“Yeah, that was such a fun time,” he says. “But so random. I don’t recall my parents ever going bowling before they joined that league, and they were on it for what? Like, six months? Then never played again.”
“Your dad did the same thing with fishing a few years later, remember?”
“Oh my god, how could I forget?” He snorts. “That was right after my parents split up too. He would drag me down to that fishing hole every single weekend, and we’d sit there all damn day. I hated it.”
“Really?” Laughter bubbles out of me. “I liked going with him. I remember him letting me tag along with him one morning; I think it was the summer before I went into eighth grade. It was just the two of us because you were…somewhere, I’m not sure where, and none of your sisters wanted to come, but my parents had a huge, explosive fight the night before, and I just didn’t want to be home with them.”
“I remember that,” Graham says. “I’d spent the night at one of my buddy’s houses.”
The memory brings a smile to my face. “That man is a saint for listening to me yap all day long. I don’t think he caught a damn thing, and I ate all the snacks he brought and complained about the music he insisted on listening to, but he never said a word about it.”
“He loves you, Sunny.” Walking over to me, Graham frames my cheek with his hand, the touch gentle. “We’ve all always loved you.”
A shiver races down my spine at that last sentence. I know he means it innocently, but it makes my throat tight anyway. When he presses his lips to mine, I breathe in the smell of him. It’s different…being affectionate with him out in public. The history we do have has always been so hush-hush, but I can’t deny how much I enjoy being able to kiss him like this.
Playing the last few holes, the game gets even tighter, and for a moment, I think Graham might actually beat me, but I should’ve known better. Sinking the final ball, we add up our scores, and I squeal when we figure out that I won. “It’s okay, you didn’t stand a chance against me,” I tease.
Graham scowls, watching me through a narrowed gaze, but I don’t miss the hint of a smile trying to break free. “Maybe I let you win.”
Laughing, I say, “Sure, you did. Now, can we please eat? Kicking your butt worked up quite an appetite.”
There’s a little café-style diner attached, and we order a couple of different appetizers to share. Thank god, there’s Tums in my purse, because I already know this meal is going to be a heartburn nightmare, but it’ll be worth it. Sitting down at one of the tables—because my ever-growing belly doesn’t fit in a booth anymore—we dig in, and it tastes as good as it smells.
“What’re you thinking this week?” Graham asks after taking a sip from his sweet tea. “Girl or boy?”
A smile curves my lips, and my hand automatically goes to my belly. “I’ve really been feeling like they’re a boy lately,” I murmur. “What about you?”
“I don’t know, I’m kinda thinking girl.”
Warmth spreads through my chest, in the same way it does whenever we talk about our little peanut. “Can you imaginetwolittle girls running around the house?”
“Oh, it would be chaos.” Graham snorts. “But I’d love it.”
“I like that they’ll have a sister,” I say. “That’s a built-in friend, no matter what.”
“And they’ll have all their cousins.”
“The best cousins,” I add, my throat tight as I think about just how many people this baby will have in their corner. “Can you believe in just about three months, they’ll be here?”
Graham sits back in his seat and shakes his head. “No, I can’t. It feels like the time has flown by.”
Huffing out a breath, I say, “Speak for yourself. I’m so ready to sleep on my stomach again.”
He laughs, popping another fry in his mouth. We fall into more comfortable conversation as we finish eating, but nerves swim around in my stomach because there’s something else I’ve been thinking about lately. Washing down my burger with a swig of sweet tea, I decide to just do it.
“Hey, remember, like, a month ago when you told me about the classes you were taking before Megan died?”
Graham flicks his gaze over to me, a twitch to the corner of his mouth as he nods. “Yeah, I remember.”
“Okay, well, it’s been heavy on my mind ever since,” I say. “This is something you’ve wanted for so long, and I hate that you had to put it on hold when you finally started working toward it.”
“It just didn’t make sense at the time, with everything on my plate.” He shrugs, and I know he’s trying to come off like he’s not bummed about it, but I see through that.
“I know, but things are a little different now.” I take a deep breath, my pulse pounding in my ears.Why am I so nervous about this?“The school Fletcher got his MBA from also offers bachelor’s programs in business. It’s an all-online program, so you could go at your own pace, and I think you should do it. You could wait until after the baby is here, and I’d obviously be here to help with Ellie Mae and peanut when I’m not working.”
Exhaling a heavy breath, Graham scrubs a hand over his mouth. “I don’t know what to say,” he murmurs, his voice rough. “I can’t believe you took the time to look into this for me.”
“It’s no big deal,” I say, waving him off. “I spoke with someone in admissions, and since it’s an online program, they have classes starting every ninety days, so realistically, you could start a couple months after the baby is born.”
