Brooklyn Monroe Wants It All by Karen Booth

Chapter Twenty-Six

Brooklyn knewwhat was about to happen before she even got out of bed. For a moment, she rolled to her side and looked out the window at the dreary gray day. Even from the safe and warm confines of her apartment, she could tell that outside it was frigid. It was like she could see the cold. And it was everywhere. She tried not to draw any parallels between the weather and her life, but it wasn’t easy to ignore the obvious—it wasn’t going to be a nice day. And she was definitely not pregnant.

She tossed back the covers and scrambled for the bathroom. She sat on the toilet, not wanting to think of it as her body betraying her. What had happened between her and Alec had been a complete fluke. A failure of condom manufacturing. They both knew that statistically, there was a minuscule chance that his swimmers had sneaked out and met up with her waiting egg. But she’d been holding on to that possibility much more tightly than she’d wanted to admit. She’d hoped this whole thing could be decided for her by fate.

And she supposed it had been. Just not like she’d wanted it to be.

She turned on the shower and waited for it to heat up, then stepped inside. As the warm water rolled over her skin, she knew she needed to deliver the news to Alec in person. They were supposed to meet at eleven, but that was hours away. Hours. She didn’t want to wait until then. She didn’t want to be alone with the reality. Which meant heading to the Good Day USA studios. She’d get there before his big meeting. Or she’d wait in his dressing room until he was done. Done taking the job in news.

She decided to give Alec a heads-up text before she left. Change of plans. Coming to the studio to talk. Hope that’s okay. As she stepped into her jeans, she hit send and wondered why she had to be so impatient. A notification popped up on her phone. A red exclamation mark in a circle. Message not sent. What a pain, but this happened sometimes. She needed a new phone. Whenever she had a spare minute. She powered it down, hoping a restart would solve the problem.

Bundled up in mittens, boots, and a wool coat in a bright turquoise hue to brighten her mood, Brooklyn hustled downstairs to go find Alec. Sweet, adorable Cy, wearing an extra layer under his uniform, was toddling toward her as she got off the elevator. He still hadn’t given her an answer about the job, and at this point, it might be best to simply let it go. They could keep their everyday dynamic, the one that was comfortable and wonderful. She didn’t need to squeeze everything possible from life. Some things simply didn’t work out.

“Ms. Monroe, you aren’t going to the office, are you?” Cy asked.

“I’m not. We have the day off. I’m heading up to the network studios. I’ll need a cab, please.”

“Another TV appearance?” he walked alongside her as they made their way to the lobby doors.

“No. Paying a friend a visit.”

“I kept hoping I’d see you over the holiday weekend, but I think our schedules must have been off a bit.”

“I was spending a lot of time with my family.”

“If you can spare a minute, I’d like to talk.”

“Of course. What’s up?” It seemed polite to ask the question, even when she felt certain of what he was about to say.

“I know I haven’t given you an answer about the job. And I’m sorry about that.” He seemed weighed down from the simple act of bringing up the topic.

She hated seeing him like this and was desperate to give him an easy out. “Please don’t apologize. Cy, I love having you as my doorman and I’m happy to keep things that way. Don’t give it a second thought.”

“So you’ve hired someone else?”

She shook her head. “No. I was waiting on you, but it’s fine that you don’t want it.”

His face lit up. “But I do want it.”

“You do?”

“Yes. It just took me some time to work things out with my wife. Compromise isn’t easy. I even spent a night on the couch, which I haven’t done in years.”

Brooklyn reached for his arm. “Oh, no, Cy. I didn’t mean for this to cause problems. I never wanted that to happen.”

“It’s okay, Ms. Monroe. Sometimes you don’t want the same things. And you have to find a way to work it out. Because you love each other and want to be together.”

Brooklyn smiled. Cy was a font of life lessons. “But you did work it out? You’re coming to work for us?”

“Yes. I can start in January if that’s okay with you. I promised the building I’d give them enough time to replace me. Oh, and I’m going to need ten days off in March so my wife and I can go on a cruise.”

Suddenly Brooklyn had a whole new attitude. There were always silver linings. Glimmers of hope. Always. “Absolutely. No problem. That sounds perfect. I’ll miss seeing you in the lobby, but I can’t wait to see you at work instead.”

“Thank you. I’m excited.” He glanced outside. “If you’re going to head uptown, you’d better go before the snow starts.”

“Sounds like a smart idea.”

Cy ambled outside and managed to hail a cab right away, waving Brooklyn to the curb. “Try to stay warm today,” he said as he held the door for her.

“Thanks, Cy. I appreciate you.”

Brooklyn gave the driver the address, then sat back in the seat. Now that she no longer had the pleasant distraction of a chat with Cy, the matter at hand began weighing on her. She knew how she felt about getting her period—it only made her want to try again to get pregnant. But she was equally eager to work things out with Alec. She feared his reaction to the news. She was scared that he’d be relieved. He was, after all, officially off the hook. Of course, she’d never wished for him to be on that hook. She needed Alec to want her because that was the only thing that made sense to him. Because it was what his heart wanted. No hesitation. Zero doubts.

She laughed to herself quietly. Was she being completely unrealistic? Everyone had doubts, so she wasn’t sure why she would expect Alec to be any different. Everyone had that annoying-ass little voice in the back of their heads that made them wonder if they were making a mistake. You could be 99.9999% sure you wanted something. But there would always be that .0001% that was like the devil sitting on your shoulder. Is this really the right thing to do? Is this person right for me?

Traffic was a bit of a bear, as it always was in the city when snow was threatening. Feeling impatient, she powered up her phone again and tried to send the text from earlier, but the message didn’t go through. She held her phone closer to the cab window, as if that might help with reception, and tried again. But nope. It didn’t work. “Dammit.”

“Hey, uh, if you’re trying to use your phone, there’s a big cell outage,” the cab driver said. “Something about the storm and networks and data. I don’t really know.”

“Thanks.” Brooklyn would have to exercise some patience. Not her strong suit. She probably should have waited to meet him at his place at eleven. But her heart and her gut were saying that she needed to see him. Now. Get a hug. A kiss. Some reassurance that everything would be okay.

She arrived at the studio fifteen minutes after Alec’s big meeting had started. By now, she knew everyone on staff at Good Day, and was sure they’d let her wait until he was finished. As the wind whipped at her cheeks, she hunched up her shoulders to stay warm and rushed inside the building, happy to see Maddie and Jerome at their post.

“Ms. Monroe. Hello. Are you here for Mr. Trakas?” Maddie asked. “Because he’s gone.”

Brooklyn’s heart sank. “Gone? I don’t understand. He had his big meeting.”

Maddie glanced over at Jerome and cleared her throat. “He never made it to his big meeting. But you should probably let him explain.”

“Was the car service taking him home?”

“He was on foot. I told him he was crazy. It’s freezing out there.”

Brooklyn knew what that meant—he walked home when he needed to clear his mind. Apparently even when a blizzard was threatening. Something must have gone wrong. But what? “How long ago did he leave? Do you think I can catch him?”

“Ten minutes,” Jerome said. “He’s got a long stride. I’d take a cab.”

“That won’t work,” Brooklyn said. “He walks down 8^th Avenue and it’s one way in the wrong direction. I’d use your phone to call him, but he always turns off his cell when he walks.”

“Plus, there’s almost no service right now,” Maddie said. “I can call a car for you. You can go to his house and wait until he gets there.”

“Yes. Perfect. That would be amazing. Thank you.” Brooklyn wasn’t sure why that solution hadn’t occurred to her, other than the fact that she wasn’t thinking straight. She was grateful as hell for Maddie, who was now busy making the call.

“Okay. Great.” Maddie hung up the phone. “They have a driver down in the garage who can take you now. He’ll be around front in a minute.”

Finally, something was going right. “Thank you both. So much.” Back outside, the car arrived minutes later and she climbed inside, shivering to warm up. “Thanks so much for doing this on short notice,” she said to the driver. “Do you know the address?”

“No worries, Ms. Monroe. I know where we’re going.” The driver pulled into traffic. “I drive Mr. Trakas sometimes. When he lets me. He really prefers to walk or drive himself.”

“Oh, believe me, I know.” Brooklyn laughed quietly and sat back.

“I’ll have you there in no time.” Sure enough, the network driver was nimble and even a bit sneaky, taking a zig-zagging route that almost no one would ever take. But he avoided the major problem areas for traffic and got her to Alec’s house on 22^nd Street without much hassle. “Let me get the door for you,” he said as he pulled up to the curb.

“I’m not sure if he’s here and my phone isn’t working, so if you could wait for a minute, that would be great.”

“I’ll be here,” he said when he opened the door. “I wouldn’t want you waiting out on the sidewalk in the cold.”

“Thank you so much.” Brooklyn hustled up the stairs to Alec’s brownstone, her heart about to burst through her chest. She had so much to tell him. About what had happened that morning, and over the last few days. About how she so badly wanted to find a way to make this work. Even if he was embarking on a new career, they could figure it out. They had to. There were so many words on her lips that her brain was tripping over the mess. She wasn’t sure where to begin, but the doorbell seemed like the obvious place to start. A few buzzes and there was no answer, so she pounded on the door. Boom boom boom. “Alec, come on. Where are you?” she muttered.

“Right here.” Two words and she nearly burst into tears. She whipped around and there he was, standing on the stair tread below her, red-faced and ridiculously handsome, with a deep blue scarf wrapped around his neck and a black hat pulled tight past his ears.

She flung her arms around him and he wrapped her up at her waist, picking her up off the ground. “I missed you,” she gasped, sinking into the embrace, never wanting to let go.

“I missed you, too.” He allowed her feet to touch solid ground again, but still held her close. The fog from their warm breaths swirled between them. “I thought we were meeting at eleven.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the driver wave to her, then duck back inside his car. “You said I could always show up at your door. Well, here I am.”

He smiled wide and peered into her eyes, showing her the warmth and affection she cherished so much. His was a face she never wanted to say goodbye to. “I’m so glad you’re here. I have something to tell you. I turned down one job today and lost the other.”

“Wait. What?”

“I said no to news. And they canned me from Good Day.”

“I don’t understand. You’re a ratings boon.”

He shrugged. “They put me out to pasture. That’s the real reason they offered me the job in news. I did a passable job at that interview and they figured they could switch me to a shorter contract while canceling the current one.”

Brooklyn felt devastated on his behalf, but it was funny—he didn’t seem that upset about it. “I’m so sorry.”

“I’m not. I chased my dream, and I got a taste of it. That’s more than most people get in a lifetime. And you know what? It was nice for a minute, but it wasn’t going to last. There was always going to be someone better or younger nipping at my heels. I don’t need the validation. Not that kind, at least. I need someone to love me. Someone who I can love in return. You and I belong together. I know that with everything that’s in my body and brain and heart. And we’re not going to put this off any more.”

Brooklyn was so in awe of the poetry Alec had managed to roll off his tongue, completely off the cuff, that she hadn’t noticed that she was crying or that the tears were freezing on her cheeks. “We do belong together. Forever. I love you.”

“I love you, too.” He smiled again and his shoulders dropped. “God, it feels good to finally say that. Out loud.”

She managed a small grin, but there was one more thing they had to address, the real sticking point between them. “I got my period this morning, Alec. I’m not pregnant.”

“I’m so sorry, Brook. Are you okay?” His mouth fell open, his face painted with genuine concern. Disappointment.

And that was the moment when Brooklyn knew that this was all real.

“I’m fine. There was only a tiny chance that I was pregnant.”

“We can try again. Right away. I mean, when you’re ready.”

“You want to?”

“Yes. I doubt you realize this, but you’ve been turning my thinking around since that day we ran into each other in the diaper aisle. Between Dallas, and my brother, and my nieces, and everything you’ve helped me with, I know now that I can be a great dad. Or at least I know that I will always give it everything. It’s not too late. For me or for you. For us.”

Time was the thing Brooklyn had felt like she was battling from the beginning, but funnily enough, it was also the thing that helped bridge the divide between her and Alec. They were meant to be together, but it took the tides of days and weeks to help them end up in the same spot. She was so glad they’d waited. So happy that they’d stuck around for each other. “I love you, Alec.”

“I love you, too, Brooklyn. More than you’ll ever know.” A delicate ice crystal floated through the space between their faces. Then another. And another. Alec directed his sights skyward. “It’s snowing. We should get inside.”

“But we can’t. Snow is frozen rain.”

He looked back at her, smiling, slyly cocking an eyebrow. “Oh, right. I know what you want. A kiss.”

“Oh, Alec,” she muttered. “I love it when you speak in Prince.”

A breathy laugh left his lips. “That’s not Prince, Brooklyn. That’s all you.” He pulled her closer as the snowflakes got fatter and heavier and dropped on their noses. The winter wind swirled around them, but the rest of the world fell away. She held her breath, eyes wide open, waiting for the heaven of his lips.

And when the kiss came, it was everything she’d ever wanted.