Impossible To Resist (BWWM Romance Book 1)(99)

She laughed a little in surprise and then wiped the tears from her eyes and face. “I didn’t realize I was here,. she whispered.

“I did,” he told her quietly.

She looked up at him in confusion, her brow furrowed slightly. “What do you mean? How did you know that I was here?” she asked him curiously.

He took a deep breath and sighed. “Well, I went to your dad’s house to talk with you and your dad said that you weren’t there. He told me that you found out that you’re pregnant and I knew you would really need someone to talk to, so I thought that the first place you would probably come would be here.”

She closed her eyes to try to hold in all of the pain she felt, at least for a moment, and then she looked back up at him. “Did he say anything else to you?” she asked, surprised that her father had been home.

Reggie nodded subtly. “Yeah, he did. He said that you are going to change schools and get an abortion or you’re going to get kicked out of his house.”

Catalina’s shoulders fell in defeat. “Yeah. That’s what he said,” she whispered.

Reggie reached for her hands, taking them into his and holding them gently in the cool morning air. “Listen,” he said gently, “I wanted to tell you how sorry I am for everything that went wrong between us. I never meant to hurt you or make you angry. I never meant for any of this to get so crazy and blow up the way that it did, I guess it just happened. I was just trying to look out for you.”

She stared at him and he continued. “Cat, I miss you so much. I love you, even just as a friend, if that’s all you want, and I would rather have that with you than nothing at all. So, I know I really screwed up with you, I know I betrayed our friendship, and I know let you down, but I’m here now, and if you want to be friends again, just friends, with no awkward problems, I promise that I will always be here for you, as just a friend, and I won’t let you down again.” He bit his lip and raised his eyebrows hopefully. “What do you say?” he asked, his voice giving away his nervousness.

Catalina laughed and sniffed and fought back more tears as she looked at him in complete gratitude. “I’d say that you have a friend for life.” She answered him. “I missed you too, so much!” she told him as she reached her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly.

He held her there for a long while until they were both alright again, and then he let her go and helped her to her feet. “So what do you want to do now?” he asked, looking at her for direction.

She shook her head. “I’m so tired and I hurt so much, I just want to go home and not deal with anything else today. I just don’t have the strength for it.” Then she looked up at him as they began to head for her house together. “Reggie, thank you so much for coming to get me. It means a lot to me that you were there for me right when I needed you most.”

He smiled and elbowed her arm lightly. “Aw, no problem. That’s what friends are for, right?”

She smiled at him and nodded.

He looked over at her a little while later and tipped his head to the side. “So what had you so upset this morning? I don’t think it was your dad that had you crying like that at our spot.”

She shook her head sadly. “No, it wasn’t my dad. It was Connor and his fiancée,” she answered quietly.

Reggie stopped on the spot and stared at her. “His… his fiancée? He’s engaged?” he asked, almost stupefied.

She stopped and turned to look up at him. “Yeah, he’s engaged. I met her this morning in his office. He wasn’t there, but she was, and she showed me her ring and told me all about how close they are and how they’re getting married in two weeks. I thought I was going to die right there. It isn’t because I’m jealous or anything, but she seems like such a mean bitch!”

Reggie looked at her almost humorously. “It might be that you’re jealous, and it might not be. Who is she?” he asked curiously.

Catalina hated saying her name. “Deborah Hargrove. She’s one of the other professors on campus, although I’ve never had one of her classes.”

Reggie’s eyebrows shot straight up. “Deborah Hargrove?” He shook his head. “I did have her for one class, one semester, and that was one class too many. It’s not you, she’s a mean bitch.” Then he paused thoughtfully. “Well, she’s a mean bitch to the girls, but she has a real thing for most of the guys. She likes to uh… see them in her office after class for extra credit, if you get my drift,” he said with chagrin.

Catalina stared at him. “You’re kidding!” she gasped in amazement. “She accused me of being a slut for sleeping with Connor! …and she…”

Reggie laughed out loud. “That woman has no business calling anyone else a slut. She screwed most of the guys that I knew in class. It was pretty much a guaranteed passing grade if they gave her an orgasm.”

Catalina stared at him for a moment. “Did you…” she began, and paused, eyeing him carefully.

Reggie laughed at her. “No, Cat, I didn’t. I kept making sure that I was too busy and that I was out of class before she could call on me to stay, and I never checked any emails from her all semester, so I passed her class of my own volition.” He shook his head. “Never taking a class from her again, that’s for sure.”