I Dated Brian Quinn

Chapter Eighteen

"She looks tired." Brian held the latest magazine with Jackie's picture on it.

Telling Jackie that they needed time apart had back fired. Not only had the paparazzi not left her alone, now they were hounding her more than before. Once they found out she was pregnant, and that they had split, it was as if all other celebrities ceased to exist. Their faces were on every major magazine at every checkout for a month.

Brian had even taken to doing crazy things every day in an effort to draw the attention away from her. Nothing worked. He was portrayed as the ex who had lost his mind and she became the charity case for the world.

"She needs rest." Brian spoke again to the group of friends that were gathered around him. "She needs protection from these assholes." He gestured to the magazine.

"She's working again." Bessy said. "I ran in to her yesterday. It's part time and she's worried about paying for the babies. I told her you know about everything. She said she would get in touch with you because they deserve to know their father."

Brian slammed a fist down on the conference table in front of him. The friends had gathered at their office once again to finalize their plan to get Jackie and Brian back together.

"She shouldn't be thinking about these things. She shouldn't be worried about providing for those babies. Our babies!" He hated himself more at that very moment than he ever had in his life.

"Which is why we're working on getting you two back together." Sal spoke up.

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Brian asked, looking at Jackie's picture again.

"I can see it every time I run into her. She wants things to be different." Bessy assured Brian that their plan would work.

"I once saw you buy hundreds of copies of the same magazine, just to keep others from seeing an uncensored picture of Jackie. If anyone can make this work, it's you." Sal's confidence beamed for his friend.

"Here." Bessy pushed a blank piece of paper toward Brian and handed him the pen. "Just write what you feel."

He thought for a moment about what he should say, then wrote a quick note. He figured keeping it short was better than a long drawn out plea. If everything went as planned, he'd be able to beg for forgiveness in person soon.

Then, on a whim, he pulled out his wallet. He took all the cash he had and folded it in the paper before handing it to Bessy.

"Thank you." He said.

*************************************************

Jackie stood at the cash register, ringing up her last customer of the day. Sixteen hours a week barely paid her rent. Thankfully, she had a little cash saved from working with the Jokers for so long. She managed to pay her bills and buy a small amount of food each week, but she knew it wouldn't last forever.

Once the babies came, she would need to find a full time job with benefits, because she knew she couldn't go back to being a personal assistant for the guys.

She slid the last item across the scanner and finished the transaction with the customer. She flipped the switch on her light, making her register go dark.

Jackie pressed her hands to her back and stretched, pushing her stomach forward. She was almost out of her first trimester. She looked down at her expanding belly and then rubbed the bump.

Sure, she was larger than most women at her stage in pregnancy, but she was carrying two instead of one.

She knew she was lucky. She'd had a smooth pregnancy so far.