Thanks for the reviews guys. Was meant to post this yesterday but didn't remember till I was tucked up in bed. Hope you enjoy it :)
A certain look that seemed to fleet over the woman's face had Charlie straighten up in a way that feared her. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand at alert. Something was off
"I'm sorry I was hoping Brax would be here for this" said the woman and Charlie watched as her gaze flickered sown to the little girl who was bouncing from one foot to the other
"Here for what? Asked Charlie, she couldn't help the skepticism in her voice
The woman let out a sigh "I wanted to introduce him to Hanna. His daughter"
…
"What?" Charlie's grip on the door tighten, her fingers digging into the wood, like a life line. She glanced over the young woman's shoulder. This had to be a joke; Brax was probably hiding somewhere laughing at her
"I'm sorry to just spring this on you"
Charlie's attention slowly returned back to the woman before her. She should say something, but all Charlie could do was stare at the woman and then as if slowly taking in what the young woman had just said, Charlie's gaze moved down to the little girl. The girl's smile was so bright, Charlie noted. Her thick caramel like hair was running down her shoulders in two braids and she held what Charlie realised was a baby blue blanket in her hand
"This was a bad idea. I'll come back..." the woman stopped as Charlie looked back up at her
"You're at my door, telling me that the man I just told you is my husband is your daughters…" Charlie stopped talking, her gaze flickering down to the little girl. She shook her head "It can't be, I think you have the wrong person" Brax would never cheat on her. Just thinking it was ridiculous, there obviously had to be another explanation to this
Nina, signed and shook her head "He as a brother, errr… that has few tattoos and Brax, he err… he owns the restaurant that sits above the surf club"
Charlie frowned "That doesn't prove anything. Everyone in this town knows Brax, so you could have gotten that information from anywhere"
Nina shook her head and glanced down at Hanna, who surprisingly stood calm simply watching the two adults "look I know this must be a shock, but why would I come all the way down here with my daughter, just to tell lies"
"I don't know, you tell me" Charlie could feel a migraine starting at the base of her temple
"This was a bad idea. I'll come back…"
"No" Charlie shook her head "You don't get to tell me my husband is your kids father and then walk away. You are going to tell me everything and then I'll decide what's happening here" Charlie's voice was firm but inside she could feel every nerve shutting down. Charlie looked down at Hanna
"There are err…" she took a deep breath "There are some toys to keep her occupied while we talk"
Nina nodded "Ok
…
Charlie sat rod still as she listened to Nina, tell her story. She felt her stomach churning as if she would throw up, but still, regardless of what she had heard so far there was that little voice at the back of her head telling her Brax would never do this to her. He wouldn't cheat on her
Charlie frowned "So he dropped you home, and…" she swallowed down the bile in her throat
Nina cleared her throat "I woke up the next morning and he was gone. Then five weeks later I found out I was pregnant"
"You woke up and he was gone?" repeated Charlie "But you remember him being there… in your house?"
Nina shifted slightly on the couch "I remember getting into his car and then waking up the next morning to find my clothes scattered…"
Charlie shook her head, she didn't want to hear this "That's not what I asked" she glanced over at Hanna who seemed more than content among all the toys around her "Do you remember him being in your house. You claim you was really drunk, so I'm asking if you remember, you and him…" her words stopped. She wasn't going to voice them
"I know you want to find some vault in my story. But apart from that night I hadn't been with anyone in weeks and nor had I been with anyone up till the point I find out I was pregnant"
Charlie clicked her tongue and stood to her feet "You sure asking me to believe that Brax c…" she blew out a breath "You don't actually remember him following you into the house or the two of you sleeping together, but yet you want me to believe you"
Nina stood also "I wouldn't want to believe me either but it can only be Brax"
"Why?" questioned Charlie "What's to say he didn't just drop you off and someone else came round to your place, someone who you then slept with"
Nina shook her head "That's not what happened"
"How do you know?" Charlie had to remind herself to stay as calm as possible "You don't remember much about this night so how can you be so sure"
"This was a bad idea" said Nina
Charlie bit down on her tongue and mentally counted to ten "Did you know he was married?" she figured she must have, Brax always wore his ring, at least that's what she thought
Nina bowed her head and nodded "He mentioned it earlier on in the night" she looked up at Charlie "But like I said I was…"
"Drunk" Charlie finished off and she felt such anger that she was sure if not for the little girl that was sat only a few feet away from them, she would have slapped Nina clear across the face "Why are you here?"
Nina frowned "I was looking for Brax"
"Why are you here now? Given the time frame you say all this happened that puts Hanna now at a few months shy of 3yrs old. So why wait this long to come and find Brax?"
Nina looked over at Hanna and exhaled "A few months ago, my sister came over with her three year old daughter and her husband. And when my niece called her dad, Hanna casual just shook her head and said 'I no got one'" Nina pursed her lips "Right now her not having a dad doesn't seem odd to her but soon she's gonna start asking"
Charlie blinked, she wanted to scream, or throw something or just throw up "I err… I think you should leave now"
Nina nodded "I am sorry"
Charlie shook her head "You knew he was married and you probably knew there was a good chance he was still married and yet you showed up here, so sorry if I don't believe you're all that sorry"
Nina knew there was nothing she could say in that moment to make any of this better, so she simply nodded "Is there a better time for me to come…"
Charlie shook her head "You won't be coming to this house again… ever" she cleared her throat "leave your number and I'll have Brax call you but don't ever come near this house"
Nina pursed her lips and nodded, nothing about this was going to be easy
…
"Charlie" Bianca sang, as she wrapped on the back door before turning the door handle. Stepping into the kitchen she, walked into the living room "Charlie" she called again
Looking down the hall she was about to go in search of Charlie before seeing her walking out of Riley's room
"Oh sorry. I didn't wake him did I?"
Charlie looked up at Bianca and blinked twice before shaking her head "No, he's not doing much but sleeping today" she looked down at the toys she hadn't yet had time to clear
"Well no point in complaining" said Bianca, dropping her bag on the coffee table before sitting down on the couch "When he's up and crying, you'll be wishing for some piece and quite"
Charlie walked over to the toys and began picking them up, one by one, placing them into the kids play basket "Yea" she answered, but she had hardly heard a word of what Bianca said. All she could hear was Nina's voice and all she could see was 2 yr old Hanna
Bianca frowned and turned to look at Charlie "My classes are done for the day and I'm here to keep you company, but I would rather we not spend it cleaning up" she chuckled
Charlie nodded "It won't take me a minute" she felt stiff, like the slightest of sudden movement would blow her over and there would be no getting back up
Bianca's brows knitted together as she watched Charlie, something was wrong "Hey" Bianca stood to her feet "You ok?"
Charlie had her back to Bianca as she nodded. She told herself to breath but it seemed to somehow get lodged in her throat
"Charlie" Bianca placed a hand on Charlie's shoulder and slowly turned her around to face her "Charlie?" Bianca's eyes widened slightly as she took in the tears that were runnig down Charlie's cheeks "Charlie what's wrong?" she stepped closer
Charlie shook her head "Nothing"
"Charlie you're crying" said Bianca, now more worried than ever
Charlie blinked, and frowned. Her fingers slowly moved to her cheeks and she felt the wetness. She hadn't been aware she was crying
"I…" she shook her head, but she didn't know what to say. Where to start
"Ok you're freaking me the hell out" Bianca turned "I'm gonna call Brax"
"No" Charlie's voice broke as she shook her head "I don't want Brax"
Bianca stood still "You don't want Brax"
Charlie looked around the living room as if trying to distract herself from Bianca's piercing gaze, but when she looked back at Bianca, her friend was still staring at her in confusion
"He…we" Charlie dropped her head back and drew in a deep breath, before looking back at Bianca "He has a two year old daughter"
Bianca cocked an eyebrow "Ok who are we talking about now?" she was completely lost
"Her name is Hanna and she's two" said Charlie and it was as if it was all only just sinking in
"Who is Hanna?" asked Bianca "Charlie I'm lost here" she was thinking she was going to have to call Brax whether Charlie liked it or not
"Her name is Hanna and she's 2yrs old" Charlie nodded "Brax, he's her dad" and just like that as if it hadn't felt real before, Charlie felt her hands trembling and the tremble moved up her body till, she crashed to the floor "Brax has a 2 year old daughter called Hanna" She hadn't realised Bianca was now knelt on the floor with her till she heard her friend gasp
…
"So I was thinking we could go camping next weekend. Reece has been bugging me about it for a while now" said Heath and Jack nodded
"Yea, sounds good. It has been awhile" he turned to Brax "You in?"
Brax glanced back from stocking up the shelf "Yea, Caleb would love that but I'll warn you guys now, we might have Hope tagging along. You know how she gets. Bringing Caleb and not her will cause more trouble than I'm willing to handle"
Heath shook his head with a grin and Jack chuckled "That girl of your's has you putty in her hands"
Brax scoffed "Like you can talk. What was it you was doing last week Saturday again?" he turned to Jack with a knowing grin
Heath laughed "That's right, Sophia dragged you shopping didn't she" Heath laughed louder as Jack grumbled
"I only went to make sure she didn't buy any of those ridiculous pieces of material that people are passing off as clothes, these days"
Brax and Heath Laughed and Jack cocked an eyebrow "Not sure what's got you two giggling like school girls. Your girls may not be that age yet but they will get there and I'll be watching with amusement"
That quickly had Brax and Heath sobering up as they glared at him. Heath glanced down at his phone and grinned as he read the message
He downed and pulled back as Brax hit the lightly on the head "What's got that sissy grin going?" asked Brax
Heath cleared his throat, downed the rest of his beer and stood to his feet "If you must know, the kids are in bed and my wife wants me home" he gave a wink
"Take it you're back in her good books then?" asked Jack and Heath nodded
"Yep" his boyish grin spread across his face "And she's working double time to make it up to me" Brax and Jack chuckled as Heath practically sprinted out of the restaurant
"I best head off too" said Jack "Get out of this uniform and try and forget that your wife as left me with the world's worst partner for the next two months"
"I'll deliver the message" replied Brax and he chuckled as Jack flipped him the finger, before leaving the restaurant
"You got it from here?" Brax asked Sam, the manager
Sam nodded "Got it boss"
"Good" said Brax as he put up the last of the bottles onto the galls shelves "Don't forget to lock the back door"
Sam rolled his eyes "When have I ever let you down boss"
Brax shook his head and walked into the office. Making sure everything was in order, he picked up his keys switched off the office light and locked the office door "See you tomorrow"
…
"Hey" Heath smiled as he walked into the house to find Bianca in the kitchen. Placing a kiss on her temple he cranked his neck to look into the living room "Kids knocked out early today"
Bianca nodded "Yea, they were pretty wiped out" she dried of the plate in her hand and placed it on the rack "Your food is in the oven"
Heath nodded and was about to speak before he noticed Bianca's stiff demeanour "Everything ok babe?" they had only just made up, she could not be mad at him already, her text hadn't indicated that she was mad at him
Bianca exhaled and turned to face Heath. She placed both her hands on the edge of the kitchen counter "Did you know about Brax?"
Heath frowned, he had just seen Brax not long ago and he hadn't noted any changes "Errr… What about Brax" he cocked his head slightly
Bianca shook her head "You're his brother and the both of you tell each other everything so I'm guessing you do know"
Heath sighed "Would be good to know what it is that I'm supposed to know"
"I know about him cheating on Charlie"
Heath stood up straight "What?" he looked at Bianca as if she had spontaneously grown two heads and eight arms
"Don't act stupid Heath" Bianca looked at him "Charlie knows, but what I can't believe is that he would do this to her"
Heath shook his head and held his hand up "Ok. You need to stop and rewind right back to the beginning. What the hell are you talking about, Brax cheating on Charlie?"
Bianca scoffed "Are you honestly trying to tell me you didn't know, that he didn't tell you. Because I find that hard to believe"
"Ok, first off you're right, if Brax had cheated on Charlie he would have told me but I can tell you now this whole Brax cheating on Charlie thing did not happen. Where the hell are you getting this from?"
"You don't have to lie for him Heath…"
"What the…" Heath blew to a frustrated breath "Brax did not cheat on Charlie, he would never do that"
Bianca could see Heath believed what he was saying "Maybe he didn't tell you…"
"Yes, he didn't tell me because it didn't happen. Why the hell would either you or Charlie even think he would do something like that? This is Brax we're talking about. That's like saying you caught a mock with a prostitute. Actually there's probably a better change of that happening"
"Because the woman he cheated on Charlie with turned up today with Brax's 2 year old daughter"
Heath's mouth fell open "A two year old what?
"Yes" Bianca nodded "A daughter, and from what Charlie said this woman was pretty sure of who the father was and we don't really need an analysis of the birds and the bees to know in order for Brax to be this girl's father he slept with this Nina woman"
"Nina?" Heath frowned; the name didn't even ring any bells. Heath shock his head, he didn't care what any woman said. If there was something he knew about Brax, it was that he would rather cut of his own limbs than to ever hurt Charlie
"She's lying" Heath said with conviction "This is Brax we're talking about"
"Yeah and I didn't believe it at first Heath but…" Bianca clicked her tongue "She's 2 years old Heath" Bianca sighed and shook her head "I'm gonna go up to bed"
Heath stood as he walked up the stairs. Brax wouldn't do this he thought to himself. He had been out with Brax enough times to see his awkwardness when women hit on him. Brax was fully committed to Charlie
Digging out his phone, Heath dialled Brax's number. If Charlie thought Brax had cheated on her Brax was in for a world of pain when he got home
…
Walking through the back door, Brax frowned. He knew the kids would be asleep but he had expected Charlie to still be awake. Dropping his keys onto the dining table he did a round around the kitchen and the living room making sure everything was locked. He frowned as his phone vibrated and pulled it from his pocket. Seeing Heaths name flashing across the screen, he rejected the call. He didn't have time for Heaths nonsense, all he wanted was to get into bed with Charlie
Checking on the twins and then on Riley, Brax smiled as he walked into his and Charlie's room, the kids were out like lamps so there was definitely gonna be no disturbances at least for a few hours. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Charlie who was sat at the edge of the bed, her gaze in her lap. He smirked
"What you doing you weirdo" his steps took him towards her but he stopped dead in his tracks as he saw a tear land on the picture he had only just realised she was holding
"Charlie" he was in frontof her in a split second. Perched on one knee, he glanced down at the picture in her hand and realised it was one that had been taken on the beach not long ago. He, Charlie, Hope, Caleb, Ruby and Casey, where huddled together all grinning. Well apart from Riley's, who looked like he was on the verge of crying. Brax frowned, he had been to check on the kids and he had spoken to Ruby a few hours before so he knew it wasn't any of the kids
"Babe" he placed his hands on her cheek and slowly brought her face up to look to look at him. The frown on his face deepened till his brows were draw together "Charlie, what's the matter?"
Charlie gaze kept his for a moment before it darted around the room. Her mind was going at ten thousand miles per hours, even as she tried to grasp on to a single thought it seemed to vanish and another took its place. Her gaze fell back on Brax, as she felt him apply light pressure to her face
"Charlie you're scaring me. I need you to tell me what's wrong"
Brax watched as Charlie took him in, before she stood to her feet, pushing away from him. Standing to his feet, he continued to watch her as she walked over to the dresser and seemed to pick something up. His gaze remained on her face as she walked over to him
"Here" she held a piece of paper out to him, and still confused as to what was going on, Brax took it from here. Looking down at the paper all he saw was a name and a number
"What's this?" Brax asked, looking back up at Charlie
A strangled laugh bubbled from Charlie's throat but even if Brax hadn't seen her face he would have known there was nothing about this she found amusing
"You don't even recognise her name. Classy"
The bitter tone in Charlie's voice had Brax snap his head back up from the piece of paper in his hand
"Well that right there is the number of your two year old daughter's mother"