Stalemate (7 page)

“I don’t want you to buy everything for us. I want to contribute to their things,” Isa said stubbornly. “I won’t be leaving the Navy. I have another four years and I can provide for the twins as well.”

“How about a compromise?” Bryce said, not wanting to offend her. She took pride in taking care of herself and Tawny before she got her modeling career off the ground.. Now that she was expecting, she would want to do that for her children. “Today we pick out whatever we want, baby furniture and the likes.  I’ll pay for half now and then you can get the rest later.”

“Deal. So this was the surprise, baby shopping?”

“No, the real surprise is in the back.” Bryce took her hand.

The young woman in the shop smiled. “Mr. Forte, right this way.”

Bryce led Isa behind the curtain to the art studio.

“What’s all this?” Isa said, looking around.

“This is how some women commemorate their pregnancy,” the clerk explained.  “We make a cast of your belly and then we cover it in clay. Our artist then colors and fires it into a marvelous piece of art.”

“Are you in?” Bryce asked.

Isa laughed. “Oh heck yeah I am!”

“I understand you’re having twins,” the clerk said conversationally. “Sometimes, if we get a mother far long, we see a foot print in the cast or maybe a knee.”

“Can I come back and do another one when I get further along?” Isa asked, and Bryce could hear the excitement in her voice.

“We can.” He kissed her temple. “I’ll be coming back with you.”

“I’d like that,” Isa said shyly.

He watched with rapt interest as she came out from the dressing room in a sports bra.  Her skin was smooth as chocolate silk and burgeoning with life. The clerk laughed as she felt movement. As she showed them around, she told them she ran the store and helped make the cast for the artists when they came in. Bryce felt a little jealous at how easily Isa talked to the clerk, especially with the clerk being allowed to touch her belly when he felt uncomfortable asking. Bryce brushed it off as a woman thing knowing they had a lot of ground to cover to rebuild trust. In his case, he felt jealous of even Dr. Allary, who Isa called Ben. She saw him as a friend, and all Bryce saw was a threat.

After the cast was dried and removed, she cleaned her stomach off with a warm washcloth. The clerk handed her cocoa butter cream to moisturize her skin, and watching her rub it on made Bryce shift uncomfortably in his seat. He wanted her in the worst way.

“We don’t know the sex of the twins, so let’s keep the clothes to a minimum for now,” Isa said as they shopped.

“When do we find out anyway?” Bryce asked. He picked up something he thought looked like a boy version of a tutu.
I should let her pick clothes before the kids are dressed like baby clowns,
he thought.  He had no clue about dressing kids.

His cell phone beeped in his pocket and he pulled it out to look at it.

“We find out next appointment, hopefully. The last time neither of them cooperated.” Isa walked towards him while he stared at his phone. “Something wrong?”

“I have this gala thing tonight I have to go to In New York,” Bryce said. “Fuck it, I would blow it off, but I pledged donations to them months ago and it’s a thing my mom started.”

“No, go. Makes no sense you staying in with me every night. You had a schedule way before this, and I’ll be fine,” Isa encouraged.

“I’d invite you, but it’s too late to get a dress and I just promised to keep you out of the lime light,” he said. “Plus, we don’t know if you were cleared for flying.”

Isa laughed. “It’s fine. Besides, the last time I crashed a party, look what happened.”

Bryce kissed her lovingly. “A very good thing happened. I’m taking my jet, so I’ll be back late tonight.”

“I’m all tapped out. Can we have some lunch before we head home?” Isa asked. “The twins are starved for a steak burrito bowl, smothered in spicy melted cheese, sour cream, and guacamole.”

“They seem to have a very specific taste for being babies,” Bryce said, amused.

“What can I say, they have refined tastes.”

The clerk rang up everything the placed a sticker on and the baby clothes. It wasn’t expensive to him, but he saw the look on Isa face when she heard the final price. She nodded and made a note of her half in the memo section of her phone and Bryce could practically see her adding in her head. He had no doubt that her half was two paychecks or more from the Navy, especially now that she was out on medical leave. What she didn’t know was that he spoke to the clerk when she was changing and paid for the entire purchase.  When Isa sent the rest, he would take the refunded money and put it in an account. She could use it or save it for the twins, depending on what she wanted to do.  He’d tell her later on when he cemented their relationship and she wouldn’t take offense.

“Let’s go get you fed,” he said. “They’ll deliver later in the week.”

“Yes, sir, we can have it there on Friday. It’s a big delivery, so you may be the first and only stop before the drivers come back,” the clerk said. “Have a safe and blessed birth, Ms. Croix.”

“Thank you,” Isa said, and walked past Bryce as he held the door open. She spoke in a low tone to him on the way out. “By the way, that kiss made me entirely wet.”

Well damn,
he thought with a happy grin, and let the door close. That comment alone made the trip worthwhile. On the way home, he held her hand, feeling like they’d finally hit a new plateau in their relationship.
Maybe its smooth sailing from here
, he thought.

* * * *

I
sa walked from the kitchen into the hallway with a bowl filled with dessert. She was comfortable in her old ratty bathrobe, two socks that didn’t match, the wide pajama bottoms, and men’s Navy t-shirt she wore.  She’d eaten the healthy meal prepared by Marjorie and now she was partaking in strawberry cake topped with something the cook called ambrosia.  It was whipped cream and fruit mixed together, but it was delicious.
It’s amazing the simple things taste the best,
she thought as she went into the family room.  Isa sat down on the chair and picked up the remote to the wide screen TV that was on the wall. It had to be custom made. It was one of those new smart TVs with the curved edges, and she estimated it to be at least seventy-two inches.

She pressed the button and began to run through the channels, stopping on one of the entertainment networks.  Isa wished she hadn’t because Bryce was front and center as they showcased the gala. Wearing a black tux with a bowtie, he looked dashing and sexy as hell. He’d left in a casual shirt and slacks so he had to have changed there.
Probably because he didn’t want me to feel bad I wasn’t going,
she thought. He was rich, after all, so the man probably had tuxes in many a suite he owned at any hotel around the world.

The lights flashed back and forth. The red carpet was filled with glitz and glamour. But that wasn’t what took away the taste of food she’d taken a bite of and turned it to dust on her tongue. It was the fact that Bryce stood there with his arms around a willowy brunette.

The woman was wearing a slinky dress that was cut so you could see entirely too much of her cleavage, and she played with his bowtie in a flirty way for the camera. She could call that all for show, and understand that people have to play it up for the camera, but the brunette turned and kissed Bryce and the crowd cheered. The kiss went on and she had enough of watching. Hurt filled her chest. After all he’d said today, all he asked of her especially trust. There he was, kissing someone else on TV for the whole world to see.

Isa wasn’t going to be fooled twice, not even caring at that point. She went upstairs and grabbed her purse and cell phone. She called a cab and left for the only place she ever felt safe that was actually hers—the apartment.  She took the stairs carefully and unlocked the door. Silence greeted her, not Tawny dancing around cooking jambalaya, not the sound of the TV and the smell of the potpourri that they always bought. It was empty, even though their furniture was still there. 
Probably a good thing we never put it on the market,
she thought as she closed and locked the door.

Isa rubbed her stomach absently as the babies within her kicked as if to show their disapproval of her choice. Jealousy led to hurt, but she wasn’t stupid and she didn’t think she was overreacting. A man like Bryce probably got dressed in a hotel suite he owned because he planned to spend some naked time with the brunette later. Wasn’t that how the rich led their lives? The little woman at home taking care of the children while they were out painting the town red? As long as the money came in wifey shouldn’t complain right? Isa swiped tears that had begun to fall angrily. She hated feeling this way and she sure as shit didn’t need his money. He could play with his fancy friends and she would stay who she always was—Isa Croix, a survivor. Still, the thought made her cry harder. They’d made a cast of her belly and today had felt right. What she thought was a solid foundation for a life with their children meant nothing.

“What do you expect? You guys barely kiss and he obviously has an appetite for the women,” she muttered.

Isa lay in her bed and pulled the covers up over her well-worn bathrobe. She pressed her face into her pillow, remembering the first night she was home. Tawny had opened the curtains and woke her up. She’d felt happiness knowing she would be stable on land for the first time since joining the Navy. The babies tossed and kicked within her and she ran her hand over her stomach lovingly. They were her heart, her reason for living now. Isa began to sing a soft lullaby and continued till she fell asleep.

She woke up to pounding on her door, the sound so loud she sat up with a gasp. At first it took her a moment to realize she wasn’t in the room at Bryce’s mansion, but her own apartment. Isa looked at her phone. It was after two in the morning and there was a list of missed calls from Bryce. There was no doubt who was at the door.

Isa got up slowly, wondering how he got through the gate.  It was either let him in or deal with the cops if someone called because of the noise.  Last thing she needed was to deal with a police car in front of her apartment.  When she opened the door, Bryce was still wearing the tux she’d seen him in on TV. The bowtie the brunette played with was open and handing down on the crisp white shirt. Isa thought she could even smell a hint of female perfume.

“Mind telling me why you’re here and I come home to find you gone?” Bryce strode into the apartment.

“I locked that gate before I came up,” Isa commented.

“I broke the lock,” Bryce answered. There was no apology in his voice and she doubted she was getting one. “I’ll have it fixed tomorrow, so why the hell aren’t you home?”

“I figured you’d need your space for the brunette. You certainly don’t want to explain why the pregnant black chick is coming downstairs for breakfast,” Isa snapped. “Besides, that goliath empty structure isn’t my home.

“What the hell are you talking about?” he asked in exasperation.

She looked at him, astonished. “You went to a gala, you were on the red carpet. The brunette who had her tongue so far down your throat she could probably lick your tonsils... Really, Bryce, if you were trying to keep it a secret, don’t kiss a woman in front of the cameras.”

He flushed. “You saw that.”

“No, I had a vision in my crystal ball. Of course I saw,” Isa said, and felt tears burn her eyes. “The thing is, you kissed me today, said all those things to make me trust you, and then you decide to tongue wrestle with some socialite.”

“It wasn’t like that,” Bryce said softly. She saw the anger leave his eyes.

“Sure,” she said bitterly. “Who wants the fat pregnant black girl on your arm when you have a six-two in heels bombshell? Then have to explain how she got pregnant. I get it, I’m not even five-eight in heels.”

“She kissed me. Did you see me kiss her back?” Bryce asked. “This is press, and everyone is looking to make some kind of trend statement.”

“I didn’t see you stop her,” Isa shot back.

“You also didn’t see me avoid her for the rest of the night. Or the disgust on my face because she tasted like old cigarettes and baseballs. That can be attested to by many people, including the one reporter from the
Good Morning Show
who actually teased me about it.” Bryce pulled out his phone. “Should I call him now?”

“How much does he get for backing up your story?” Isa goaded him.

Bryce narrowed his eyes and his voice was cold. “I don’t nor ever have worked that way and I sure as hell won’t be starting now. We can’t keep doing this, Isa, one step forward two steps back. Dancing around each other in this emotional chess game when it’s always going to be a stalemate. I’m not running and you can’t either, not anymore. You fucking scared the shit out of me. I thought you were back in the hospital. I called Dr. Allary and he hadn’t be paged....”

His voice broke and he shook his head, turning away from Isa. Her heart broke seeing a man like Bryce get emotional. She didn’t think he would be worried after the initial problem with her pregnancy.  Isa kicked herself in the ass because she knew she hadn’t thought at all. She’d worked on adrenaline and straight up jealousy then ran away from the problem.
Or maybe I was hoping he’d chased me.
Isa frowned at the thought because she wasn’t that insecure and didn’t play those games. Why had she started now? Instead of being upset with Bryce, she started searching her own inner demons, the ones she’d thought were long buried.

“Bryce, I’m sorry.” Isa stepped closer and put her hand on his arm. “I wasn’t thinking you’d worry and I was pissed off.”

“Why wouldn’t you think I would worry?” Bryce placed his hands on her shoulders.

Isa looked up at him and answered honestly. “Because other than Tawny, in my entire life, no one ever really has. I guess deep down I always had this fear that eventually you’d get tired of pretending you cared for me and the twins and go back to your usual life. Then I could hide behind my walls and say I was proven correct.”