AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"Yeah. An ambush requires Hailey's presence too," I informed him.
Our brother burst out laughing. Mission accomplished.
"Mommy, I'm ready to go," Milo said, returning to the living room.
"I'll drive you," Will offered.
"Thanks."
Milo fell asleep on the way home.
"Milo said Father/Son sports day is coming up at school. He asked me to go with him," Will whispered. My heart gave a little squeeze. He hadn't told me about it. "You okay with that?"
"Sure... if it's not inconvenient for you."
"Not at all. Besides, it's good for people to know he's got the handsome part from the Connor bloodline," he said with a straight face. My brother, always so humble.
"Thanks, Will. I appreciate it."
Will often participated at school events. Jace had been on a few occasions, but the presence of a soccer star caused such mayhem that the teachers pulled me to the side and asked if it was possible for Will to come instead. Most of the time, I thought Milo and I were doing okay on our own, but school events were rough. Sometimes he'd tell me about "manly stuff" his friends were doing with their fathers, and guilt flooded me. My brothers were quick to fill those shoes, but I wasn't sure it was enough. It ate away at me to know I couldn't give Milo more, but I didn't know how to do better.
Later that evening, after putting Milo to bed, I dashed across the bamboo flooring, closing the plantation shutters at the windows. It was a particularly windy evening. I owned a two-bedroom house complete with a white picket fence and an orange tree in the backyard. I'd snapped the property up when it was in foreclosure, so I paid a decent price. The area was safe but almost on the outskirt of LA. Still, it had good schools. The entire house had been rundown, but renovating it proved worthwhile.
The coved ceiling and wainscoting gave it an old-school vibe I loved. It was cozy. At the moment, it was also rather dusty, but I hated cleaning with a passion. A cleaning company came in once a week, but dust gathered in between. I'd gotten really good at ignoring it.
I had to wake up early tomorrow. Three times a week, I woke up at five to work out one hour on the elliptical. Twice a week, I ran with four other mothers from the neighborhood, whom I'd come to consider close friends. Now, running was something I loved. Filled me with energy. Hailey had once jokingly suggested I think about cleaning as working out, but the trick hadn't worked.
Instead of going to bed, I poured myself a glass of wine and pulled up the websit
e of the bridal shop Amber and I were going to visit. Their dresses were beautiful. I loved them all, no matter the shape or length. I'd dreamed about my own wedding dress since I'd tried on Mom's when I was six. I was still dreaming about it, but right now, the boy sleeping in the next room was my priority. I played one of my favorite romantic comedies in the background. I liked listening to music or hearing the dialogue from some of my beloved movies while working.
I was up so late I got hungry... which made me think about Graham. Again. My body felt like a livewire just remembering our evening. Despite the fact that my stomach rumbled, I resisted the urge to make a beeline for the kitchen. No more delicious goodies for me. I'd indulged enough tonight... with the pasta and the man cooking it.
I marked the designs they had in store in Amber's size and sent them to her. With the tight timeline, we couldn't order one for her. She had to make do with what the store had in their inventory, but I'd chosen this one because they had a large selection. I'd never had a disappointed bride, and I didn't plan to start now.
Chapter Five
Lori
On Tuesday, I arrived a full half hour before Amber at the bridal store. I'd scheduled the menu tasting and florist meeting right after the store visit, so every minute counted. Since I brought customers here regularly, I had something of a VIP status. I asked them to bring out the gowns Amber had indicated, and two she hadn't: a mermaid gown and a classic princess style. Some brides had a clear idea of the type of dress they wanted, only to discover it didn't suit them. I'd also had brides who claimed they didn't even want to try on a certain type of dress, only to end up buying exactly that one. That's why I insisted my brides at least look at all styles.
While the vendors steamed a couple of the dresses, I checked my e-mails on my iPad. One in particular caught my attention.
From: Jeff Finn
To: Lori Connor
Hey! I'm going to be in town in a couple of weeks. Let's go out for a drink.
I closed my eyes, drawing in a deep breath, then another one. It didn't help. The nerve of this jackass.
We'd both been in med school when I unexpectedly got pregnant. I'd dropped out and started the event-planning agency. Jeff was a doctor in Denver now, but he came to LA about once a year for conferences. He'd never, not once, expressed any interest in his son. Yet every time he was in town, he hit me up. He contacted me the first time around when Milo turned one. I'd hoped that meant he'd changed his mind, that he wanted to get to know his son. Turned out it was a booty call. I told him exactly where he could shove his call. Usually he was more explicit in his e-mails, as if I was at his beck and call. I knew my worth, damn it. His e-mails made me want to hurl every insult I knew at him, but I took the high road and ignored him.
I didn't use the address I had when we were together anymore, but my work e-mail was listed on my website. I deleted the message right away, but I was in a foul mood.
When Amber arrived, I tried my best to push the matter out of my mind. She was a dream client. She tried on every single dress, and I couldn't help ooooh-ing and awww-ing.
"They're all so pretty. How will I make up my mind?" Amber twirled in the mermaid gown. "Thanks for having them bring me this one too. I would never have asked for this style, and look how beautiful it is."
