Chapter 24

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

A MONTH LATER

RIPLEY

L ayton looks at me with nothing but concern on his face despite the fact that I'm ruining his reunion with Arizona. "Can I do anything for you?"

I shake my head. "No. I'm so sorry to intrude, but I really need to talk to her."

We're in the back of a limo on our way to the airport. Arizona's plane is due to arrive at any moment.

"Don't worry about it. Take however much time you need. She and I have all the time in the world."

"Thanks, Layton. You're a good guy."

"Of course. Should I take an Uber home, so you two can talk privately?"

I shake my head. "No. I'm sure you already know some of it and you'll hear everything else soon enough. If she's upset, I want you to be there for her. I've kept secrets from my best friend for a long time, and she's going to be hurt. She'll need to lean on you."

He nods in understanding and takes my hand in his. "She loves you, Rip. She'll forgive whatever it is. That's the kind of person she is."

I swallow. "I hope you're right."

We arrive at the airport. The limo pulls right out onto the private airstrip. Just a few minutes later, a small, private plane lands.

With crutches in hand, Layton maneuvers out the door. I stay in the limo. I'm already interrupting their big reunion. I want to at least give them a few minutes of happiness before dropping this bomb on her. Bombs.

When the door opens, Arizona emerges. Even through the tinted windows, I see a huge smile break out on her face when her eyes find Layton. She's so in love with him. Even though I'm a mess, my heart still swells for her and what they share. I know he's her forever.

She practically sprints down the stairs. He's right outside the limo door, so I can hear him laugh. If it wasn't for his leg, she'd leap into his arms.

As she's approaching, he tosses his crutches to the side and holds out his arms. She falls into him, and, without a single word needing to be spoken, their lips meet.

They kiss for several long minutes, like the starved lovers they've been for two months. Neither cares where they are nor who can see them. Their need for each other is palpable.

Her hands move under and up his shirt while his are on her ass.

When they eventually break apart, she breathes, "Hello to you too, superstar. "

He lovingly rubs her face. I can see tears falling down his cheeks. "Never leave me again."

"Never."

"I love you so much."

"I love you too. Let's go get into bed and not surface for a week. In fact, we can start in this limo right now."

She reaches for his belt buckle, but he grabs her wrist. "We have company in the limo."

She bends and pokes her head inside before pinching her eyebrows together. "Rip? What are you doing here?"

"I'm so sorry to interrupt, but I'm flying home later today, and I need to talk to you before I go."

Her face falls. "You're leaving? I just got home."

"I know, babe. I'll explain everything."

Once her luggage is packed in the trunk, they slide inside the limo. As it pulls away from the airport, Layton intertwines his fingers with hers. She looks at him. "Do you know what this is about?"

"I have an idea. Let Ripley speak. Hear her out. No matter what, you know she loves you."

Arizona turns to me, worry written all over her gorgeous face.

I take a deep breath. "Let me just get right to it. I'm in love with your brother."

Her chin drops. "With Quincy? Since when?"

"If I'm being honest, since the day I met him when I was five."

She slowly nods as if she's contemplating our past. "I guess I always suspected you had feelings for him, but I'm not sure I realized how deep they ran. I saw it as a childhood crush."

"It started that way, but they've deepened a lot throughout the years. He…umm…he was all my firsts. All of them." I give her a look trying to convey just what I mean.

She sinks back into the seat and breathes out, "What? When?"

"The night he was drafted, after you passed out, we kissed. The night before our high school graduation, he and I slept together for the first time."

I see her searching her memory bank for a moment. "The night of our state championship? You slept over after the celebration party where you broke up with Jack."

I nod. "Yes. I broke up with him knowing who I wanted to be my first. When you fell asleep, I went to Quincy's room. The day we all met, he asked me to give him all my firsts. For some reason, that stuck with me, and I wanted to see it through. Between my promise and my crush, I needed it to be Quincy, not Jack, that night."

She blows out a breath. "I suppose part of me is surprised and part isn't. Why are you telling me this now? What's the big deal? That was a long time ago."

"Our physical relationship continued throughout most of my time in Houston. For years, we slept together."

"Oh. I...umm…okay. What about since the move to Philly?"

"Yes. I initially didn't want it to, knowing how strong my feelings are for him, but…" I start to tear as my shoulders fall. "I'm in love with him. I always have been. I can't seem to help myself. In my head I knew I should stay away, but the heart wants what it wants, and my heart has always been with him."

She takes a few breaths. I know she's toggling between being upset with me and wanting to comfort me, eventually saying, "I know you've been secretive. I suppose I understand why. It's not like this is a bad thing. You're my best friend. You're a sister to me. Why would you'd think I'd be upset if you date my brother? I don't understand why it needed to be so secretive." She looks at Layton. "It's not like I'm in a position to judge you for falling for your best friend's sibling."

I swallow. "There's more. I've been keeping a lot from you. Know that it was so hard. I hate keeping anything from you. It guts me." I take a breath. "When I first got to Houston, I found out that my dingbat of a mother didn't do what was necessary for me to become a US citizen when I was a kid. I wasn't going to be able to get a work visa in time for that first season and wasn't sure I'd get it at all since I had been here illegally for so long."

She pinches her eyebrows together. "That sucks, but what does this have to do with you and Quincy?"

"He stopped by the morning I found out. After talking things through, he suggested we get married so I could obtain my citizenship."

She lets out a laugh. "Married? That's crazy." Her eyes then widen as realization hits. "You and Quincy were married?"

" Are married. We've been married for over six years."

She whispers, "What the fuck?"

"To be clear, we have never lived as a married couple. It's been on paper only. We've both seen other people. That was our understanding. Yes, we also spent time together, but that was physical and completely separate from the marriage."

"Holy shi—"

"And now I'm pregnant. It's his."

Her mouth widens and she covers it with her hand. Tears form in her eyes.

It's silent for several long beats, but when her hand drops from her mouth, a smile finds her lips. "I'm…I'm going to be an aunt?" Her smile widens. "And it's going to be yours and Quincy's? This is the greatest thing that's ever happened."

I pinch my eyebrows together in total shock. "You're not angry with me? "

"Rip, I'm experiencing about a thousand different emotions right now, but anger isn't one of them. My brother and my best friend are married and having a baby. This is the best day ever."

She flings herself across the limo and wraps me in a huge hug. "I'm so happy."

Tears of relief stream down my cheeks as I hug her back. Layton the mushball is covered in tears too.

She eventually pulls back. "Omigod. I want to have a huge baby shower. We can have all sorts of baby softball and baseball stuff. And then we can—"

"Arizona, there's more."

"More? What else is there? Is it twins?" Her face is hopeful.

"No, it's not twins. It's actually a baby girl. I just found out."

She screams. "Ahh. So exciting! When are you moving in with him? Don't worry about the apartment. I'm moving in with Layton. I was planning to talk to you about it this week."

"I moved my stuff out already, but I moved it to my mother's."

"Your mother's? In California? I'm so confused. You and Quincy are moving back to Cali?"

I sigh, hating that I'm about to take the wind from her sails. "I've lived there for the past month. I only came here to see you. I'm heading back tonight. It's Quincy. He doesn't want me or the baby. We're getting a divorce. I'm raising her on my own."

Her face immediately falls. "What the fuck do you mean? What did that asshole do?"

"When we first got married, he agreed to it because he said he never wanted a real marriage and was adamant that he was never having kids. This isn't what he wants. "

Arizona's face looks like murder. I recognize that look from Quincy. "Tell me exactly what he said."

"We haven't spoken much since I told him about the baby right after you left. That night, he ran out on me and straight into the arms of another woman. The only time we've spoken since then was on Thanksgiving. He doesn't want to be a parent. I think he has a lot more animosity toward your parents than he ever let on. Their constant focus on the business has truly damaged him. It's completely different from you. You accept them for how they are and enjoy whatever they can do, he's venomous about it."

"Let's fucking go over there and kick his ass. He'll realize his mistake. He's being an immature asshole. He doesn't want this. I know he doesn't."

Layton gently grabs her arm for attention. "Quincy is gone."

I look at him in surprise. "What do you mean gone ?"

He shrugs. "He took off the day after Thanksgiving and hasn't been back since. He told management he'd be out of pocket but would continue his off-season workouts on his own. No one has heard from him. He doesn't return texts and his cell phone goes right to voicemail."

I hope he's okay. I didn't know anything about this. Part of me is surprised that neither Kam nor Bailey mentioned it, but to be fair, I told them I didn't want to know anything about him.

Arizona looks at me with worried eyes. "Are you coming back soon?"

I shake my head. "No, sweetie. I can't be near him anymore. It hurts too much. I've requested a trade. I'm due a month before the season anyway. I doubt playing this year is very likely."

"What about training for the Olympics? Our dream. "

I shrug. "I don't know. I'm going to be a single mother. It might not be in the cards for me anymore."

Tears stream down her face as she hugs me. "Oh, Rip, I'm so sorry. He'll get it together at some point. I know he will."

I shake my head. "It's too late for us. He can't undo the damage he's done to me. If a time comes when he wants to be in our daughter's life, the door will always be open, but it's over for him and me."