“Son of a bitch!” I roar.

“You got that right, you sorry piece of shit. The next time you want to warm your dick up, why don’t you make an effort to actually remember the name of the body you’re using!”

She gives me a good shove, and before I can regain my feet, I fall flat on my ass.

And the only thing I can think is, How in the hell did I let my life become this?

Spying a full bottle of Jack, unbroken, in the chaos that used to be Maddox’s guest room, I pull myself off the floor and, without bothering to get dressed, fall back on the bed. Then I proceed to drink myself into oblivion.

Chapter 2—Chelcie

Crap.

How do I lose my keys twice in one week?

Ever since I moved into Dee’s old apartment, I swear I’ve been falling apart at the seams. It doesn’t help that everything is changing around me so rapidly that I can’t seem to hold on tight enough.

New town.

New friends.

New home.

And…the baby.

A fresh wave of loss washes through me when I think about the father my child will never know.

Shifting my weight, I drop my bags of groceries on the floor, switch my purse to the other arm, and start looking for my phone.

“Come on… Where is the damn thing?” I mutter to myself, checking each pocket before dropping down to kneel on the carpeted floor and dumping the contents of my purse out.

Are you kidding? Gone. My phone is just gone.

Careful to steady my balance, I drop lightly on the floor next to my door.

I want to cry—I really do—but I know it won’t change anything. It’s insane how quickly everything can change around you. It could be worse. I know that, but right now… Right now, it feels a hell of a lot like rock bottom.

I take a deep breath, resting my hand against my slightly rounded stomach, and blink back the tears that keep threatening to burst through my carefully built wall.

It’s only been a few months since I packed up everything I owned and moved to Georgia. It all started when my boss, and good friend, Dee was attacked, leaving me feeling so completely vulnerable and alone that I didn’t know what end was up. Seeing her coming so close to death just did something to me that I can’t explain. I’ve always been strong and independent, but seeing that… It just hit me.

I turned to the closest thing I could find to make me feel alive again—the one and only, Zeke Cooper. He was fun, hilarious, and best of all, a distraction to the mess around me. I’ve never been the type of girl who just hooks up with anyone. I crave stability and love to fall into a man’s bed. But I needed something that he was more than willing to give. I knew the score, and I was okay with it. He wasn’t the type of man a girl goes into anything with hoping that she’ll get the white picket fence and the cookie-cutter house. No, he was the type of man a girl goes to when she needs to escape the world around her.

All it took was one night.

And then… And then he was taken from everyone.

I never imagined that my stalling to tell him that he would be a father meant that he would never know. I just didn’t know how to tell the king of hook-ups that his one-night stand was about to turn into a lifetime of commitments.

Now my little one’s father is gone.

I never anticipated being a mother. I had a plan. Find a man—a great man, the kind of man who puts you on a pedestal and shows you daily how much he loves you. I wanted the happily ever after that dreams are made of. But more importantly, I knew that I never wanted to raise a child as a single mother. I wanted my children to have the love of both parents.

Sighing deeply, I pull myself off the floor, brushing off the stress of situations I have no control over. What’s the point? It’s not going to bring my baby’s father back.

The second I climb to my feet, I remember who might be able to help me out of this situation.

Maddox.

Last I heard—from Izzy, who’d heard it from Axel when he was talking to Cage—Maddox was back in town for a little while. He’s been gone for a few weeks trying to talk Emmy into coming home. The poor girl has been going through so much after Coop’s murder that I really don’t see how he’s going to be successful. I hope he is though. Even though I don’t know Emmy that well, she is definitely someone I miss having around.

Luckily for me, he has a key to my place. One thing that can be said about this little ‘family’ I’ve come to love: they make sure they have every aspect of each other’s lives covered. It should feel weird that a man I don’t really know all that well has a key to my place, but right now, when all I can think of is getting back into my bed and sleeping for a year, I’m thankful that he does.