Free Emily's Choice by Heather McCoubrey Page A

There never has been, and there never will be.
I don’t want you. I’ve never wanted you.”
    Lila stood
and splashed her wine in his face. Jason didn’t even flinch.
    “Your body
said otherwise that night,” she sneered.
    “Only
because you pretended to be her and I was too drunk to know the difference.”
    “She’ll
never take you back.”
    Jason
shrugged. “Whether she does or doesn’t changes nothing between you and me. Stay
away from me.”
    “You can’t
avoid me forever, Jason. Emily isn’t the only one who’s having your baby.”
    Jason
stilled, sure he heard her wrong. Pregnant? Was she serious? How could he have
been so stupid? Picking up his beer, he launched it across the room and watched
as it shattered against the wall. A half second later, he realized what he’d
done and couldn’t help but notice the curious looks the other patrons were
giving him. Closing his eyes, he counted quickly to ten. He had to get himself
under control. He’d never get to the truth if he lost his shit every time Lila
lied. He turned his icy stare on her as she continued to plead her case.
    “I want you,
Jason. I’ve wanted you since I came here six years ago. Emily doesn’t
appreciate you; she takes you for granted. I would never do that,” Lila said
quietly, standing in front of him and wrapping her arms around his waist.
    “So you did
this all on purpose?” Jason said, glaring down at her.
    “Of course,
how else would we be together?” Lila laid her cheek against his chest and
tightened her hold on him. “I saw her walk in that night. I saw her face, the
shock and devastation. The realization that she lost you. And I basked in it.
The perfect girl was no longer perfect. Her world was shattered and you were
finally mine.”
    Jason’s
stomach revolted and only sheer will kept the contents under control. “There’s
only one flaw in your plan, Lila,” Jason said, removing her arms from around
his waist and pushing her away from him.
    Lila arched
an eyebrow. “And what would that be?”
    “I don’t
care if you are pregnant. It changes nothing. I still don’t want you and that
won’t change. Ever.”
    Jason turned
on his heel and walked out of the bar. He needed a fight, a good old-fashioned
brawl. He wanted to kill something with his bare hands. His rage was so
overpowering he let out a roar, letting loose all his pain, rage, and despair.
Slamming the door to his truck, he peeled out of the parking lot and headed for
home.
    Pregnant?
She was pregnant? Mother of God, he had not seen that coming.
    He pounded
his fist on the steering wheel. What the fuck?
    He needed to
calm down, and he needed a plan. Lila obviously had her own plan and it was in
full gear. He couldn’t see her plan’s path, and it killed him to have to wait
it out.
    He should
not have let his emotions get the better of him back there, but she’d just
pissed him off by throwing the baby card in his face. How dare she?
    What did she
hope to gain? He’d never even shown her a moment of affection, never led her
on, never flirted with her—not even inadvertently. Was she so loony that it
didn’t matter to her?
    For God’s
sake, she was Emily’s cousin. Who did this to their own family?
    Aw, shit! If
Emily heard about this “pregnancy,” it really would be the end to them. Was
that Lila’s ultimate plan? Maybe he was an innocent casualty in all of this and
her real target was Emily. Did Lila’s hatred for Emily really go that deep? And
if so, why?
    How could he
keep Emily from finding out about it until he was sure one way or the other?
And what would he do if it turned out that Lila was really pregnant and it was
really his?
    Jason pulled
into the driveway, cut the engine, and punched the steering wheel again.
Blowing out a breath, it occurred to him that beating the shit out of his truck
wasn’t going to fix anything. He stormed into the kitchen and got a beer out of
the fridge. The beer wouldn’t fix anything either, but he hoped