Page 38 of My Girlfriend is Not the Father

Jade pushed back from the table, her chair screeching against the floor. Her chest was hot, tight, and her breaths felt like sludge in her lungs. She needed to leave the space, step into the sunshine, and end this conversation. After one more quiet plea from Elizabeth, Jade squeezed her eyes shut. ‘I’ll see what I can do.’

Elizabeth sighed. ‘Thank you, sincerely. If there’s anything I can ever do for you—’

‘There’s not.’

A pause followed. ‘Well, thank you again. I hope you’re happy, Jade. Truly. I miss you. More than you know.’

The words depleted the surrounding air. Jade hung up without responding, paced the small office, and fanned her face. Dammit. She needed to purge Elizabeth. After swallowing back a full glass of water, she powered on her laptop and hit the keyboard with the fury of a million bullets.

To whom it may concern,

Elizabeth Fleming and I were married for eight years, together for eleven. We divorced amicably after a fundamental difference of opinion. Throughout the marriage, and divorce, Elizabeth always held herself with integrity and fairness. She displayed empathy and kindness as we went on our separate life paths.

Please use this as the strongest recommendation I can provide in support of Elizabeth’s application for adoption.

Sincerely, Jade Hudson

She slammed the laptop shut, wrapped her arms around her bent legs, and dropped her head onto her knees.

So many moments passed that Jade started to get a kink in her neck. She breathed out, exhaling the final string tying herself to Elizabeth, inhaling what felt like a new, clean slate, the beginning of something different. Soon, a grin spread at the lightness in her chest.

She was officially free. She grabbed her phone and typed.

Jade: Just to set expectations, is this your nice way of asking if I’ll pop you in the butt again?

Lucy: Well, when you put it like that …

Lucy: I wanted to thank you for coming to my booty rescue last night. And if that leads to another popping, well, then so be it.

Jade: Are you still scared to do it on your own?

Lucy: Yes.

Lucy: But that’s not why I am asking you for dinner.

The spring in Jade’s chest amplified into a full backflip, topped with a somersault. But then it nose-dived.

She could do dinner. She was an adult, just like Lucy. They both had to eat, and it might be nice not to eat alone. They had great conversation, and she liked Lucy’s company. Jade even liked her dog, and she was not a dog person. And this whole interaction with Elizabeth had not rattled Jade, at least not as much as she thought. Right? Yes, she was pretty sure. She felt better, not worse, and maybe having dinner would be just what she needed to prove, to herself, to the universe, that this ‘Elizabeth’ chapter in her life was officially closed.

Jade: Dinner sounds great. Pick you up at 6?

A few hours later, after Jade’s last client left for the day, she tore out of the salon and flew down the road. Pulling up to the stoplight, she tapped her fingers against the steering wheel. Her skin still itched from the haircut earlier in the morning. She needed a hot shower and a fresh change of clothes before her date tonight.

It’s not a date. It’s not a date.

She couldn’t date Lucy. Lucy was about to get pregnant, for God’s sake. If an award existed for the literal worst time ever to fall for someone, pretty sure it would be on the cusp of that someone getting knocked up.

But she could have dinner, stare at Lucy’s cherry lips, and indulge in her bubbly personality. And then shake it all off and commit to being friends.

Damn her legs tingling with the idea of spending more time with Lucy. Later, Jade needed to have a serious sit down with her body and tell it to stop doing all this fluttery bullshit. Because one thing was absolutely clear – she could not allow her feelings to mess with her good judgement.

Chapter 15

Lucy

Lucy hopped on one foot to pop on her sandal and then scurried to the entryway mirror. She flattened her palm across the stomach of her sundress. Light pink was a gamble. She wasn’t the most elegant eater in the world, and it would really suck if she spilled spaghetti sauce on the front.

The clip holding half her hair felt like it was ripping out strands. She unclipped, wrapped, and re-clipped. The mirror confirmed she’d wasted her efforts – her wavy locks were springing in all the wrong directions. She tossed the barrette on a side table, smoothed her locks, then peeked out the window. No sign of Jade yet, although she wasn’t due for a few minutes. Lucy had tried to distract herself – errands, house cleaning, doggy playtime, and yet, these last two hours had dragged by at the speed of a glacier.