Chapter 32

MAGGIE

~FIVE YEARS AGO~

I’ve been dating Carter for the last few months. He used to make me happy, but I can’t say the same thing right now.

The first month of dating was blissful. It was so good that I almost forgot all the pain that I’d brought on myself because of Logan.

I hadn’t spoken to him in a long time, and it was mostly due to the fact that Logan was always traveling for business. He was never around.

Recently, Carter’s been different, though. He doesn’t pay much attention to me, and he’s always on his phone. I thought maybe he was cheating on me, but when I check his phone, I can’t find anything suspicious.

I will admit, though, he’s a little obsessive, and it gets on my nerves. He also gets angry whenever I mention Logan.

I compare every single thing about Carter to Logan and have so far realized that Logan is not only mature, but he’s better than Carter in every way.

Carter and I are at a movie theater watching some horror movie, and there are barely any people because it’s a late-night show.

It’s just us and two other couples on the other side who are entertaining themselves in other ways rather than watching the movie.

Truth to be told, I’ve come here to distract myself from the situation that I’ve brought on myself.

“Hey baby,” Carter whispers in my ear. “I’m so horny.”

I’m really not in the mood for public sex.

“Please…,” he whispers, “look, it’s so dark, we’re right in the corner where no one can see us. There’s no one around anyway.”

Before I can refuse, I notice that he’s already pulled down his shorts. He slides me into his lap and moves aside my panties. He’d been texting me non-stop about wearing a skirt tonight, and I had no idea it was for this reason.

He presses his finger into my entrance as he kisses me hard. I lean over him so I can hide.

“Carter…not here,” I tell him. “I’m not—”

“It will only take a few minutes.” He plunges into me, and his cock fills me up, and I ride him slowly as he continues to pump into me, his fingers digging into my ass. “Baby, I like that…you’re so hot.”

For some reason, I can’t bring myself to orgasm. Maybe it’s because my mind is preoccupied with something else.

In the times I’ve been with Carter, I don’t feel the same spark that I used to with Logan.

Logan was passionate in bed. He knew what I wanted, and he was the only one who could satisfy me.

I fake a moan, but Carter is smart, so he notices that it’s not real. There’s a flash of anger that I see in his eyes, even in the darkness.

I know he hates it when I do this. He puts me back in the seat when he’s done, but he still hasn’t spoken a word yet.

“Carter.”

“Just shut up and watch the movie.” His hand closes into a fist.

When the movie is over, we walk to his car in silence.

Logan wanted me to date someone of my age, and here I was just doing that. Maybe I should just call him and tell him how wrong he was to assume that anyone else apart from him would be good enough for me.

We’re inside the car when I place my hand on his shoulder. “I’m sorry.”

“I don’t think you’re sorry, Maggie. You don’t enjoy being with me because you’d rather be with someone else.”

I sigh. I’m not in the mood to fight. “That’s ridiculous. I was just tired.”

“Well, you’re not tired when you’re touching yourself and looking at Logan’s pictures.”

I gape at him, and I almost don’t believe the shit that’s spilling out of his mouth. “What are you talking about?”

“You think I haven’t seen your photo gallery filled with his half-naked pictures? Heck, you don’t keep mine, Mags, and I’m your boyfriend.”

“I…I have your pictures, too,” I say defensively.

I do keep Carter’s pictures, but Logan just outnumbers his. I didn’t do it on purpose. It happened by default.

“So that’s your type, right?” he asks, “Older men? You got some daddy kink?”

“Fuck off.” I’m crying by this point.

“I mean, it’s fine, baby. If you want, you can call me Daddy too.” He laughs, and he sounds downright evil.

It’s when he pulls out the flask from the compartment that I know he’s been drinking. I hadn’t noticed before because he’d done a good job of camouflaging it by chewing a lot of gum.

“Stop the car.”

“We’re still far away right now.”

“I SAID STOP THE CAR!”

The car comes to a screeching halt. It has started pouring outside, but I’m not bothered by the rain. I just want to get out of his car.

Carter doesn’t protest. I guess he’s so angry, he’d rather be done with me.

I get out of the car. He doesn’t even bother trying to convince me to get inside the car. It’s like he doesn’t care. The jealous side of him always wins.

It’s a good thing there’s a convenience store close by. I’ll wait there until I can book an Uber.

***

I throw up the breakfast as soon as I have eaten a few bites.

Dad asks me what’s wrong, and I lie, saying that it’s food poisoning from last night. In reality, I have other doubts about my predicament.

Thankfully, it’s Sunday, so I don’t have to go to school. Instead, I lie down in bed and spend an hour staring at the wall.

There was just one time when Carter hadn’t used a condom because he knew I was on the pill, and he’d been so sweet that night that even I’d forgotten to ask him to use protection.

It’s moments like these when I wish my mother was alive.

When my dad leaves for work, I tell the housekeeper that I have to collect some books from my friend and leave the house, but I’m not meeting a friend right now.

Before I can jump to conclusions, I have to be absolutely sure about this, so I buy a pregnancy test and use it in one of the public bathrooms.

As I hold the strip in my hand, bile rises in my throat, and I throw up again in the bathroom.

It’s positive.

I need to talk to Carter.