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“Hey, mama.” She startled, lifting her eyes up from her screen until she found mine. Her eyes always lit up when she saw me, no matter the time of day or what she was doing. She never let me forget I was her favorite person, just like she was mine.
She moved her laptop off of her legs and held out her arms for me. I crawled onto the bed, resting my head in her ever-shrinking lap, sighing contentedly as she ran her fingers through my hair, waiting for me to talk.
“Harrison’s going to have another chat with Lexi. He doesn’t know how she got my new number, but he said I should tell her not to contact me again, and then he’s going to threaten her.”
Her fingers moved slowly, and my eyes closed as I relaxed under her touch. “Threaten her how?” she asked.
“He’ll drop her as a client and blacklist her.”
“Damn, go Harry.” She chuckled, and I felt my daughter push against the side of my head. I rolled over to face Amara’s belly and kissed her over and over. “Daddy loves you, Phoenix. I know you’re excited to meet us face-to-face, but you need to get a little bigger first, okay?” The level of love I felt for my little girl was already insane, and I hadn’t even met her yet.
I snuggled further into Amara’s lap, my face resting up against her stomach and closed my eyes. A lack of energy swept over my body as my exhaustion took hold. I had no hope of stopping sleep from overtaking me as the comfort of having my girls close and safe relaxed me enough to let go. It didn’t matter what was going on outside these walls. Right now, we were all okay.
"I'm worried about True." I twisted a strand of my hair around my finger as I sat on the other side of Rebecca's couch, one leg tucked underneath me. "He's not sleeping, and he's completely exhausted."
Rebecca sipped her lemonade and then sighed. "Me, too. He's always had such a big heart. He wants to take everything on himself and make it better. When he was little, I always thought he was going to be a doctor because he was the one rushing in trying to help." She chuckled softly. "Boy, was I wrong about that."
I laughed and lifted my glass to my lips, letting the sweet-tart lemony flavor wash over my tongue. "I can't picture him as a doctor, he hates being trapped indoors too much to be stuck in a hospital all day."
"Yeah, but hedoesstill try to fix everything and take on too much. Once this Lexi stuff is sorted out, he'll be fine. Just keep being there for him, and eventually, he'll figure it out."
I set my glass down and lifted my bag onto my lap, sliding my laptop out. I'd taken to working at Rebecca's this week. She was warm and inviting, and while True was doing promotional appearances for his first single, I didn't want to be stuck in the condo by myself. Since Rebecca was home all day by herself, too, it just made sense for me to spend time here with her.
Aside from all that, I really liked being around her. Right now, it felt like everything was changing. I'd moved to a new state, moved in with my boyfriend, changed jobs, and, biggest of all, I was pregnant. I needed a sense of comfort and normalcy, and Rebecca filled that maternal void I'd been missing all my life. Sure, I'd told my parents off a couple of months ago, but they'd never been supportive or loving toward me.
Rebecca lit up when I came over, sitting and talking to me about everything and nothing. She made my favorite foods and hugged me when I needed it. There were a million things I was thankful to True for bringing into my life, but Rebecca was near the top of the list.
She also left me alone when I had a burst of coding inspiration, and I'd made a ton of progress on GRLFRND this week. At the rate I was going, I'd be able to launch a beta version of my app in a few months. I hadn't felt this fulfilled in a long time, maybe ever. Bringing my own project to life gave me purpose and direction.
I typed for what felt like only a few minutes, except my limbs were stiff and my muscles tight from lack of movement. I rolled my shoulders, trying to loosen the tension out of my back as I closed my eyes and stretched my arms overhead.
Rebecca popped back into the room as if she'd been waiting for me to take a break. "Making progress?"
"Tons." I smiled and moved my laptop off of my lap. Standing up and stretching my legs a little would probably be a good idea.
"What would you think about going out for some lunch and then maybe doing some shopping for the baby?" She looked hopeful, and I was at a good stopping point for today. I didn't have the heart to let her down, and a walk did sound like a good idea.
Nodding, I grabbed my phone off the table. "Do you think we should invite Kennedy and Montana?"
Rebecca's smile widened. "Sure, if you think they're free today, I'd love to see them." I didn't know if it was weird or not, but True's mom was becoming the fourth member of our girl's group, and it seemed to make her incredibly happy to be included. I loved her like my own mom, and maybe even more because she was becoming one of my best friends, too.
"I'll send them a quick text and see."
Amara: Lunch & shopping with Bex and I?
Kennedy: Sorry, staffing issue at Sweet Stories. Next time?
Montana: Meetings all day, count me out, too.
Amara: :(
"They're both busy, but it'll be fun just the two of us." I slid my phone into my purse and stepped into the flats I'd taken to wearing since it was getting harder and harder to see my feet and even more challenging to think about fastening straps or tying laces. Slip-on shoes were one of the best inventionsever.
She grabbed her keys and her purse. "What sounds good for lunch?"
My stomach growled, and we both laughed. "Salad?"
She raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
