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“At home. With your dad.” I answered, giving as good as I got from her.
Waverly’s eyes went wide.
I had a feeling there’d been a reason the elder Mack had been sent to watch Alandria. If the way Waverly went pale in her chair was any sign, so did she. The father who she hid her entire pregnancy from and her subsequent birth waited for her at her home.
I couldn’t help myself from pushing her, since she’d been the one to start us off in the wrong direction. “What’s the matter, Wave? Not liking the consequences of your actions?”
Her gasp of shock told me everything I needed to know. The grenade I’d launched at her was a direct hit. The nurse I’d talked to a few minutes ago entered the room with a wheelchair, squashed our conversation, and stopped Waverly from answering my question. I didn’t blame Waverly. I wasn’t one for airing my dirty laundry in front of strangers either.
When the hospital transporter stepped into the room, they moved Waverly into the wheelchair while handing me a pair of crutches adjusted to Waverly’s height. I then snagged the bags laying on the bed and followed them out.
Neither of us said a word to each other in the elevator ride down.
“Thanks, man,” I said to the younger guy after he put the locks on the wheels.
“You’re welcome. Please remember to roll the wheelchair back into the foyer once you’re done with it.”
“I need to go get my c—”
“You can go,” Waverly informed me tartly.
“Really?”
“Yeah. I don’t need your help, Jackson,” she snipped.
I couldn’t stop the sardonic laugh from leaving my lips. “Looks to me like you do.” I leaned down, putting my hands on the armrests, getting her in her face and blocking her exit. “I will not have the same arguments with you over and over, Waverly. No one else can do this for you right now—”
“My parents are more than happy to help me,” she said, curling her lip in disdain. “Kindly get out of my way.”
Chapter15
Jackson
Anger boiled in my gut. If the heat in my cheeks was any sign, my face was bright red too. Yet, losing my shit at her in front of the hospital she’d just been released from and worked for wasn’t exactly the smartest move. So, I tamped it down.
Later.
How did I go from loving this firecracker of a woman to having a death stare competition for dominance I’d never know? What I recognized was simple. I wouldn’t be the first one to look away. Even if we stood out here until tomorrow fucking morning.
When Waverly dropped her gaze, I backed off. “As I was saying, I’ll go get the car, load you in, and go back to your place.”
How the fuck I said any of that so calmly? I couldn’t say. But I did, and I was proud of myself for not allowing my temper to overtake my rationale.
The Comet wasn’t parked far, but I wished it was. Just to work off some of the aggression I was feeling. Too soon, I was at my car. I threw her shit in the back seat then got in and started the vehicle. Not even driving to the roundabout gave me a second to simmer my anger. It’d been like she figured out which of my buttons to push and did so with expert precision.
As I waited for the car in front of me to pull off, I glanced at Waverly’s face before she turned her head and wiped at the tears rolling down her cheeks.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.Fuck!
Hunter always told me calmer heads prevailed.
Or was it Landon?
Didn’t matter.
Maybe I needed to be the levelheaded one. It was painfully obvious, every time we argued, Waverly dug in deeper, building walls of protection around herself while hurting me as much as she could.
Yet, I still wanted to be the one to protect her and our daughter.