When I Lie With You

Chapter 33

Ian

As Andre and I sat in the booth, we talked about Rory and the baby. I was honest with him and told him that I didn’t want it.

“Ian, my friend. You’re going to be a father. One of the greatest gifts of all. God has given you a gift.”

“I didn’t ask for it and I certainly don’t want it.”

“Why are you scared? Do you know what I’d give to have a woman like Rory and a baby on the way? Family is what life’s all about.”

“Not my life, Andre. Not my life,” I said as I swirled the brown liquid in the glass and downed it like a shot.

“I think you need to go talk to that therapist Rory was seeing. You need to get yourself straightened out. Your judgment is clouded, my friend. For some reason, you can’t see the best thing that’s in front of you. What’s it going to take this time to make you see that Rory and your baby are the most important things in your life?”

I looked down because I didn’t want to talk about this anymore. I just wanted it all to go away. We finished our dinner and went back to the house. It was late. Andre went up to his room and I went to check on Rory. When I opened the door, she wasn’t in bed. I searched the house for her and she wasn’t anywhere to be found. I tried to call her phone and it went straight to voicemail. I walked back upstairs to her room and saw her phone lying on the nightstand. I went to the garage and her car was gone. I immediately flew up the stairs and to our bedroom. I opened the closet doors and let out a sigh of relief when I saw all her clothes hanging there. I grabbed my keys and drove to the Piano Bar. I bet that was where she went. As I walked through the doors, I looked around, but didn’t see her. Jimmy was over by the piano, so I walked over and asked him if Rory was there or had been there tonight. He gave me a worried look and told me no.

“Is something going on, Ian?” he asked.

“We just had a disagreement and now I can’t find her. She left her phone at home.”

“Is there a special place she goes to when you two have an argument?”

I stood there and thought about it for a minute. She usually went down to the beach, but I checked and she wasn’t there. Then it hit me.

“Thank you, Jimmy. I think I know where she is.”

I left the bar and drove to the place I was pretty sure she was at. When I pulled up to the curb, I saw her lying there, on the ground, in front of Stephen’s grave. I got out of the car and walked over to her, only to find her asleep. When I carefully picked her up, she opened her eyes and looked at me. Her eyes looked red and swollen as if she’d been crying for hours.

“What are you doing?” she asked in a whisper.

“Taking you home.”

She wrapped her arms around my neck and laid her head on my chest. I put her in the car and drove home. I picked her up from the seat, carried her upstairs, and laid her down in our bed.

The next morning, Rory was up and showered before the alarm went off. After I finished getting dressed, I joined her and Andre downstairs for breakfast. She looked at me when I entered the dining room and quickly looked down. I didn’t want to say anything about last night in front of Andre.

“Good morning,” I said.

Andre replied with a good morning and Rory didn’t say anything. I sat down while Mandy poured some coffee in my cup.

“Joshua will drive you to the airport.”

“Thank you, Ian. I appreciate it.”

I finished up my coffee and muffin and looked at my watch. “Well, it was great to see you, Andre. Have a safe flight home and keep in touch,” I said as we hugged lightly.

“Thank you for taking me into your beautiful home. Good luck with everything.”

I left and headed to Prim. When I arrived at the office, I sent Rory a text message.

“We need to talk about last night.”

“There’s nothing to talk about. I visited my brother’s grave and fell asleep. Leave it alone,” she replied back.

I sighed as I threw my phone across the desk. This situation was getting worse by the minute. My phone began to ring and when I picked it up, I saw that Adalynn was calling. Great. I knew exactly why she was calling.

“Hello, Adalynn. How’s the honeymoon going?”

“Don’t you think for one minute that I don’t know what’s going on between you and Rory,” she yelled into the phone.

“Adalynn, I’m in no mood for this right now.”

“I don’t care. You’re an asshole, Ian. As much as I hate to say this, you’re worse than Andrew and I didn’t think that was possible. What the hell is the matter with you? What demons are you hiding?”

I rolled my eyes before answering her. “This is none of your concern. Rory knew exactly how I felt about having children and she let me down. I can’t be a father to that baby, Adalynn. You know me.”

“I thought I knew you, Ian. I thought you were a better person than that. I guess it’s true what they say: a leopard can’t change its spots. You’re a perfect asshole example of that. I’m ashamed of you, Braxton.” Click.

As I shook my head, I threw my phone across my desk and cupped my face in my hands. What the fuck was I going to do? I loved Rory. She changed me. Or at least, I thought she had. I had my reasons for not wanting this child. Reasons I wouldn’t admit. It was better for the baby that I was not in its life.