“You will see Grammy and Papa in a few days when Mommy has to get on the plane,” I reassure him.
I step outside and notice that Harry’s car isn’t in the driveway anymore. I roll my eyes, assuming he went home to sulk and complain to Jess. It gives me a slight satisfaction that she likes Mason and will most likely take my side. I chuckle to myself because my brother’s wife will be siding with me and not him. He needs to remember that she is one of my best friends too.
Suddenly, a thought crosses my mind, which boils my insides. I have been extremely supportive of Harry and Jess ever since they started dating in college. I never told him he couldn’t date my best friend even though I was worried he might hurt her. And in the same regard, I was never upset with her for dating my brother.
I am in love with Mason, and that is my business. Although I still don’t know how I’m going to handle it, but as far as my brother, he can kiss my ass.
On the drive home, Luca and I talk about how much fun he had at his birthday party, and we make a plan to play with all of his new toys.
“Since you received so many cool new toys, how do you feel about giving away some of your old toys that you don’t play with anymore?” I peer at him through the rearview mirror. He’s buckled into his car seat, bouncing two dinosaur stuffed animals on his legs. “Okay. But not my dinosaurs, though.”
“Okay, course not.” I smile.
After the short drive back to our condo, I remove Luca from his seat and start taking our remaining presents from the trunk of the car. We’re walking through the courtyard together when suddenly a light wind blows through the air. He quickly zips up his sweater.
“Brrr. It’s cold, buddy, let’s walk faster,” I say, gently nudging him along.
“Okay,” he responds, moving his little legs faster.
I swing open one of the double glass doors into the building, and Luca slips in under my arm. He skips over to the elevators, stopping right before the entrance. “Let’s see if Mason is home. He said he wanted to play Legos with me.”
I guess the deflection from earlier didn’t last long. So, as any mom would, I spin the truth a little. “I don’t think Mason ishome right now, Luca. Remember, he’s going to be moving into his house soon.”
“Oh yeah. Can we go see him there sometime?” He looks up at me with his big brown eyes.
I lightly push his hair to the side of his forehead. “Sure, maybe sometime.”
Chapter Thirty
Mason
“You can’t lose something you never had.”Bailey’s words struck me as if I was being stabbed with the blade of my own knife. They were painful and gutted me. Standing in her condo, I had nothing left to say after that. She may believe that when I walked out that tiring and emotional day that I was giving up. But I’m not. She is meant to be with me and that’s it. Bailey and Luca are my family now, and I’m not going to walk away from them.
I’m going to give her some time and space—although it will be painful to be away. At this point, I’m not sure of how long that will be, but I’m not giving up. I never envisioned my life with kids, but now that I’ve experienced what it’s like and what it could be like, I cannot exist without them.
Waking up this morning, I feel hollow. A void in my life that I never knew existed had been filled by being a part of Bailey’s. Now it appears to be back and is more pronounced than ever.
I throw my heavy down comforter off the bed, then swing my legs over the side, allowing my feet to rest on the softness of the carpet. I make my way into the dark, empty kitchen, turn onthe coffee pot, and lean against the counter while I wait for it to brew.
Crossing my arms, I think about how Harry and I need to have a private discussion about everything. We are still business partners, and being the professional I am, I recognize that we need to be civil for the sake ofThe Poppy,our investments, and more importantly, our friendship.
While the coffee is brewing, I briskly enter my bedroom and grab my phone off the charger with the intent of texting my best friend. The minute the screen illuminates, I see I already have a message waiting for me.
Harry: Dude. We need to talk.
I can’t hide that I am somewhat relieved to find Harry reaching out to me first. Although I’m still pissed about him hitting me in the face in front of his entire family, I try to imagine everything from his side. However, the constant throbbing on my right cheekbone is making any type of sympathy for him a lot more elusive.
Me: I agree. We should meet at the restaurant.
Harry: What time?
Me: How about in thirty minutes? It’s still too early for anyone to be there prepping, so we won’t be bothered.
Harry: Fine.
Heading back into the kitchen, I pour a cup of coffee, then carry it around the condo while I throw on some clothes. I plan to tell him how much his sister means to me, and no matter how pissed he is about it, it’s not going to stop me from being with her.
Exactly thirty minutes later, I pull into the restaurant’s empty parking lot. My eyes land on Harry’s car parked close to the stairs leading to the entrance.
