Misguided Truths: Part Two (Misjudged #4) (41 page)

“We’re good to go, honey. It’s time.”
Holy shit!
I’m gonna be a father. I’m gonna be a dad. Me. I’m gonna be responsible for a tiny little person.
Where in the hell did she put that fucking mask?
I watch Alexis lay back down, and I start pacing the floor as the nurse goes to the end of the bed.

“I hate you!” I stop abruptly, my eyes widening when she spits out those three words. That’s no way to speak to the nurse. I’ll be the first to admit that she wasn’t overly friendly when we first came in here, but she’s starting to warm up a little now.

“It’s normal. Just ignore anything she says for now. We hear this all the time. She’s in pain. I’m sure she loves you really.” She smiles, but my eyes widen up even more. Alexis was hissing that at me?
Wow. That kinda hurts.

“No! She’s wrong! I do. I fucking hate you!”
Huh.
She looks like the spawn of Satan or something. And, she’s being kinda mean. I don’t think I like this Alexis. Not one little bit. No more. Nope. I’ve decided. No more baby juice for her.

I notice a jug of water on the side by the window, and head over to grab her a drink. She’s getting really hot, and I haven’t seen her eat or drink anything since last night at dinner. When I go to carry it over to her, I pause my steps, my eyes start
ing to sting from becoming so wide, and I almost drop the jug and plastic cup from out of my hand. That’s not how I remember it to look.

“What? Brandon what’s wrong?” I bring my eyes over on Alexis, and see that she’s starting to look a little afraid. Yeah? Well, so am I. What I just saw is scaring the shit outta me.

The nurse turns around, and I see her brow furrow as she throws me a quizzical look. “That’s gonna go back to the way it was before, right?” I tilt my head forward, and toward Alexis’ …
place.

“Unbelievable.
” Alexis says the word, and I see her throwing her head back against the pillow, raising her hand to cover her eyes while shaking her head at me.

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding,” I insist as I make my way back to her side.
I was so not kidding.

“Okay, Alexis. When I count to three, I’m going to need you to start pushing
, okay?”

“Yes,” she answers while gripping a hold of the bed sheets on either side of her.

“
One
…
two
…
three
.”

“Ahhhhhh!”

“That’s it beautiful, that’s it,” I whisper in her ear when I see the determination she’s displaying. “You’re doing great.”

She does this about five or six more times, and every time she gets a couple of seconds to breathe and rest, I hold the straw to her mouth so she can take a drink, “Almost there, honey. Almost there.” The nurse speaks from between Alexis’ legs, and if I didn’t know any better, I would’ve thought that that particular body part had learnt to speak. How cool would that be? You’re right. Not the
kinda thing I should be focusing on at this particular moment in time.

“So, pain factor wise. On a scale of one to—”

“One thousand!” She says shakily through the pain before clenching her eyes closed again.

“I’m so glad I’m a guy,” I say in reply, and sit back and wait for her to go again.

“Ahhhhh!”

“That’s it. Keep it going … keep going … keep …” The nurse’s voice trails off, and Alexis throws her head back
against the pillow one more time. Her breaths are heavy, and her chest is rising and falling really fast. But, then? Then I bring my eyes away from her when I hear the sound. A warmth fills my chest when I hear the sound of a baby crying.
Our baby.

“You did it,” I say throatily, not once being able
to take my eyes away from him or
her
. “You did it.”
Shit.
Am I crying? I blink a couple of times, and wipe my eyes with the back of my hands before they witness any of this.

The nurse slowly walks
over to the other side of the bed, wearing a wide smile as she offers our baby to Alexis, “Would you like to hold your little baby girl?”

“Girl? W-We
h-have a … a daughter?” I lean over the bed, and kiss Alexis’ cheek. She turns around to face me with a smile. She’s been through a lot today, but she still looks as incredible as she did that night at the ball. Maybe even more so now.

“We have a daughter.” S
he smiles, offering her over to me. I wipe my sweaty palms on the back of my pants before reaching over to take her.
Our daughter
. When I’m holding her in my arms, I see a full head of black hair and instantly find myself to be smiling.

“What?” Alexis’
eyes have brightened, and she tries to make herself a little more comfortable on the bed. “What is it?”

“Well, there’s no need for a DNA test, huh?” I laugh out, rocking her in my arms while Alexis playfully taps me on the arm. “She’s beautiful. Just like her mommy.”

“Have you decided on any names yet?” The nurse asks us while she starts to clear up a few things.

“No.
” I shake my head.

“Yes.
” Alexis answers.

This is news to me. We haven’t ever discussed baby names before. Not once. I’d just assumed we were gonna wait until the day to decide. I mean, we didn’t even know if she was gonna be an Arthur or a Martha, “We have?”

“I chose one a little while ago,” her voice is small, and she’s starting to look a little anxious.
Oh shit
. Please tell me she’s not gonna choose something weird like … I dunno. I don’t know what your name is, and I sure as hell don’t wanna offend anybody. Let’s just hope it’s not gonna be something crazy.

“Well, what is it?” I keep my gaze on her as I ask. She appears to be thinking hard about it for a second. “Alexis, what name?” I press. Yep. It’s gonna be a crazy one, and I’m ready to put my foot down.

“I thought maybe Holly Rose.”
Wow
. This woman right here amazes me every goddamn day. I swear I couldn’t wish to have a better mom for my daughter. “You don’t like it?”

Like it? No. I love it.
Holly Rose Taylor
. I bring my gaze back on our baby daughter and smile.

“Beautiful. It’s perfect.” 

SEVEN MONTHS LATER

An
d, this is the very reason why I bought that dress for her.
Wow.

“Do you think it looks okay?” she spins around, and I have to summon
up all of my will to not take her right here in the hallway. “I’m not so sure, Brandon.” She’s not so sure? Oh, I am. I’m definitely sure that this dress was made especially for her. I’m loving the way it clings to all of her curves, and hell, the way her boobies are spilling over— “Brandon? Did you hear me?”
I wasn’t finished.

“You said that you’re not sure,” I step forward, and start trailing soft kisses along her jaw until I reach her ear. “I’ll tell you what I’m sure of. I’m sure that I haven’t been this hard in a very long time.” I whisper, and take her hand in mine before turning her around
until she’s looking right at me.

“I meant about Holly. Don’t you think she’s a little too young to be away from us? She’s only seven months old and— what are you doing?” she asks when I stroke my fingers up her back with one hand, while grabbing the black tie from out of my pants pocket with the other. Lifting it around her neck, I place it over her eyes
, and start tying a knot in the back. “I swore I would never let you blindfold me again after the last time.” She sounds a little pissed, but I just laugh. Why does she need the blindfold you ask? Well, that’s because I’ve got a little surprise planned. Nothing huge. Actually, I just lied. It’ll be huge if tonight turns out the way I hope it will.

I peek my head around the doorframe to make sure they know we’re on our way through, so they don’t make a sound as we walk on by, “Just a couple more steps, beautiful,” I tell her, steering her through the kitchen door
, and into the backyard by her shoulders. “Don’t you trust me?”

“Do you really want me to answer that?”
Ouch.
The venom in her voice is pretty evident. She hates surprises, but that’s what’s making this whole thing a whole lot more fun. She has absolutely no idea what’s going on, and I’m in control of everything for once. Yeah, she’s gotta be hating this.

It’s almost eight o’clock in
the evening, and the sun is starting to set in the sky. Tonight has to be perfect. No mistakes. She deserves the best, and that’s what she’s gonna get. I’ll admit that I had a little help. I can’t take all of the credit for this. It’s a warm evening, and so I decided to make the use of this by setting everything up outside.

White lights are hanging down from the few trees we’ve got in our backyard, the table is set for two in the patio area, the champagne is chilling in an ice bucket, and the food is being prepared as I speak.

“Are you ready?” I wrap my hands around her waist, and wait for her answer.

“Honestly?”

“Just say yes!” I chuckle, lifting my hands up ready to remove the blindfold.

“Then, yes! I’m ready! Now will you just …
oh. Oh wow
,” her voice falters when I take it away from her eyes, and she takes a small step back. “Did you do all of this?” She turns around as she asks, and I think that she just managed to offend me. Yeah, I’m definitely feeling a little hurt that she would presume I had any kinda help. “I don’t know what to say. When you told me that I needed to get dressed up, and that Holly would be spending the night at my fathers, well, I guess I just thought that we might be going out somewhere, but—”

Shit. She d
oesn’t look so happy about this.
“You don’t like it?”

“Like it? No. No, I don’t.
”
Huh
. “I love it! Brandon it’s amazing. Wait. Did you cook?” The horror sweeping across her face is definitely not doing anything to improve my confidence in my culinary skills department. I try. I try all the time to get better. But, she’s right. I suck at it.

Alright, I think it’s time to fess up. At least if I do then I know she’s gonna relax and eat what’s on the menu, “Honestly?” I cock my head to the side when she narrows her eyes on me. “Nope. I had some help.”

“Okay, phew!”
Oh, well that’s nice
. It’s not my fault the sauce keeps sticking the pot, or the oven keeps miraculously turning itself onto a higher heat setting than what’s necessary.

I reach over
and grab one of the wooden chairs, pulling it out some so she has enough room to sit down, “Here.” She leans up, and places a kiss on my left cheek before sitting down and looking up into the sky with a smile.

“The lights remind me of the ball. Do you remember the ones that were hanging in and through the trees that night?” she asks, her eyes following me a
s I take a seat opposite to her.
Good. That’s a really good thing.
I try and hide the smug smile that’s threatening to surface. I do believe that I’m winning.

Clearing my throat, I reach out my left hand
, and take a hold of her right one in mine, “I wanted to try and recreate something similar to that night.” When I admit this, she places her other elbow on the table, and rests her chin in her left hand.

“You did?”

I smile and reach over to grab a hold of the already opened bottle with my free hand, “Do you want some champagne?”
Thank you, Rach.
Knowing my luck, if I’d have tried to do it myself then the cork would’ve probably hit her directly in the eye or something. Pouring a beer or mixing some spirits, now that I can do. But, leave me in charge of a cork?
Nu-uh.
The results wouldn’t be all that pretty.

“
What’s the occasion?” she asks as she sits back in her chair. I really wish she hadn’t just done that because now I no longer have a front row view of her beautiful boobies. I need for her not to guess what tonight is about. I want her to be totally surprised for what’s coming up. Yeah, I already know that you know what’s going on here.

“Your dinner will be served shortly!” We both turn toward the house when we hear Rye. He’s standing in the open doorway with a wide grin over his face.
Shit.
He really didn’t need to be wearing that apron. It was a joke gift I bought for Alexis at Christmas time of a woman.
An almost naked woman
.

“Ryan cooked?” Well, good. She doesn’t look so happy about this either
. At least it’s not only me who she doesn’t trust when it comes to making her food. “Brandon?”

“No. No, he’s the waiter. I think that it’s highly likely he has a thing for the red bikini on the front of the apron,” I tell her
, and she snickers. I offer her one of the glasses of champagne, and continue to explain. “Rach cooked the food, and I asked Rye if he’d like to be a part of tonight while Alyssa drops Holly over to your father’s.”
Liar.

She tilts her head slightly to the side
, and I see her lips starting to turn up at the sides, “We haven’t had a lot of just you and me time since we got back together, and this is, well, it’s just perfect. Thank you.”

I smile and reach over to take a hold of her hand again, “I was hoping you were gonna say something like that.”

We sit and continue to gaze at each other for a little while, with her hand still encased by mine. I’m hoping nothing’s gonna get in the way of things and ruin tonight because by midnight, I plan on her agreeing to become my wife. She’s gotta say yes. There’s nothing else I want more in this world than to marry her someday. One little word is all it’s gonna take to seal our future. I’m just hoping she chooses the right one.

“An entrée for the beauty
!” Alexis takes her hand out from mine, and grabs a hold of the napkin to her side. She rests it on her lap as Rye places the plate of food down in front of her. “And one for the beast.” He’s grinning wide as he sets mine down. “Enjoy my lovely diners! If there is anything that isn’t up to your expectations then let it be known that I didn’t make any of this stuff!” He reaches over, and pats the both of us on the shoulder a couple of times, glancing between the two us.

“Rye?” I rest against th
e back of my seat, cock my head to the side, and raise my eyebrows right at him.

“Alright, I’m going,” he winks at Alexis
before he heads back inside. “Have fun, kids!” He throws over his shoulder.

Once we’re done with these, Rye comes back over to clear the plates
, and informs us that our main course is gonna be a little while longer. Apparently Rach overcooked the salmon, and she had to start from scratch. I’m sure it would’ve be fine, but if I know Rach as much as I think I do, then anything but perfection gets thrown straight in the trash.

I lift my napkin, wipe the side of my mouth, and then place it on the table before standing up from my seat, “Alexis?” I say, and hold my hand out to her. “Dance with me.”

She’s eyeing me with her obvious amusement, “But there’s no music.”

She’s right. There isn’t, but there will be. I glance over to the house, but I don’t see any of them hanging out by the window for them to see me
as I try to gain their attention. Well, I’ll just have to summon him. “Rye!” I call out.

Within a few seconds
, I hear him call back, “On it!” Alexis is watching me with a look of confusion crossing into her eyes, but her features soften when the music starts to play in the background. The candlelight remix of ‘Every Time We Touch by Cascada’ just about sums up how I feel about the incredible woman who’s standing right in front of me. I’m just hoping she listens to each and every word. It was Alyssa who pointed this version out to me. I’d only ever heard the club mix. But, this one? It’s awesome. Actually, it’s perfect.

She smiles, takes a hold of my hand, and then I lead her away from the table until we’re standing underneath one of the illuminated trees. She places her hands around my neck, and I put mine on her waist as she steps closer, resting her face into the crook of my neck, “Alexis, we’ve um … we haven’t known each other for a very long time, you and I both know that. But, well, I think I kinda might love you … a little bit. We’ve been together for what? A year and a half now?”
Oh, shit.
She’s already starting to move away from me.

She lifts her head
, and starts to search my eyes with hers again, studying me, “Brandon, are you okay?” She removes one of her hands from my neck, and then lifts it up until it’s pressing firmly over my forehead. She thinks I’ve gotten a temperature because I’m trying to be a little romantic?
Geez. What’s a guy gotta do to catch a break around here?

“Me? Oh, I’m good. Yeah. I’m good,” I swallow, hard, and she’s now eyeing me with what looks to be caution. I clear my throat and try again. I’ve gotta get my act together. Just step up and be a man. “So, um … a lot has happened in the short time we’ve been together, a whole load of really bad stuff that I would never have brought you into if I’d have known what—”

“Brandon, don’t ruin tonight, please?” I rehearsed my lines in front of the mirror for two hours earlier.
Two hours!
Why am I now unable to do this right?
Shit.

She already thinks I’m ruining the evening. I can’t take this anymore. Fuck it. I’m going in, “Oh hell, I’m just gonna do it,” I reach up, and take her hand away from my neck before I step back and kneel down on the grass.

“What are you doing?”

I close my eyes
, and take a deep breath, grabbing a hold of her left hand in mine before clearing my throat again.
This is it. Moment of truth
. I wait until her eyes are boring directly into mine, and I know I’ve gotta do it
now
.
Here goes.

“Alexis Rose Harper?”

“What are you doing? Brandon get up!” She tries to pull her hand away, but I grip it tighter. She can’t go anywhere. Not yet. Not until she lets me finish what I have to say.

“I don’t wanna live my life without you, Alexis. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it a million times over. You’re my light, my whole world. I thank the heavens every time I wake up in the morning and see you lying right there beside m
e. You’re the only woman I want; the only one I need. Oh, and … you have the finest pair of boobies in the whole goddamn universe. So, yeah. That pretty much sums it up.” Yeah, I think that went pretty well all things considered. She’s staring right at me, but her eyes are unreadable. She’s gonna say no. I should’ve prepared myself for this. My hands are starting to sweat, and my mouth has gone completely dry. Why isn’t she answering me?

“What does?”

Oh, right.
Huh
. I didn’t ask her yet did I?

I swallow, hard, and then grab the ring box from out of my jacket pocket. It’s taking a little longer than I’d hoped it would because my han
ds won’t quit shaking. On Three.

One. Two. Three.

“Marry me.”

***

“Say it again,” I whisper against her lips while backing her down the hallway, and toward the stairs. “
Say. It
.” I demand this time, flicking my tongue across her bottom lip while pushing her up hard against the wall.

“Yes,” she moa
ns, and I press my whole body into hers, but she can do better. Much,
much
fucking better. Gripping her hips, I pull her toward me, and roll myself against her. “God, yes!” She smiles against my lips as she moans louder this time, and her fingers grasp my hair, making me release a growl.