, I'd break him out and flee the country." I say. "But he would shit on your grave first."
He grabs my wrists and yanks me off of the car.
My phone falls face first in the snow. I bring my foot up and get him in stomach, hard. He goes flying back and slams into his motorcycle.
I pick up my phone and hang up on the police.
My dropped the keys to his bike.
I grab them and send them flying towards the porch. Jace catches them. All the guys in the family are holding him back.
Marcus looks towards the porch.
"You're holding him back? You're controlling him!"
"I'm not controlling him. I'm making sure your Mom won't have to fake tears at the funeral." I say.
His eyes harden.
That hit home. His Mom hates him.
All his family does.
"Why you little-"
He raises his fit to hit me, but it's caught before he can.
Jace's hand is closed around Marcus' wrist so tightly that his hand is purple from all the blood trapped.
"Don't touch her." Jace hisses. His voice is so deep that he actually scares me.
Well I wouldn't actually say scares, I would say intimidates.
No, I take that back.
Scares.
Jace snaps his wrist with the flick of his own, and then punches Marcus in the face.
Marcus punches back and busts Jace's lip.
"Who the fuck do you think you are? Showing up to come after my wife and my kid?"
They start to beat the shit out of each other.
The cops show up and rip them apart.
"He, he attacked me!" Marcus gasps, and then he passes out.
Jace's lip and nose are bleeding, and he's got a cut on his forehead.
"Whoa, hold up!" I say when the cop whips out her handcuffs. "No. Let me explain. Don't arrest my husband." I shake my head. "First of all, the guy raped me and got me pregnant. I filed a restraining order and he isn't allowed within a mile of me and my kid. My husband is the legal father. He was going to beat me up and I'm pregnant, so my husband stepped in." I say.
"I want to see the baby."
"I'm not letting him see the baby."
"Well then-"
"Put him somewhere where he can't see him." I say.
They take Marcus in an ambulance
I go upstairs and get Kaden and bring him outside.
She nods and I bring him inside.
She takes all of your information and I give her Marcus's information.
The cop walks away grumbling.
Once they're out of sight, I turn to Jace.
"You're going to bleed to death!" I gasp.
"No I won't." he sighs.
I pull him in the house.
Everyone cleans up their mess from the messy twister, and I sit down on the floor with the first said kit that Addi hands me
I pat the spot in front of me.
"I'm fine." Jace huffs.
"You're mad at Marcus, not me." I huff, pouting my lip out.
"But I'm fine!" he snaps.
"Jace Spencer Rivera, listen to your wife and sit your fine ass down on the floor."
"And if I don't?"
"Then I'm not having sex with you for a whole week." I say.
He sits down in front of me. I smile. "Just kidding." I say.
He starts to get up, but I climb into his lap.
"I can easily move you." he sighs.
"Stop being so grumpy." I huff.
"Rylee, I'm really fine."
"Well I'm not!" I say. "I'm not going to not be stressed until, you're not bleeding. Stress is bad for the baby, you know."
"You're just guilting me." He says.
"please let me help?"
"I don't need help."
"You won't let me love you!"
"Rylee, I'm fine. Really."
I huff and slide off his lap. He gets up and wipes away the blood.
His nose and lip is literally gushing.
I sit there for a second, a little upset.
"Jace, you need to clean up." Mr. Rivera says.
"I'm honestly fine."
I pick up my phone and open Youtube.
He should know better than to tell me no.
I type in Let Me Love You Ne-Yo
Everyone looks at me.
Much as you blame yourself, you can't be blamed for the way that you feel
Had no example of a love that was even remotely real
How can you understand something that you never had
Ooh baby if you let me, I can help you out with all of that
Jace is staring at me. I'm singing.
"I'm going to keep going and put this on repeat for hours. If you stop bleeding before you let me help I'll record it and make this song mock you for the rest of your life."
Boy let me love you
And I will love you
Until you learn to love yourself
Boy let me love you
And all your trouble
Don't be afraid, Boy let me help
Boy let me love you
And I will love you
Until you learn to love yourself
Boy let me love you
A heart of numbness, gets brought to life
I'll take you there
"You have to dance me with." He says.
"And then you'll let me love you?" I ask.
"Yes." He says.
I jump off the table and walk over to him. Everyone watches, grinning, while we dance around the living room.
Boy let me love you
Boy let me love you baby, oh
Boy let me love you
Boy let me love you baby
Boy let me love you
Let me love you, let me love you, oh
I can see the pain behind your eyes
It's been there for quite a while
I just wanna be the one to remind you what it is to smile
I would like to show you what true love can really do
Boy let me love you
And I will love you
Until you learn to love yourself
Boy let me love you
And all your trouble
Don't be afraid, girl let me help
Boy let me love you
And I will love you
Until you learn to love yourself
Boy let me love you
A heart of numbness, gets brought to life
I'll take you there
Boy let me love you baby
Boy let me love you
Let me love you, let me love you baby
Boy let me love you
Boy let me love you baby
Boy let me love you
Let me love you, girl let me love you baby
For every heart that beats
For every heart that beats
For every heart that beats
For every heart that beats
Heart that beats
Heart that beats
Heart that beats
Heart that beats
Boy let me love you
And I will love you
Until you learn to love yourself
Boy let me love you
And all your trouble
Don't be afraid, Boy let me help
Boy let me love you
And I will love you
Until you learn to love yourself
Boy let me love you
A heart of numbness, gets brought to life
I'll take you there
Boy let me love you
Let me love you baby, love you baby
Boy let me love you
Let me love you baby, love you baby
The song ends.
"Okay, I'm actually getting lightheaded now." he admits.
I sit him down on the floor and open the first aid kit.
"Wait, you can't yet!" he swats at me.
I scoot closer and push his chest. He lays down and I sit on his stomach.
I wipe away all the blood with a cloth and I pinch the vein under his nose in that dent thing.
"What are you doing?" he asks.
"It'll stop your nosebleed."
"How do you know?" he asks.
"Because I was doing a house for a couple and the husband walked into the glass door because I cleaned it so well and his nose started bleeding and the wife did this and it worked."
"You fix houses?" Mr. Rivera says.
"She's an interior designer." Jace says.
"Really?"
"I don't like the term interior designer because if you give me a house I'll make it look good from the outside in."
"Can you take down walls?" Mr. Rivera asks.
"Yeah." I say.
"Awesome. You'll come in handy." He pauses. "This is your first Thanksgiving with your parents since you were in kindergarten and you're spending it with us?" Mr. Rivera asks.
"Yes..." I trail off.
He frowns and grabs my phone and walks out of the room.
One Jace's nose is done bleeding, I wipe the blood off of his chin, and dab on peroxide with a q-tip.
He flinches.
"You big baby." I laugh.
He huff.
Once the pain stops, I open a waterproof Band-Aid.
"Are you putting a Band-Aid on my lip?"
"Yes."
It's a band aid you would put on a scrape. It's not the big knee Band-Aid and it's not the dot, it's just your average Band-Aid. I grab a washcloth and grab his lip. He watches me as I dry off all the spit on the inside and stick the Band-Aid to his lip, covering his whole bottom lip.
It sticks perfectly.
I grin.
He sighs. "Can I take it off now?"
I start to clean up my mess. "Not until you're completely done bleeding."
"I can't kiss you with this on!" he whines.
"You don't have to." I kiss his head and stand up. "Your covered in blood." I say.
"I'll go shower."
"Good."
I stand up and toss all my trash in the garbage. I put everything back in the kit. Addison takes it and puts it away.
Mr. Rivera walks into the living room and hands me my phone.
"I'm going to go shower." Jace grumbles.
He vanishes upstairs.
****
I wake up to the sound of someone crying.
Why would someone be crying?
I fell asleep on the couch with Jace and Kaden.
"-and I feel so horrible. Look at her wrists."
"What's wrong with her wrists?" Jace demands.
I feel Kaden nestled into my side.
"What the hell?" Jace whispers. "I want to kill him."
"She s-she breathing?" the girl sobs.
Nikki.
It's Nikki.
"Yes." Jace says.
I feel a hand brush hair out of my face, and then lips kiss my forehead, my keeps, and then my lips.
"Wake up so I can see your eyes again. It's been too long." Jace whispers in my ear.
I force my eyes open.
Jace's face is so close to mine that I can feel his nose against mine.
He blinks, staring right into my eyes.
"Are you okay?" he whispers, his lips brushing against my own.
I grunt in response.
"I'm gonna puke." I mumble.
"Do I stink that bad?" he jokes?
He must thing I'm kidding, but I get up and sprint to the bathroom.
"Are you sick?" he asks. "I'm taking you to the hospital."
"I'm pregnant." I remind him after I've emptied my stomach. I brush my teeth and he flushes the toilet.
"So?" he asks.
"So I have morning sickness."
I go lay back down on the couch.
"Aren't you like...four months though?" he asks.
"December 2nd will be five months." I mumble.
"Isn't that a little late for that stuff?" he asks.
"I was still having morning sickness in the delivery room with Kaden." I sigh.
"You can't sleep." He whines.
"Yeah I can."
"But I'm needy." He whines.
Everyone looks at him.
"That that way! I need something to hold!"
I hand him Kaden's sock, which came off in his sleep.
"Hold that." I cover myself with the blanket and roll over.
"Rylee." Jace whines.
That's the last thing I hear before I fall back to sleep.