Love In The Fast Lane Part 20

"I know, I'm sorry." She breezed in. "Nate just now took Noah and I couldn't stand to be alone in the house."

"That's a change. You're normally craving a moment of peace and solitude away from the pineapple under the sea."

Brielle rolled her eyes at her modelesque friend. "Tell me about it."

"Come," Emma ushered. "Let me make us some margaritas."

"Em, it's still morning."

"Yeah I know. But it's afternoon somewhere, best to get an early start," she countered with a wink.

Half an hour later, floating on an inflatable lounger in Emma's backyard pool, Brielle was starting to feel a small buzz. Emma was flipping through some tabloid as they discussed insignificant details of celebrities.

"So, what's the latest with you and Luca?" she asked Emma.

"We are just playing it day by day. The s.e.x is amazing and the man is s.e.xy as sin but he's gone more than he's here. Is that really a life I want?"

"Is he talking about a long term thing?"

"Well, he isn't talking about anyone else."

"Does the time he's here make up for the time he's not?"

Emma tilted her head, pondering the thought. "Yes."

"Then there's your answer."

"It's never that simple though, Bree. I want a man who is here during the week. I want a nice homey life and routine. At some point I want a child and I want a father who will be present."

"I know."

Emma's eyes widened. "Oh honey, I'm sorry! I didn't even think about the Nate situation!"

Brielle waved her away and sipped her drink. "Don't be. There is no Nate situation. He is Noah's father and as long as he makes the time for his son then I am happy."

"But what about last weekend?"

"That was just that last weekend. We had fun and then we came back to reality and things changed."

"Your mouth says one thing but your eyes speak of another."

Brielle sighed. Emma knew her so well.

"I don't have a choice, Em. Getting involved with Nate speaks trouble for me and we did this whole thing backward anyway. Noah is already here and my priority is his happiness. We can't afford to mess it up because we enjoy s.e.x with each other."

Emma looked at her pointedly.

"I like him, yes. I like to spend time with him, yes. But I don't need him and I don't want to put myself in that type of situation where I'm consumed. I need to be the adult."

"Let's drink to that," Emma toasted, "to being responsible."

She made it sound so boring.

"So you're the big three one next week. What's our plan?"

"Something low key, I'm getting old."

"Oh, rubbis.h.!.+ Every year we get older. Unless you're Benjamin b.u.t.ton," Emma quipped. "Last year we couldn't celebrate your three decades on the earth because Noah had the chickenpox. This year we celebrate your thirtieth."

"But it's not my thirtieth."

"n.o.body needs to know that," Emma waved her away and turned the page of her magazine. "You can just get Nate to take Noah for the night if he's in the country, or we could get a babysitter."

"No need. Noah's having a sleepover at Tommy's house next weekend so we can celebrate my twenty-fifth."

"Thirtieth." Emma corrected.

Brielle stuck her tongue out at her.

"What the h.e.l.l?!" she exclaimed suddenly, staring at her magazine as though it grew horns.

"What? Are one of the Kardas.h.i.+ans pregnant again?" Brielle sn.i.g.g.e.red at her own joke.

But Emma was not laughing. In fact her face turned a pale red and her eyes squinted, a sure sign that she was angry. "That frikken snake!"

"What?"

She glanced warily at Brielle and then handed her the magazine. On the double-page feature was Nate looking absolutely gorgeous in an Italian-cut suit and a breathtaking woman draped all over him, including her tongue in his mouth. The very woman he had come to see the Brentwood Hills home with. Brielle's heart sank. Despite all that BS she had just fed Emma about Nate, she did like him and seeing him with another woman made her uncomfortable. But maybe this was taken well before they had slept together. She read the caption on one of the photos: Hot shot racecar driver, Nate Wolfe with smoldering hot Wolfe pack fan, Mena Williams at the opening of one of the most sought after clubs in Austin, Texas last month before his accident at the acclaimed race track Brielle was floored. Was he sleeping with this woman just weeks before her? Was she just another one of the women in his Wolfe pack? The cold shoulder she was getting from him certainly gave her that impression. Well she was done. No longer was she going to hold the door open for Nate. Nope, that door has officially closed.

Yet the disappointment remained. She had hoped that Noah's father would be a more honorable man than the typical celebrity with a different woman on his arm each week. But that name made her ears burn. Where had she heard 'Mena Williams' before? Perhaps she was some model or something. She sure looked it.

Brielle handed the magazine back to a visibly irritated Emma. "Let it go, Em. I'm not fazed, he's not my boyfriend, he's just Noah's father."

Emma looked at her a long while, as though a.s.sessing the level of truth from her words.

"I'm fine," she rea.s.sured her friend who relaxed back into her inflatable lounger, already flipping onto the next pages.

But yet the drop of disappointment remained.

By the time the evening rolled around, Brielle had worked up more than a slight buzz. She'd tried her best to pace herself but she almost never had the time for herself, to just let loose and so she'd grabbed it with both hands and savored it. A little too much she reasoned with herself as the world spun a little around her.

Emma had called Matt to drive Brielle home because she didn't trust her driving on a sober day, never mind at a time when she was oh so slightly inebriated.

He parked his car outside her house and like a true gentleman, walked around to open the car door for her.

"You ok, kiddo?" he asked, a bemused smirk on his handsome face.

"Of course," Brielle retorted, climbing out of the car. "I'm not drunk, just very buzzed." She smiled languidly. Together they walked to her front door and she fumbled with her keys before Matt took them from her and opened the door.

"Thanks," she muttered. She reached up on tiptoe and wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a warm hug and held him to her.

"What was that for?" he asked when she pulled away.

"For always just being there. I've never had a man in my life that I could depend on except you." She knew that she must look a mess with her wild hair and flushed cheeks.

She heard someone clearing their throat and cough a few paces away from her and she turned in surprise.

"Nate?" she asked tentatively, peering through the dark to see him next to his Land Rover.

"Yeah," he grunted, not looking pleased.

What was he in such a huff about?

"Where's Noah?" she asked, suddenly wide awake. "Is he ok? Oh G.o.d, did something happen?" She was starting to panic and almost leaped toward him.

"He's fine," Nate grunted again, his eyes almost a dark moss color. How had that happened? "He's in the back seat. Asleep."

"Why did you come back? What happened?" she peered through the window and found a sleepy Noah staring back.

"I was putting him to bed and he wouldn't stop crying. Demanded to come home. I've been waiting out here for an hour."

"Why didn't you call me?"

"I've been trying. You didn't pick up."

Brielle opened her purse and searched for her cell phone. Sure enough, there were fourteen missed calls from Nate. And her phone was set to silent. "I'm sorry, it was on silent."

Nate merely gave her a hard look.

She ignored him and went to get her son. Where did he get off acting all self-righteous? She was not the irresponsible parent for not picking up her phone. Noah was with his father, who she thought was a capable parent. She reached for Noah and he crawled into her arms.

"You ok, Pumpkin Pie?" He nodded, a sad look in his eyes as he clung to Brielle.

"Everything ok?" Matt asked as he walked toward them.

"Yeah, it's ok Matt. Noah was just a little homesick."

"Oh darn. That's too bad." He fixed his gaze on Noah. "Feeling better now buddy?"

Noah nodded and buried his head in Brielle's neck.

"Thanks for tonight, Matt," Brielle addressed him. "But I have to take care of Noah."

"Don't mention it Bree," he returned before touching her shoulder and kissing her cheek.

He nodded in acknowledgement to Nate and then he was in his car and driving off.

Brielle walked into the house and was astonished to find Nate close on her heels. "I'm fine from here, Nate."

"Yeah, you look fine." He remarked coldly.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Have a few sun-downers with your friend's brother?"

Brielle's irritation sparked. Where did he get off telling her what she could or could not do. She didn't bother to correct him about his insinuation about her and Matt. Let him stew on that.

"Give me a minute and then we will have this conversation." She headed into Noah's room and lay her child on his bed. "What happened tonight sweetheart?" Brielle coaxed.

Noah shrugged nonchalantly.

"Were you scared?"

He nodded and shrugged at the same time.

"Was your dad mean to you?"

He shook his head vehemently.

"Did you have fun in the day?"

Noah nodded, a sad look reaching his green eyes.

"Did you just miss home?"

He nodded slowly, a lone tear trailing down his little face.

"Honey, you have nothing to feel sad about, ok? There's no shame in you wanting to come home."

"I think I disappointed Dad."

"Why would you think that?"

"The look on his face. He looks mad."

"Honey, your daddy can never be disappointed in you. If anything, he's probably mad at me. So, don't overthink it, ok?"

Noah nodded again, the sad look remaining.

Brielle reached for him and hugged him close to her. "I love you."

"Love you," he murmured before kissing each of Brielle's cheeks and nuzzling her nose then, turning to his side he quickly drifted off to sleep.

The poor tyke, he was fighting sleep the whole time just so he could see her and make sure Nate was not angry with him.

Brielle closed Noah's bedroom door behind her and stormed off to find Nate, who was casually leaning against the kitchen counter.

"What gives you the right to come into my house and throw accusations at me?" she hissed between clenched teeth. She didn't wait for him to answer before she fired at him again. "I didn't get to have a life while I was raising our son alone! I didn't get to go traipsing around to fancy events with a model on my arm, Nathan. So, cut me some G.o.d d.a.m.n slack if I have a drink on the one night in six years that I have had one moment, one G.o.d forsaken moment to let loose and have fun."