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“You have to tell him about the baby, Kenna,” she says in a low voice. “Sooner rather than later.”
“I know.”
“It’s going to be okay,” she says firmly. “Either way.”
I sniffle. “Thanks, Cher.”
“Anytime.”
We hang up after another few moments and I lie face down on the bed in my robe, sighing up at the ceiling. My skin feels all pruny since I’d cried for so long in the shower. Maybe I should tell Derek about the baby before I leave after all.
35
DEREK
Idon’t feel hungover when I wake up, so I suspect that I’m still a little drunk and take an Uber to work instead of my car. I’m sure I look like shit despite my shower and new suit, and I’m half asleep during the first sales meeting of the day.
Grayson’s there just to observe, and afterwards, he asks me into his office.
I roll my eyes. “Am in in trouble or something?”
Grayson stares at me and then just goes into his office. I follow with a sigh.
“What the hell is going on with you, Derek?” he asks after I close the door.
I run my hand through my hair. “Nothing,” I mutter.
“You look hungover. You don’t drink like that,” Grayson argues back. “Is it the nanny?”
“Of course it’s the nanny,” I mutter, sitting down across from him. “She’s leaving.”
“And you don’t want her to go?”
“God, no,” I say. “And not just because of the kids.”
Grayson nods. “You’re in love with her.”
I freeze and my throat feels tight, but I know that he’s right. “Fuck. Yeah, I am,” I admit.
“So tell her,” he says.
I groan. “How do I do that? I’ve rejected her over and over, and I still don’t know if I can be the man she deserves.”
“You think I’m the man that Lilian deserves?” Grayson asks dryly. “You think I’ve got it all together, that I don’t even think about when she left? I’m afraid all the time that it’ll happen again.”
I look at him. “Really?”
“Of course. Love is hard, Derek. It’s scary. There’s so many ways it can go wrong. But if you really feel that way toward Kenna, you’ve got to tell her. You’ll regret it the rest of your life if you don’t.”
“I’m sorry about the meeting,” I mumble.
Grayson waves his hand. “It’s not like I’m going to fire you. Not only are you my close friend but you’re the best damn salesperson in the tri-county area. Oh, yeah, and you own some shares in the company,” he mocks me
“Still. I shouldn’t be coming to work when I’m fucked up like this. My mind is all over the place,” I admit.
“Well, we’ve all done it,” Grayson jokes, referring to after Lilian left when he was a mess for months.
We hadn’t been talking at that time, but I’d heard stories of Grayson coming in shit-faced. He was lucky that his father owned the company.
