Archer has always wanted what he can’t have—Quinn Dawson. Since the moment he saw her, he’s been denying his feelings for her, ignoring the void in his heart he knows only she can fill. Everything about them was wrong, the kind of wrong that felt so right. But none of it mattered. Not the terrible timing. And definitely not the mess it would create if Archer made a move on his best friend’s baby sister. It was supposed to be one night, but one night is all it takes to make everything more complicated, and they only have nine short months to sort it all out. No, none of it mattered. Until it did.
View MoreChapter Twenty-EightQuinn“Can you tell?” I smooth my shirt over my stomach and turn to the side.“No.” Marissa shakes her head. “I know you and you’ve always been a skinny bitch, so I guess I’m able to pick up on that slight bump you claim is the baby, but to anyone else, you look like you ate a big meal.”“It’s weird,” I say, wrinkling my nose, and grab my shoes. I take off my heels and put on my running shoes, not caring how silly it looks with my dress pants and blouse. It’s Friday, and we’re leaving work for the week. “I’m almost looking forward to showing.”“Just don’t turn into Bethany.”I widen my eyes and shake my head, showing my horror. “If I do, slap me.” Bethany works with us and had her first baby last year. She made sure everyone knew everything about the pregnancy and complained nonstop about her symptoms. Though I can emphasize now, and after throwing up three times yesterday, I broke down and took an anti-nausea pill this morning.I still feel sick, but I haven’t pu
Chapter Twenty-SevenArcher“All things considered, that went as well as I thought it would.” I put my arm around Quinn and push off the ground, sending the glider back. It’s getting late, and everyone but Weston and Jackson have left already. Wes is working the night shift tonight, so Jackson is staying here with Quinn’s parents.Quinn rests her head on my shoulder and closes her eyes. She looks exhausted. Physically, I know she will be for the rest of the first trimester at least. Emotionally, she’s spent.And I still think she’s one of the fucking strongest people I know.“Yeah. Only my dad and Dean want to take you out back and cut off your testicles. But don’t worry, I won’t let that happen. I happen to like them. Well, more so what they’re attached to.”I laugh and press my lips against the top of Quinn’s head. “Thanks for looking out for my balls.” The sound of katydids and crickets echo through the yard, reverberating off the tall corn that surrounds us. The sounds of a countr
Chapter Twenty-SixQuinnThe air leaves my lungs, and if it weren’t for Archer’s arm around me, I might have fallen over. Mom’s eyebrows pinch together, and she tips her head looking at the images.“Where did you get—” Mom tips her head, eyeing the photos. The blood drains from my face, and I can’t open my mouth to form the words to warn Archer.“This has your name on it, Quinn,” she says quietly. And then it hits her. Her mouth opens, and she lets out a gasp. The ultrasound pictures fall to the table, and Dad picks them up.It doesn’t take him long to come to the same conclusion. He stands up so fast his chair scoots out from behind him and falls over.“You knocked up my daughter?”A hush falls over the room, and I swear even the dogs stopped sniffing around the table to look.“Quinn,” Mom starts, still looking confused. She picks up the chair and reaches up for Dad’s wrist, pulling him back down. “What…when…are you sure?”“Wait a minute,” Owen says, reaching across the table for the
Chapter Twenty-FiveQuinnI need a drink. A big one. With lots and lots of alcohol. I close my eyes in a long blink, praying I misheard Kara.“That’s less than a year away!” Mom exclaims. “Do you think you can get everything ready in time?”March isn’t that far away, she’s right. And there is a lot to do before then, and I’m not thinking about the wedding.“I think we can swing it,” Kara says. “I’ll have to get right to work, I know, and my mom’s already on it.” She looks back at Dean, smiling. “We don’t want anything fancy, anyway.”I bring my hand to my head, subconsciously rubbing the space between my jaw and my ear. It’s been hurting off and on since last weekend, and I knew I should have listened to Archer about a sinus infection lingering for longer than normal now that I’m pregnant.“Are you okay, hun?” Mom asks, and I flick my eyes up to her.“Oh, yeah. I think I have an ear infection, that’s all,” I blurt. I should have made something up, but I’ve never been a good liar and n
Chapter Twenty-FourArcherPanting, I roll to the side, flopping down onto the mattress. My heart is still racing, and sweat covers my brow. Quinn is breathing just as hard, and her bare breasts rise and fall as she gulps in air.I didn’t think it was possible to have better sex that we did the first time, but I feel confident to say we just topped it. Reaching for the water bottle on the nightstand, I take a drink and grab the sheet, pulling it up over us. We’re both hot and sweaty now, but with the ceiling fan going on high, we’ll cool off fast and I don’t want Quinn to get a chill. She’s still fighting a cold and has to be worn out after the marathon sex we just had.I know I am.“That was more than thirty minutes,” she says once she catches her breath and moves onto her side. I wrap her in my arms.“I’m not sorry about that.”“You’ve set a high standard for yourself,” she says with a coy smile.“I always aim to please, babe.”Quinn laughs and runs her fingers through my hair. “You
Chapter Twenty-ThreeQuinnI wake up in Archer’s arms, and for the first time since I found out I’m pregnant, everything feels like it’s going to be okay. He made me dinner last night, and went out and got me more Sour Patch Kids before we went to sleep.I carefully roll over, moving closer to him. It feels so good to have him next to me. Physically, his presence is comforting on its own. But having him here for everything else is almost enough to do me in.We jumped into a relationship and need to take things slow. He said he likes me but held off moving forward out of respect to Dean, but things are bigger than their friendship now. We have less than a week before we drop the bomb on my family, and I’m fairly sure all four of my brothers are going to have a few choice words for Archer.Early morning sun filters through the large windows. I forgot to close the blinds last night, and the light is shining right in on Archer. I reach over and take my phone from the nightstand. My blinds
Chapter Twenty-TwoArcherI missed a call from Quinn today, and I noticed it right before I went into surgery. I’ve never had a hard time clearing my head before, but today, as I wash my hands and have my surgical scrubs put on, it’s all I can think about. She hasn’t called me—ever. What if something is wrong? She didn’t leave a message, and she didn’t text either.I’m sure everything is fine with her and the baby. It has to be. As awful as I feel to admit it, there’s a small part of me that’s glad Quinn is pregnant. The timing couldn’t be worse. Dean is going to hate us both. He’ll forgive Quinn eventually, but the light he holds her in will forever be dimmed.But now that she’s pregnant, we’re talking, and we have a chance. And if anyone was to be the mother of my child, no one is better than Quinn.Sam puts the patient under and we get started. As soon as I make the first cut, I’m back in the game, and the surgical team and I make small talk as we go about treating the patient.An
Chapter Twenty-OneQuinnThe door shuts behind me and I turn around, prepared to tell Archer this is silly. But the second I see the look in his eyes, all the air is sucked out of my lungs.“Quinn,” he pants, voice heavy with desire. A shiver runs down my spine and his hands land on either side of my waist. “Are you sure you want this?”Parting my lips, I hook my arms around his neck. “Yes,” I breathe, telling the honest truth. I do want Archer, and I’m not just talking about sex.I want him to be with me during this pregnancy.I want him there when I give birth.I want him to raise this child with me.I want us. Together.He wastes no time in kissing me, and I slide my hands down his chest, going right to his belt. His hands go around my back and unhooks my bra.And then the door opens.“Motherfucker,” I blurt as Archer and I untangle. The dogs run in ahead of my parents, with Rufus at the rear, limping.“You should really consider going in and having a specialist look at it,” Archer
Chapter TwentyArcherThe bathroom door closes, and I’m still standing there, looking at the white paint until my vision goes blurry. After I reassured her everything will be okay, she smiled and said she was going to take a shower. But I can’t move. Hell, I can hardly breathe.Quinn is pregnant with my baby.I’m trying to let it sink in, but my defenses are up and I can’t think past the fact she’s been feeling sick and it’s partly my fault. Or all my fault? I know it took both of us to create the baby, and it’s not like Quinn wasn’t willing. But…fuck. How could I let this happen?I’m a doctor. I know how the body works. And yet I had sex three times with Quinn within twenty-four hours and only used a condom once. Though it’s not like I brought any with me Friday night. I didn’t expect to hook up with anyone, and when it finally happened with Quinn, I wasn’t thinking straight.Rufus tips his head, listening to Mr. And Mrs. Dawson move around the kitchen. Knowing it’s time for breakfas
Chapter ThreeQuinnThe air leaves my lungs and I’m left standing there, watching Archer walk up ahead of me. What the hell? Did I say something wrong? One minute we were talking, feeling like the old friends we should be, and the next he’s acting like he can’t get away from me fast enough.It doesn’t matter. More importantly, it shouldn’t matter.He stops at the employee door, needing me to punch in a code to unlock it. I fold the scrubs over my arm, careful not to press them against my wet dress, and take a spot next to him to enter the code. He doesn’t look at me, doesn’t say a damn thing. The tension rolls off him in waves, and as nice as our chat was a minute ago, I cannot wait to get back into the bar and away from him.That’s how Archer Jones has been since the moment I met him. Closed off. Guarded. Letting the walls inch down just enough for me to get a glimpse of the man inside only to bring them up again.A little green light flashes after I punch in the four-digit code and
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