Fighting for Love (Second Chances #4)(72)
I had to prove to her that I would stay by her side no matter what.
“HEY, MATT, WAKE UP,” A voice whispered with a tap on my shoulder. It was Jace.
With my eyes still closed, I replied groggily, “I am awake. I just haven’t opened my eyes yet.” The second I tried to move my muscles, a fiery cramp ran up from my lower back all the way to my neck. I should’ve slept on the damn floor, at least that way my whole body wouldn’t be on fire and stiff.
Jace chuckled quietly. “Honestly, I don’t see how you slept in that chair. I wouldn’t be able to walk.”
I opened my eyes and stretched, hissing as my sore muscles stretched and bones cracked. “Trust me,” I noted, “I’m starting to think I’m not going to be able to.”
Smiling, Jace pulled up one of the wooden table chairs and passed me a cup of coffee and a paper bag. “Carol told me you hadn’t eaten since you got here yesterday, so I picked this up on my way here. I didn’t know if you liked bagels, but I got you one anyway.”
“Thanks, I appreciate that,” I exclaimed. When I first met the guy I thought he would be a problem, but he actually wasn’t all that bad.
Taking a sip of coffee, I opened the brown paper bag to find an Asiago cheese bagel with sundried tomato cream cheese. My sole focus while I was there had been on Shelby and nothing else, so I didn’t realize how hungry I was until I put the first bite in my mouth. We stayed silent, both keeping an eye on Shelby, waiting for her to open her eyes or move her fingers.
“I heard this happened before,” I murmured regretfully. “Growing up she never had issues with blacking out.”
Blowing out a heavy sigh, Jace nodded. “Yeah, well, when you’re stressed out, depressed, and grieving, your body can do all sorts of things in order to cope. I’m sure when she told you those feelings were magnified by a thousand. Not to mention she was scared to death of losing you, but I do understand why you got angry and left.”
Not expecting that, I turned to him with my mouth gaping wide open. “You understand?” I asked skeptically. “I figured you’d want to bitch me out like Lexi did.”
“No,” he said, “I do understand. When I met Shelby and found out she was pregnant my first thought was the guy was probably a worthless douche bag that broke up with her. She didn’t tell me until much later what she did. I got so mad at her, too. Being a guy, I knew I would want to know if someone was pregnant with my child, and there were many times when I threatened to find you and tell you myself. I know you feel deceived and hurt, and believe me, you have a right to feel like that. All I ask is that you please give her another chance to make things right.”
Reaching for Shelby’s hand, I smoothed my thumb along her soft skin and kissed her palm. “I’ve loved her all of my life, Jace. Now that she’s back in it I can’t imagine ever living without her again. I just can’t get over the fact that she lied to me and kept Madelyn a secret. What was she going to do, raise her by herself?”
Jace shrugged. “That was the plan, along with her mother’s help, but I don’t think she thought things through. Think about it, Matt. She’d just turned eighteen years old, she was pregnant, and she was scared. What eighteen-year-old girl thinks rationally?”
None.
“I know that’s not an excuse,” he said quickly, holding up his hands, “but I honestly think she thought she was being selfish if she told you. Even though you loved her, she knew you would stay out of obligation to the baby. So many people break apart for that reason alone and that can be more destructive than anything. Take her parents for example. The same thing happened to them and now Shelby barely speaks to her dad. She didn’t want that happening to you two.”
Getting up from his chair, he walked over to Shelby’s other side and held her hand.
“Jace, I understand the bit about her parents. I was around when they got divorced and I saw what it did to her. Shelby was different, though. She was smart and knew what she wanted in life, and she was honest. If things get tough in the future, is she going to lie to protect me? How will I know if I can trust her?”
“You won’t,” he answered, looking straight at me, “but when you love someone unconditionally you work through the bad and you concentrate on the good. When you started fighting and I saw how you were I couldn’t understand what Shelby saw in you. What I saw was an arrogant bastard that liked to get his kicks off by beating people up and having promiscuous sex. She swore up and down that you weren’t always like that, and no matter what you did she always defended you when I told her you weren’t worth the heartache. I just thought she was na?ve, but she never gave up on you.”
He looked down at her and kissed her softly on the head. “She never gave up on me, either.”
At that time, Shelby’s hand twitched in mine. I immediately got to my feet and leaned over her, hoping she was finally coming around. “Did you feel that?” I asked, glancing over at him.
Nodding, he grinned and said, “Her hand moved. She’s coming around.”
“Shelby,” I whispered gently. “Wake up, angel.”
Eyelids fluttering, she took in a deep breath and finally opened those honey-colored eyes of hers, tilting her head slightly to look at me and Jace. Groggily, she asked, “What … happened?”