Total pages in book: 87
Estimated words: 83612 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 418(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 279(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83612 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 418(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 279(@300wpm)
Corie snorts because we all know what’s coming next, and it’s just as funny the second time.
“I should’ve known something was coming when it went quiet,” Rowan continues, grinning. “I hear him shout my name like he’s been mortally wounded. I open the b-bathroom door,” she sputters, “and there he is, soaked, shampoo in his hair, our daughter in his arms, and this look of absolute betrayal on his face. And Ella? She’s smiling. Smiling for the first time all day.”
“Here it comes,” Sloane wheezes.
“Literally,” Eden chimes in.
“Been there,” I say, but I’m still laughing my ass off at this story.
“It took me a few minutes to figure out what was going on. I thought one of them was hurt, but as I stepped further into the bathroom, I could see it and smell it.” Rowan stops, her body shaking with laughter. “Shit. Everywhere,” she wheezes. “Landry was holding her to his chest, eyes wide, and looking like a lost, injured puppy. He had one hand on the back of her head, and the other cradling her bottom, which was filled with shit,” Rowan finishes, and the room once again erupts in laughter.
Eden bends forward, clutching her stomach. “Stop. I can’t breathe.”
“And he says, completely serious, ‘Rowan, I thought we were bonding.’ He was shocked that his perfect little girl shat all over him.” Rowan wipes her eyes. “I lost it. I laughed so hard I had to sit on the toilet lid for support.”
Corie shakes her head. “That’s what he gets for multitasking.”
“I told him that’s what skin-to-skin really means,” Rowan adds sweetly. “Very organic bonding.”
The laughter starts all over again, echoing through the room as Rowan wipes under her eyes. “I swear,” she says, still grinning, “I’ve never loved that man more.”
“My big brother is a good daddy,” Corie coos.
“They all are,” I speak up. “You’re all lucky to have them.”
“Ethan was a dick,” Sloane says, taking a sip of her drink.
“Yeah, but he wasn’t always,” I tell her.
“He changed,” Bellamy agrees. “He was never overly affectionate, but he was nice at one point in time.”
“He never looked at me the way your husbands look at each of you. We were young, and looking back, it was the idea of the life we would build. I loved him, but that love faded, and we stayed together far longer than we should have.”
“There’s no shame in fighting for your marriage,” Eden tells me.
“I know,” I say quietly, tracing the rim of my glass. “And I did fight. For a long time. I just think… at some point, you’re not fighting for the marriage anymore. You’re fighting against yourself. I failed.”
The table goes silent for a beat. I keep my eyes trained on the half-empty glass in my hand to avoid their gaze. I hate that my marriage failed. I hate even more that the man who was supposed to be Mia’s father bailed, and now, she’s only got me. My heart breaks for my little girl.
Sloane reaches over and squeezes my hand. “That doesn’t make you a failure.”
“It feels like it,” I admit, lifting my head to face my friends. “You all have these men who look at you like you hung the moon. I used to wait for Ethan to look at me like that. I kept thinking if I just loved him harder, or tried more, that he would love me like that.”
Bellamy sighs softly. “Sometimes people grow together. Sometimes they grow apart.”
Corie nods. “And sometimes the bravest thing you can do is let go.”
I blink back the sting in my eyes, surprised by the wave of relief their words bring. “I hate it for Mia. He was supposed to be with me through all of this. I don’t miss him. He was never around at the end, and divorce was the right answer for us, but Mia deserves a dad. Sometimes I get so mad at myself for being selfish. That I decided to do this on my own. What if a loving family of two adopted her instead of me?”
“Oh, no. You can stop that right now, Manda,” Bellamy says, her voice stern. “Let’s start with the fact that Mia’s birth mother chose you. She knew you were going to be a single mom, but she saw something in you. The adoption agency saw something in you. They knew that little girl needed you as her mom.”
“Bellamy’s right,” Rowan says. She glances at Eden. “I can say with confidence that I would have given anything to have had a mother like you. Even if that meant there was no dad in the picture.”
“Me, too,” Eden says gently. “If I’ve learned anything, it’s that family is what you make it. You’re proof of that. You love that little girl with your entire being, but you don’t share DNA. I know you want her to have a dad, and honestly, I believe she will one day. I never imagined I’d find the kind of love I have with Foster, but here I am.” She smiles softly. “He’s out there, Amanda. You’re just not ready for him yet, and I truly believe that.”