Baby Come Back(4)

“Stop it, Gina,” he snapped, turning back around to face me. “This is my problem to deal with, not yours. This has dredged up memories for me that have nothing to do with you. This has caused me once again to question my own judgment. Having you near is a constant reminder of that. If you insist on staying here, I will simply hire someone to take over for me as co-manager and return to Bristol to run the winery.”

I panicked now. I couldn’t let Tristan see how panicked the thought of him going away made me. I couldn’t bear it if he left Atlanta. That would mean that it was truly over and it couldn’t be. My mind was screaming, ‘Baby come back!’ Outwardly I remained composed.

“No Tristan, I get it. It’s not a problem. I think I could use some time away myself. Maybe I should pay a visit to my mother in Hoboken. It’s been awhile.”

“Okay then,” he said, quietly. “I will take care of things here. Please don’t worry.”

“I won’t Tristan. Goodbye.”

I wasn’t sure how I had managed to collect my things and find my way back to Jo Anna’s apartment, but I did. I refused to shed another tear over this. It wasn’t good for me; it wasn’t good for the baby. I just needed to know that Tristan would stay in Atlanta. I needed to know he wasn’t done with me.

I booked a flight to Newark leaving at 7:18 that evening; I phoned my mother and told her what time to pick me up at the airport. I left a note for Jo Anna. I phoned Tylar to let her know. She insisted on driving me to the airport. I looked down as the plane lifted from the runway and watched as Atlanta disappeared beneath the cloud cover. What I needed right now was not in Atlanta; I needed the comfort of my mother. I hadn’t needed that in a long time, not since my heartbreak over Ian. It was what I needed now, once again.





CHAPTER 3




The two weeks spent in Hoboken with my parents had been therapeutic for me. Once I had gotten my mother to calm down; things had gone smoothly. She was tickled at the prospect of being a grandmother again. This baby would be her second grandchild; the same as for the Sinclair’s I thought. My brother and sister-in-law had a six month old baby boy, Ethan. My mother had no shortage of pictures to show me.

My dad was a quiet man. He hadn’t said a lot about any of it. My mother was the vocal one of the two. My dad had caught me later in my room. He had told me that everything would work out; he said Tristan needed time to digest what Ian had said. A man had his pride, he had advised me, pulling me close for a hug. He told me not to judge Tristan too harshly; he assured me that he would come around. It had made me feel better. My mother’s first reaction had been to hunt Tristan down and geld him; she was ‘east coast’ that way.

Mom had taken me shopping for maternity wear. She had tried to convince me to stay in Hoboken with them. I loved my mother, but there was no way in hell I could have made it through my pregnancy without killing her or her me; that much I knew. She asked me what last name the baby would carry. I hadn’t even thought about that. She urged me to take my maiden name back and have the baby carry the family name as well.

“You are a Valenti, Gina,” she had said, “You and the baby should carry that name with pride. We are Italians. Italians are proud people and they understand the importance of family during good times and bad.”

“Okay Mom,” I had replied, “I think that’s a plan. I promise; I will consider it.”

She had hugged me tightly at the airport; tears streaming down her cheeks.

“I will be with you when the baby comes, Gina Marie,” she promised. “You call me when you get back to Atlanta. Mothers worry.”

“I will Mom. I love you.”

Tylar was waiting for me near baggage claim after my flight had arrived. She spotted me quickly, coming over to hug me.

“How are you doing, Gina?”

“I’m good,” I replied, honestly. “It was good being with Mom and Dad. I feel better. How are things going with you?”

“We’re settled in the house. Jean will be moving in sometime within the next few weeks. Tristan’s been out there a couple of times.”

“Really,” I said, feigning disinterest. “That’s nice.”

“Yeah, I think he’s come to terms with the situation.”

“What situation is that?”

“Come on Gina. Stop acting as if you don’t care. You love Tristan, remember?”

“Loved,” I corrected her, “I loved Tristan once.”

“I don’t believe for a minute that you suddenly don’t love him anymore, Gina. That is just you being stubborn and putting up one of your protective walls.”

“Oh, is that what I do?”

“You know it is. Look, Trey had a talk with Tristan. He told Tristan he was being an ass. He told him that he would regret his actions if he didn’t make it right with you as soon as possible.”

I found it difficult to believe that the ‘Hot Nazi’ would have jumped to my defense like that. What was up with that?

“Trey came to my defense? Has hell frozen over and no one told me?”

“Stop,” Tylar laughed, “Trey is a reasonable person and he knows that Tristan over-reacted on this. I mean the truth will be out eventually, right? How stupid will Tristan feel after the baby is born and he sees that it is his and that he has lost you?”