Tessa:

My eye's flinched, and I jumped when Nick slammed the door as he left. I sat in the chair staring at the door, thinking he and Brianna will pay for what they're doing to me. I confided to that bitch about what I was going through with Nick. And this is how she repays me? By sleeping with him? What a fucking slut she is! There's no way she didn't know he was my husband. No fucking way. They're both playing this off as if I'm some dummy. Well, I'm no dummy. And if they think I'm going to go away quietly? They're dead fucking wrong.

I stood from the chair and walked over to the mirror, looking at myself. What does Brianna have that I don't? I fixed my hair, adjusted my clothes, then headed out to see Shyla. She was looking down as I approached, so I loudly cleared my throat.

Shyla slowly looked up, looking nervous. "Did Nick leave?"

"Yes. Nick left a few minutes ago."

"If he comes back here. Meaning today, or ever... I demand that you tell him to wait out here while you come to get me. He is to not come to my office. Understood?"

"Yes."

"Good." I turned around, and with my chin held high, I walked back to my office and at my desk. As I stared at the paperwork in front of me, the thought of working on my client's paperwork to submit to their insurance had me groaning. I couldn't think. Not about work, anyway. I then looked at the other papers sitting on the corner of my desk. The one's Nick had served to me. I still haven't read through it. I just scanned through the hundred or so pages as I didn't care what was in them. But now I'm curious as to what he came up with and picked them up.

Asshole... I flipped to the next page.

Mother fucking asshole... next page.

Major fucking asshole... next fucking page.

Fuck you, Nick!

I couldn't read these anymore. If Nick thinks I will grant this bogus divorce and says he will sell the house now, he's got another thing coming. That I will not let him do, and now, I'm going to make this as hard for him as possible.

Two can play this fucking game! I yelled while whipping the papers across the room.

I leaned my head back and closed my eyes. Think, Tessa, think. There must be some way I can stop this divorce from happening. And I think I know just how I can do this. I opened my eyes and smiled. It'll be perfect... After an hour of planning and making a couple of phone calls, I gathered up the papers I threw, and as I was getting ready to leave, there was a knock on my door. "Come in."

"Ah, Tessa? There are a couple of officers here to see you."

"For what?"

She shrugged.

"Send them in, please."

The officers walked in, closed the door, then one of them asked, "Tessa Frederick?"

"Yes. What can I do for you?"

"We're here to ask you a few questions."

I crossed my arms and rolled my eyes. "What kinds of questions?"

Apparently, he didn't like my attitude. He walked over to me, placed me under arrest, then handcuffed me while asking where I was last night and this morning.

"I was home last night, and I've been at work all day, officer," I said with a smile.

The other officer looked at the arresting officer and smiled while leaning to his shoulder and spoke into his microphone device. The next thing I knew, I was being read my Miranda rights.

"Tessa Frederick, you have the right to remain silent; anything you say can be used against you in a court of law; you have the right to an attorney and to have him present during the interrogation. If you cannot afford a lawyer, one will be appointed to you free of charge. You can waive your right to be silent before or during an interrogation, and if you do so, the interrogation must be halted. You can invoke your right to have an attorney present, and until he is present, the interrogation must be halted. Do you understand your rights?"

"Yes," I snapped. "But answer me this. What the fuck are you arresting me for?"

"You're under arrest for the damage done to your husband's car and the destruction to his office. With you on both videos, we have evidence showing you slashing your husband's tires, with you also entering the building of your husband's office. Is there anything you would like to say about that?"

I looked away from both officers and closed my eyes. Fuck...

"I'm not saying a word until I talk to my attorney," I hissed.

"That's fine with us," the officer said, walking me to the door. "To save you the embarrassment, is there another door you would like us to walk you out of?"

"Yes. It's around the corner," I motioned using my head.

The one officer looked at the officer holding onto me. "I'll meet you outside. I'm going to inform the receptionist that she's coming to the station with us."

Sitting in the back of the squad car had my blood boiling.

I wanted to kill Nick.

And when I get out, that's exactly what I would like to do.

While sitting in a cold room full of strange women, listening to them talk, watching them eye me, and how they were whispering to one another as they looked at me made me nervous. I wanted out of here, and I wanted to be away from these women. I overheard one of the woman's plans. She was setting up a meal of attack. Hoping to scare and to show me what it's like being in jail. One large woman started heading over to me, so I jumped, ran to the bars, and started yelling, "Please let me out of here! I need to make a phone call! I demand a phone call! I'm owed a phone call!"

The women in the room started laughing, with one of them saying, "Girl. This must be your first time here. It's not like you think it is, or what you've seen in the movies."

That fucking asshole is going to pay for this.

Both of them.

******

Brianna:

Eight weeks ago, Tessa was arrested for slashing Nick's tires and destroying his office, and since her arrest, things have calmed down tremendously.

Now, Nick and I sit in the doctor's office waiting room, waiting to be called. And with all the water they asked me to drink before the appointment, I have to fucking pee. Badly... I leaned to Nick's ear and whispered, "They better call me soon, or I'm going to end up peeing myself."

He chuckled, "Just hang in there. I'm sure they'll call you in soon."

"Easy for you to say. You're not the one carrying a baby inside you that's lying directly on a full bladder."

He laughed, thinking I was funny again. But I'm not.

I started dancing in my chair, and then the door opened with a nurse stepping out. "Brianna Jacobs?"

I stood from my chair, and as Nick and I followed the nurse back to my room, I walked with my legs tightly pressed together, afraid I was going to pee while walking. I looked at the nurse after we entered the room, and panicky asked, "Is this going to take long? I really have to pee."

"This shouldn't take too long. But if you need to relieve yourself, you can use the bathroom. Only, you'll have to let a little out. Not all," the nurse instructed.

"How in the hell can you just let a little out? Especially when you have to pee as bad as I do?"

"It's easier than you think it is," she replied.

I sighed, "I'll wait."

She stepped to the examining table and held up a gown. "This is for you, and while you're putting the gown on, I'll go grab the doctor."

"Tell him to hurry; otherwise, there will be a mess to clean up here."

I must be full of humor today. Everything I say, I'm being laughed at.

I quickly dressed into the gown, then laid on the table, impatiently waiting for the doctor to come in. After a few minutes, the doctor finally came in and smiled. "I hear you have to use the restroom."

"I do..."

"I will try to make this as quick as I can," he said as he got the ultrasound machine loaded. He squirted the gel on my belly, then began moving the wand around, pointing to the screen as he showed us each of the baby's parts, all while he typed things into the computer. Head, hands, and feet. Then he looked at Nick and me, smiling. "I suppose now you would like to find out the sex of the baby?"

Nick squeezed my hand while looking at me. "Yes. We would love to hear what we're having." Nick looked away from me and to the screen. "Will you be able to tell this time? I know last time you weren't able to because of the position the baby was in."

The doctor nodded, then smiled while pointing at the screen. "Congratulations, you two. You are having a girl."

My heart just melted.

I squeezed Nick's hand, and when he looked at me, I smiled. "A girl. We're having a girl," I said in awe.

"I think after we leave the doctor's office, I need to go shopping."

"Shopping? For what?"

"A shotgun..."

While leaving the doctor's office, my eyes focused on the doctor's pictures he printed out for us. And now I wanted to see her outside the womb. My eyes still focused on the images while Nick opened the door for me, and as I sat, I finally closed my eyes, trying to imagine who she looks like and wondering if she'll have my dark colored hair or Nick's dirty blonde colored hair.

"A girl," Nick said in awe as he started the car. "A little girl," he repeated, looking at me. "I'll bet she'll look just like you. Which means I really need to buy myself a shotgun," he smiled.

"Oh, Nick. Stop it."

"What? I'm serious! Now I have two beautiful women I need to protect," he winked.

My mind spaced off, and I ignored where Nick was driving until he pulled up to a house. A house we once looked at, and the only one I fell in love with. I looked from the house to Nick and furrowed my brows after seeing the sold sign. "Why are we here if the house says, sold?"

He chuckled while pulling up the driveway, and after parking in front of the garage, he turned to me, grabbed my hand, and pressed his lips to mine. With his lips still locked to mine, I felt him place something in my hand. I parted from his lips and looked down. I opened my hand, and when I saw a key, my mouth dropped, and I raised my head.

"Welcome to our new home."

"Seriously?"

He nodded. "Go on. Go look inside," he winked.

I quickly opened the door and forgot to close it as I hurried to the front door. And as I entered the house, I got quite the surprise. It was fully furnished. Not with the previous owners' furnishings, but with new furnishings. Nick walked over to me and placed his hand in mine.

"I've got something to show you."

He walked me to a room, opened the door, and waved me inside. "I had it painted a neutral color since we didn't know the sex of the baby. But now that we know we're having a girl, I can have it painted differently."

I spun around in awe. "No. This room is perfect. I love it. And I just love how you decorated it with all baby animals."

"I will admit, I can't take credit for the baby's room. That goes to my mom. She's the one who did all of this."

"I'll have to thank her. She did a wonderful job."

I was amazed. Very amazed with Nick and what he had done. And after I looked in all the rooms, I pulled him to me. "When did you have the time to do all of this?"

He smiled proudly. "I signed the papers a couple of weeks ago. And as for the furniture, I purchased them all a couple of months ago. After my mother and your friends cleaned and painted the house, I had the furniture delivered yesterday." He held my hand and started walking me to the patio door. "I have something else to show you."

We stepped outside, and then he pointed to the playground he had built. I gasped and covered my mouth with both hands. "Nick! I love it! I fucking love it!"

Nick pulled me to him, kissed my lips, and smiled. "Now that I have you here, would you like to stay while I run to the hotel, grab our belongings and check out?"

"If you don't mind, I'll stay here."

He chuckled. "I figured you would say that. And no. I don't mind. I'd rather you stay here, anyway."

After Nick left, I couldn't hold in the excitement any longer and called my friends. After finding out the sex of the baby and the surprise of my new home, I wanted them to experience my excitement with me. It didn't take long for them to arrive after I phoned Cora, Lydia, and Alex, asking them to come over. I hugged and thanked each of them for helping Nick as they stepped inside. "I'm so happy for you," Lydia said as she hugged me.

"Thank you."

"I must say, I'm a little jealous," Alex said, causing us all to snicker.

"Why?" I asked.

"Because. This house is something you would see in a magazine. And the best part about the home is the pool."

I giggled. "You all know you can come over any time and go swimming."

"I'll be over every day at around six in the evening," Cora said, then she looked at my stomach and pointed. "Oh, my gosh. I cannot believe how big your belly is getting!"

"I know. I feel huge," I sighed, looking down and rubbing it. "But it's worth it, and it's worth it even more now that I know what we're having." I walked them to the kitchen, and as we stood at the breakfast bar, I opened my purse, then pulled out the pictures, handing them to Lydia. "We found out today that in three months, we're having a girl."

Lydia passed the pictures to Cora. She looked at them, and as she handed them to Alex, she asked, "So. Do you and Nick plan on getting married?"

I sadly shrugged my shoulders. I would love to marry Nick, but the problem is, he still hasn't asked me. There was only one time he brought up marriage, and that was a while ago. He didn't really ask; he just said he wished I was his wife. "I don't know. He has never proposed or anything. But he has mentioned when he's ready; he would love for me to be his wife. The problem is, Tessa still hasn't signed the divorce papers. So Nick has been working with his attorney to see if he can push a court date, and to see if there is any way they can force her into signing the papers."

"That woman hasn't bothered you two in any way since she was arrested?" Alex asked.

I shook my head, "No. It's been nice that way, but it scares me to think the reason she's been so quiet is, she's planning something. Something huge, and I don't trust her one bit."

******

Nick:

It felt good to pack up our belongings and to move out of the hotel room finally. I was also feeling excited about knowing that I'd meet my daughter in three short months and was relieved, knowing she'll have a beautiful home to grow up in. After packing the car and making sure everything was out of the hotel room, I headed to the counter to check out.

As I stood, waiting for my bill. Mr. Anderson came to me, shaking my hand. "Thank you for staying with us. I hope you enjoyed your stay."

I smiled. "We did. And I want to thank you for doing what you did by handing the video of my ex slashing my tires over to the police."

"You're most welcome. I hope everything has worked out for you and your girlfriend since that incident."

"Everything has been going wonderful, and now that we've purchased a home and found out that we have a daughter coming into the world, we couldn't be more excited to move on with our lives."

"I'm glad to hear it."

I looked down at the bill, saw what the total was, and blinked a few times. "Ah, I think there's been a mistake. We stayed here for over two months, and the balance is showing me zero dollars." I said, pushing the invoice to him.

He smiled, then chuckled, pushing the invoice back to me. "That's because I took care of your stay. Your stay here is on me."

I shook my head. "Oh, please, no. I have to pay. We stayed here and used the water, the electricity, the bed linens, the towels, and we had housekeeping cleaning our room. I have to pay you something; otherwise, I wouldn't feel right. I have the cash right here," I said, showing him a wad of cash.

"Please accept my generosity," he kindly said. "It's something I can afford, and to which I have already paid the housekeepers extra for their servicing of your room. This is my gift to you and your girlfriend." He took my hand and closed it, covering the money. "Take that cash and go straight to the bank. I want you to open a savings account for your daughter, and then I will ask that you deposit this money into that account for her. You and your daughter will appreciate it when she turns eighteen. Trust me..."

I stared at the money and shook my head, amazed. "Wow. I cannot believe this."

"Believe it... now go and enjoy your new home," he insisted, smiling. "And please don't walk out of here feeling bad or guilty because I won't feel that way at all. And to be honest, it will bring happiness to me, knowing I made a wonderful family happy."

I shook his hand and smiled. "Wow. Thank you so much."

This has been one hell of a perfect day. Brianna and I got the news we were having a girl; I made Brianna smile by surprising her with her new home, and now our two-month stay in a hotel was all free. All covered by the owner. And as I walked out of the hotel, flipping my car keys around my finger while grinning from ear to ear, it had me wondering what else could go right for Brianna and me today.

That thought came to a screeching halt when I neared my car and saw Tessa standing against it. You've got to be fucking kidding me... I knew the wonderful day I was having was too good to be true and to end the day on how the day started.

Tessa stood straight, smiling. "Hello, Nick."

That smile she was showing me was not any ordinary smile. I knew that smile very well, and I knew that meant she was up to something rotten. And I could smell it.

"What the fuck do you want now?" I snapped as she blocked me from opening my car door.

"We need to talk. Is there any way we can go somewhere to talk?" She politely and cutesy asked.

I hope you all enjoyed the chapter!!🤞🤞🤞🤞