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“Okay, I’m here. What’s the emergency?” Shannon waddled into the salon with a concerned, slightly nervous smile on her face. “You look like hell, Brenna. What’s going on?”
“I’ve done something stupid. Something so ridiculously stupid that I can’t even piece together how it all happened.” I was being dramatic and I couldn’t deny that, but its what the moment called for.
“Well, don’t keep me in suspense!”
“I had sex with Grant.” It sounded even worse when I said it aloud, like I failed some test.
Shannon’s brows pulled together into a confused expression. “And it was horrible? Nowhere near as good as you remember?”
I huffed out a laugh. “God, I wish! That would make all of this bearable, at least.”
She sighed and ran a hand through thick red hair. “So you called me over here because you had hot sex with a hot guy that you really like?”
I folded my arms, offended. “It sounds silly when you put it like that.”
Shannon blinked innocently. “Is that not what happened?”
“Yes and now. You know damn well why this is a problem, Shannon. I’m sorry if you were busy or if you’re unwell from the pregnancy, I wasn’t thinkin’ clearly. If you have someplace else to be, I won’t be offended.” Jessie May always said when I was in a tizzy I couldn’t see beyond my own personal problems.
“No, I’m sorry,” she sighed, looking truly apologetic. “It’s fine. That’s what friends are for, right?”
“Only if that’s what they want to be.”
Guilt flashed across her face and, dammit, that just made me feel guilty. “I do. I swear.” We stared at each other for a long time, tension and uncertainty brewing between us and I hated that.
I sighed and shook my head. “No, it’s fine. You’re right, it’s no big deal. Good sex is never a problem. Right?” I flashed a bright smile, hoping to sell the story that I was fine handling my own problems.
“Come on, Brenna. Talk to me. I know you think you should keep your distance from Grant, but obviously that isn’t happening. Why are you fighting it so hard?”
“Because I have to. Grant is great, he would be everything I wanted in a man except he doesn’t want a long-term commitment. He only wants me now because I get along with his daughter and he hasn’t quite found his footing as a father yet.” When he did, his interest would wane and I’d be left with nothing but wasted time and a broken heart.
“Other than the day he was smacked upside the head with the news that he was a father, has Grant given you any other indications that he only wants you to be a mom to his kid?”
“Well, no. But before she came along he was mister cool and breezy, no need to put labels on things because we’re just having fun.”
“And now,” she asked, one perfectly sculpted brow arched in question.
“And now he’s saying things like he misses me, thinks about me and can’t resist me. It’s unsettlin’.”
“It could be unsettling and true, couldn’t it?” Shannon’s gaze stared a hole right through my chest and I let out an annoyed sigh.
“It could be, but I’m too scared to let it all be wrapped up into a messy tangle that will be impossible to get myself out of when it all goes to hell.”
“If it all goes to hell, because there’s no guarantee that it will.” She pursed her pink lips into a triumphant smile, both hands resting on her rounded belly. “You could just give him a chance to prove that he’s the man you want him to be, or the man you believe him to be.”
Give Grant a chance. That was a thought, one I hadn’t considered because of my past. “History would indicate that he’s not the man I want him to be because none of them have been so far.”
Shannon nodded and glanced over at her reflection to examine her roots which were perfect because they were done by yours truly. Satisfied there were no traces of dark roots, she turned back to me. “That’s the thing, Brenna, none of them work out until you find the right one. I could have kept my distance from Miles because of all the men who used me for my money but then I would have missed out on true love, on becoming a mom and loving this crazy town.”
“This isn’t you and Miles.”
She shrugged. “Neither were me and Miles. Until we were.” That sweet loving smile that spread across her face filled me with envy.
I opened my mouth just as the bell chimed to indicate someone had entered the salon, startling me because I’d been so wrapped up in my problems I didn’t notice the uniformed delivery man with the huge vase of flowers. “Hey there.”
“Hey, Brenna. Got another flower delivery.” The young man flashed a handsome smile that I was sure made they young girls go wild and handed over the flowers. “Lucky guy.”
