“No.” Julie stood, smoothed the wrinkles on her T-shirt and shorts, and lifted her chin. “Trevor Ashford is off-limits. I won’t allow you to touch him or Marsha.”
“Why not?” Wind asked.
Trace huffed. “Because our dear, sweet friend would never cause a problem when there is a baby involved.”
They all looked to her with understanding. She’d faced such certain ruin as a teenager and knew that she never wanted Bri to suffer for it. “A baby’s a gift. That child trumps a small, almost spring fling with a widow.” She eyed the shop through the window. “But that doesn’t stop me from moving on with my life. It’s time for me to work on what I want next. I’m ready. You ladies find something to do, because I need some alone time to work on my art.” She waltzed out of the living room, through the front door, across the garden, and into her shop. Each step became more difficult, but she made it the fifty steps or so before she collapsed under the weight of the truth. The truth that when she saw Trevor’s hand on Marsha’s belly, it felt like he’d punched Julie in the gut. For all her attempts at moving forward and telling everyone how minor their moment in time was, it was more than that. It had been a promise of a future with love and happiness, which she’d given up on after Joe’s passing. Now she remembered why. The pain of loss crippled her with emotion to the point that she didn’t want to get out of bed, or run a shop, or face the world. In that moment, she regretted ever meeting Trevor Ashford and hoped she never saw him again.
If she did, she wasn’t sure she could remember there was a baby that prevented her from retaliating, and she might just pull a Kat and punch his lights out.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Trevor tried to keep his cool with Marsha. “Get on the board. There’s no choice.”
Marsha huffed like a child. He’d forgotten how infuriatingly immature she could be at times. “There is a choice. Call the police or coast guard and have them rescue us, and have those women arrested.”
“Do you have a phone on you? Because I don’t.” Trevor hated wasting time with the obvious, but he wasn’t going to stay on that beach another minute. It wasn’t his beach to share. “And the only way to get us across this river is to paddle. You’ll sit and you’ll be quiet.”
“Is that any way to talk to me? I’m your wife.”
“Ex-wife. Papers were signed and you’ve been paid to leave.” He picked up the makeshift oar he made from one of the broken chairs and held the board for her to climb on and sit.
She crossed her arms over her chest. “Paid to leave? I deserved all that you left me. I was with you for seven years. Sacrificed my career for several of those.”
His anger bubbled. She’d never had a career until she used him to make introductions to prominent people in the industry while working on a business deal for his company. She needed to sit down and allow him to get them to the shore before he lost his temper. “Sit on the board, and for once in your life, be quiet.”
Her mouth dropped open, obviously shocked that any man would ever speak to her that way, but she did as she was told. After all those years of never raising his voice to her, he’d wished he would’ve put her in her place a long time ago.
To his relief, the old board stayed afloat and he managed to paddle with the board. When they reached the edge of the canal and spotted the dinghy across at the end of Sunset Blvd, she erupted in her normal prattle, demanding the police be called.
Good thing it was a calm day, or he would’ve been forced to listen to her complaints even longer. When they reached the other side, he was winded and exhausted from attempting to cross the current. Once he caught his breath, he checked the dinghy but discovered the key wasn’t in the deadman’s switch and it was nowhere to be found.
“What are you going to do?” she asked with a flip of her long hair over her shoulder.
“I’m going after Julie.”
“What am I supposed to do?” she shrieked.
“Walk back to my house and return to Seattle.”
“I’m pregnant,” she stated, as if unable to walk a few blocks in her delicate condition. Based on his experience with his sisters, there was no reason she couldn’t walk.
“I think you can manage.” He set the paddleboard inside the dinghy along with the wood slat, knowing walking would be easier than staying on that board another minute with Marsha. He wasn’t convinced he wouldn’t dump Marsha somewhere out there if she started complaining again. What had he ever seen in her?
“I’m so sorry.” She slid her fingers between his and held tight so he couldn’t pull away. “Pregnancy hormones have me all worked up. But just think, I’m growing a little human being inside. One who will be ours. One who will renew our love for one another and make things better between us.”
He saw the desperation on her face, something he’d never seen before. “Nothing has ever been good between us,” he barked and tugged his hand away.
Marsha quickened her pace to keep up with him. He fought between guilt for treating a woman who could be carrying his child this way and wanting her out of his life once and for all. He reached Julie’s place, but there was no way past the three fuming friends at the front walk.
“Don’t even think about it,” Kat warned.
“Please, I didn’t know she was going to follow me,” he pleaded. “I didn’t even know she was going to come here.”
“Doesn’t matter. You can’t talk to Jewels. Not right now. Not with her here.” Wind pointed to Marsha, and
