Elizabeth felt him tense up and heard the groan of pain come up from his gut. Good one, Kiki. She waited for the police officers to pull him off of her before she tried to stand. She felt a little bit bummed that she couldn’t give him a shot to the balls herself. He deserved that and more.
“She needs to go to the hospital,” said Elizabeth, limping over to join Joe and Aimee. He had enveloped her in a tender hug. Elizabeth could see tears in his eyes.
Aimee started sobbing and trying to explain to Joe, but he just petted her head and back while he tried to soothe her. “Ssshhhhh, it’s okay now. You don’t have to talk about it yet. Let’s get you to the hospital first and then we’ll sort it all out, okay?”
“Are you going to come?” she asked Joe in the most hopeful and pitiful-sounding voice Elizabeth had ever heard. Her heart was breaking over the raw emotion that was being expressed by her friend.
“I wouldn’t be anywhere else. I’ll stay right in the room with you, the whole time you’re there. I won’t even leave for a shower.”
Aimee smiled as much as her split lips and bruised cheeks would let her. “That’s nice.”
Elizabeth moved over to stand by Kiki, who held her hand up for a high five. Elizabeth was happy to join her in that small celebration. Nothing was fixed, really, but now they had only one direction left to go - up.
Chapter 40
AIMEE OPENED HER EYES, TAKING in the view around her. White walls, a white board with some writing on it that she couldn’t read because her vision was blurry, and an IV bag. An IV bag? Where am I? She looked to her left and saw a person sleeping in a chair next to her. A big someone, with hairy arms and a short-sleeved police uniform on.
“Joe?” she croaked out.
His head flew up and he scrubbed his face a couple times real quick before focusing on her. “Hey, beautiful. You’re awake!”
“Yeah,” she said softly. Her throat hurt something awful. “What the heck happened? Why am I in the hospital?”
“You don’t remember?”
She thought about it for a second. “A little. Bits and pieces. I remember going out with you and then stopping for gas. Then …” She felt confused. The memories were there, they were just … hiding.
Joe stood and came to sit on the edge of her bed, taking her hand in his. “Jack kidnapped you at that gas station. He took you to his condo and beat you up pretty bad. If Kiki and Elizabeth hadn’t been there to rescue you, I’m not sure … well, let’s just say, your two friends pretty much saved your life. I owe them a huge debt of gratitude that I’m pretty sure I’ll never be able to repay.”
“What do you mean? It’s my life they saved.”
“Yeah, well, there’s that. And that’s important. But that’s not all.”
“What do you mean? Was there someone else involved?”
“Yes.”
“Who? Is it someone I know?”
“Not yet.”
Aimee frowned. She wasn’t sure if it was the knocks to the head she’d obviously suffered or if he was deliberately playing with her.
“Joe, I’m getting a headache. Please don’t play with me now.”
“I’m sorry babe. I just … don’t really know how to say this right, I guess.”
“Say what?”
“That your friends saved the life of the woman that I love and the life of my unborn child.”
“Your unborn … what?”
Joe sat there staring at her, tears coming to his eyes. One escaped and dripped off his cheek to land on their entwined fingers.
Understanding started to dawn. “Are you saying …?”
Joe nodded. “Yeah, babe. You’re pregnant. We’re going to have a baby.”
“But … how? I’m infertile.”
“The doctor said it was probably Jack, not you, who was infertile. You can’t argue with the blood tests, babe.”
Aimee’s eyes began to tear up. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered.
“Sorry? Why are you sorry? I’m not.” He lifted their entwined hands and kissed her fingers.
“You’re not?” She said, hope making her voice tremble.
“Heck no. You’re going to be a great mom. I consider myself lucky to be sharing this miracle with you.”
“But you hardly know me,” she said desperately, not believing that this man could possibly be interested in sharing this kind of commitment with her.
“I’ll get to know you. If you’ll let me.” He had to stop talking because he became too choked up to continue.
Aimee couldn’t think of anything to say to that. All she knew was that her heart was so full right now, it felt like it was going to burst.
Chapter 41
KIKI ROLLED HER EYES AT Aimee’s stubbornness. “Yes, it is possible, duh. Obviously.”
“But how could they know I was pregnant already? It’s only been a few days since we had sex!”
“Blood tests, dork! They’re very accurate. Even pee tests can tell in less than a week these days.”
Aimee shook her head. “But I’m infertile.”
Kiki threw up her hands. “I give up. She’s nuts.”
Elizabeth came over to the bed. “It’s true. You’re pregnant. Now you have to decide what you’re going to do. You have the baby to think about.”
“Do? What do you mean do?”
“Well, are you still going to live with Kiki? Are you still going to do Desperate Measures with us?”
“Don’t you want me anymore?” Aimee asked, sounding near tears.
“Of course we want you!” yelled Kiki and Elizabeth simultaneously.
Aimee smiled, wiping her tears away with the back of her bandaged hand. “Geez, okay, relax.”
“So, what’s it gonna be?” asked Kiki.
Aimee shook her head. “No, you’re not getting rid of me. I’m totally in, one hundred percent. We’ve gone this far. Why would I turn back now, just when it’s getting fun?”
“Good,” said Elizabeth. “And I have a message for you from Marcus.”
“Did you tell him I said thanks for the flowers?”
“Yes, I did. And he said, and I quote, ‘Their beauty pales in comparison to yours.’”
“Oh, that is so sweet! What’s his news?”
“He talked to Jack’s defense lawyer, and Jack is ready to settle.”
“Of course he is,” said Kiki. “Ass.”
“What should I do?”
“Just do it. Get him out of your life once and for all.”
“He already is going to be out of her life,” said Kiki. “In jail. For a really long time. Kidnapping? Attempted murder? The guy’s a lifer. But I agree. You should take the money and run. He won’t ever be working as a lawyer again.”
“Poor Tiffany,” said Aimee. “Now her child has to live with the fact that its father is a criminal lunatic.”
“Don’t worry about old Tiffany,” laughed Kiki. “She contacted Marcus and told him that the baby isn’t Jack’s.”
“What?! Get! Out!”
Elizabeth was smiling. “Yeah. It didn’t take her long to put some serious distance between herself and Jack.”
“Is she lying?”
“Marcus doesn’t think so. She said she’d do an amnio … whatever to get the baby’s DNA now, instead of waiting for it to be born. She does not want that shit in the public record of your court documents … saying Jack is her baby’s father.”
Aimee shook her head in disbelief. “I can’t believe it. It really was Jack’s sperm and not my lady parts that was the problem. All that time I let him make me believe there was something wrong with me.”
Elizabeth patted her hand. “Let it go, babe. He’s not worth it.”
“What about the townhouse Tiffany is living in?”
“It’s yours as part of the settlement.”
“I don’t want it.”
“Sell it, then. Keep the money,” counseled Elizabeth.
“Maybe you can move in with your baby-daddy,” suggested Ki
ki.
Aimee’s face colored. “We haven’t talked about it.”
“Well, I have a feeling you will be,” said Elizabeth as the door opened and a large bouquet came in the door.
“Delivery for … Aimee.”
“Put it over there,” Elizabeth said, motioning for the man to put it on the tables that already held several.
“Is it from Joe?” asked Kiki.
Elizabeth pulled the card off and handed it to Aimee.
Aimee opened it and teared up again. “Yes. He signed it ‘Yours’.”
“I told you that you hit the jackpot, didn’t I?”
The door opened again and admitted a little old lady carrying a bone-white vinyl purse. “Is this Aimee’s room? Oh, hey girls, how are you? I’ve been in five different rooms already, looking for this one. I saw two asses, one breast, and a pecker. What the heck is wrong with people these days that they can’t keep their robes closed?”
Aimee started laughing, grimacing slightly at the pain it caused her face and ribs.
Betty came up to the bedside. “Hi, sweetie. It’s Betty. Can you see me okay?”
“Yes, I can. Thank you for coming.”
“That’s a hell of a shiner you’ve got there. You look like you were in a fight with Muhammed Ali.”
“No, just my ex-husband.”
“Bastard!” she yelled. “Anywho, I have a little something for you I made the other day. I heard you were in a certain way, from a little bird, so here you go.”
She unsnapped her vinyl bag and pulled out a pair of mustard yellow baby booties.
Aimee took them gently and turned them over, getting the full effect and trying to ignore Kiki’s not very discreet snorts coming from across the room. Aimee could see Elizabeth rolling her eyes to the ceiling and tapping her foot, trying not to laugh.
“Oh, Betty, these are lovely.”
“Well, the color looks like shit, I know. But I get the yarn from the bargain bin. I’m on a fixed income, you know.” She turned to go out of the room. “Well, I have mah johngg in a few hours or so. I have to go prepare myself for Madge’s next abomination. You know, ever since I brought your delicious cakes, she’s been on a one-woman mission to bring me down. Last week she actually brought fruitcake and marshmallow kabobs. Kabobs! I looked at ‘em and said, ‘Are you kidding me?’ She just gave me one of her looks. Oh, those looks. I see ‘em and I just want to pop her in the kisser. Aimee, honey, you need to get better soon and make me some more tarts before I’m forced to take matters into my own hands.” She waved at the girls over her shoulder on the way out. “Toodles, girls. See you at the book club meeting!”
Kiki held her stomach, laughing so hard she couldn’t stop. She looked up at her friends and saw they were suffering the same as her. “Man, I love that woman.”
“That’s what you’re going to be like when you’re ninety,” said Aimee, laughing and crying at the same time.
“Ninety? Try forty,” said Elizabeth, peals of laughter ringing out and surrounding Kiki with echoing reminders that she was in a really good place in her life right now, even if she had just recently wrestled a mad gunman to the floor to save the life of a friend.
Chapter 42
ELIZABETH CLOSED HER LAPTOP. “OKAY, it’s all done.”
“So I’m finished? I’m a free woman?” asked Aimee. She held up Elizabeth’s favorite pen, having just signed her name to her divorce settlement papers.
“Well, I need to file these with the court and get the judge to sign off on them, but that shouldn’t take longer than a few days,” explained Marcus. “Judge Halsey is well aware of your situation and is more than happy to fast-track this for us.”
“Marcus, I don’t know how to thank you for everything,” said Aimee.
“Oh, goodness, don’t even think about it. I still feel terrible for getting Jack all riled up at you.”
“That was not your fault, Marcus,” said Kiki. “The guy’s a nutter.”
“Yes, well, be that as it may, I still feel responsible. Whatever you need, you say the word.”
“So when is she going to get her money?” asked Kiki.
“It should be wired into her account within five days. That’s the agreement.”
“I’m glad you took all the cash, instead of the property,” said Elizabeth. “It’s going to be so much easier for you.”
“Yeah, well, it’s less than I could have gotten, but you’re right; it beats trying to sell Tiffany’s love nest.”
“Hey, seven hundred grand is nothing to sneeze at,” reminded Kiki.
“Oh, I know. It’s my nest egg. Mine and Junior’s,” Aimee said, rubbing her flat abdomen.
Kiki walked up and patted Aimee’s belly. “Does Junior want to go see the place?”
“Yes, I think he does. And so does his mommy.”
“Excellent.”
They started walking out of Marcus’s office. “I can’t believe we found the perfect location for Desperate Measures so quickly. Can you believe it’s only been a week since the doo-doo hit the fan?” asked Aimee.
“I told you, Rich is some kind of genius, in a weird, almost creepy kind of way,” said Kiki.
“Oh, he wasn’t that bad,” laughed Elizabeth. “He’s just a little over eager.”
Kiki rolled her eyes.
“And the landlord meeting us so soon and being so willing to negotiate and sign off on everything we asked for? I think we’re benefitting from this terrible economy. I’m trying not to feel guilty about that,” said Elizabeth, stepping into the elevator that would take them down to the lobby.
“Don’t feel guilty about our happiness. We’re going to help revitalize the area,” said Aimee.
“You got that right,” agreed Kiki. “I gave the keys to Brent yesterday, by the way. He said he wanted to drop a couple things off for us. I’m guessing flowers or something. He said he’d meet us over there after our meeting with Marcus to give me back the keys.” said Kiki.
“Want me to drive?” asked Elizabeth.
“Sure. If you want,” said Kiki, trying not to smile.
“I’m not going to break the speed limit, Kiki.”
“And you shouldn’t either. You’ll have baby on board, after all.”
Elizabeth narrowed her eyes at her. “You called me a granny driver.”
Kiki shrugged. “It takes you fifteen minutes to drive ten blocks, Lizzie.”
“Girls, girls, please. I’m getting nauseous. Stop.”
“You keep using that morning sickness excuse for everything. Eventually we’re not going to believe you anymore,” warned Kiki.
“Well, then you will suffer the consequences,” said Aimee, trying to hide her smile and look serious.
They piled into Elizabeth’s car, Aimee in the center of the back seat and Kiki the front passenger. Kiki turned on the radio and started singing loudly, off key, to the worst song Elizabeth had ever heard. Elizabeth reached over twice to turn it down, but Kiki slapped her hand away. Elizabeth gave up. All Aimee could seem to do was smile. Elizabeth caught her look in the mirror and grinned back. She loved her new friends.
They pulled up to the curb in front of the future site of their business. All three girls were stunned speechless at what they saw.
Three men stood outside the commercial space, all of them wearing paint-spattered jeans and t-shirts that had seen much better days. Each was sporting beard stubble growing in thickly and hair that looked like it needed a good washing.
“What the heck?” said Aimee, distractedly. “Is that … Joe?”
“And Brent?” said Kiki.
“And Sebastian?” asked Elizabeth.
Elizabeth shut off the engine while the three of them stared. A sign hung above the door that read: “The Future Home of Desperate Measures Cafe”. The windows were covered in paint to block the construction that would soon commence inside. But it wasn’t just regular old white paint; it was a mural, painted by Sebastian - assisted by the other two guys if the looks
of their clothes were any indication. They’d obviously been painting for twenty-four hours straight - creating a gorgeous work of art that depicted the three girls together.
All of the painted women were smiling. One was holding up a plate of cookies, one was on her computer with a pen behind her ear, and one was holding a gun pointed up in the air. And all of them were wearing heels.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Elle Casey is a prolific, New York Times and USA Today bestselling American writer who lives in Southern France with her husband, three kids, and several furry friends. She writes in several genres and publishes an average of one full-length novel per month.
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OTHER BOOKS BY ELLE CASEY
ROMANCE
By Degrees
Rebel Wheels (3-book series)