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)
Not just Bellamy, but the rest of our friends and Candice, Bellamy’s mom. She was like a second mom to me growing up, and I’m in love with her ex-husband. Somehow, I’ve managed to twist this relationship of ours into a web so tangled, I’m not sure if any of us will make it out unscathed. The thought has my gut churning.
To make matters worse, Will asked Mia and me to go to the game today. Of course, Bellamy and the girls had already invited me to join them in the suite, but he wanted us here. He said it would mean a lot to him to know that all of his girls were here watching his team take the field for the first time this season. He meant Bellamy and Coral, too. That man knows how to melt my heart, but I’ve been sick about this all week.
No matter what happens tomorrow, though, we’ll no longer have to hide how we feel for one another. I can only hope that with time, everyone will understand.
William Warner is the love of my life.
With each day that we spend together, that feeling grows deeper inside my soul. We’re meant to be. I don’t look at him and see my best friend’s dad. I see the man who worries about my daughter and me. A man who wants to take care of us, who’s made room in his busy life for us to have a place next to him. I see my Will, and I hope they can see that, too.
With a deep breath, I push open the door to the suite and wheel the stroller inside. The room is loud with laughter, and the kids are playing.
“There she is!” Sloane calls out.
“We thought you were gonna bail on us,” Eden says.
“Come see Aunt Bellamy,” Bellamy coos as she unstraps Mia from the stroller and moves to the window of the suite to point down at the field below.
I move the stroller to the back corner of the room with the others, grab my phone from the diaper bag, and move to plop down in a seat.
“Rough day?” Corie asks.
“Just tired. I haven’t been sleeping well,” I admit.
“Ugh, that’s tough,” she says, leaning in for a hug. “I hope you get some rest soon. Let me know if you need us to keep Mia for a night,” she offers.
“Thank you, but the little stinker is sleeping just fine, thankfully.” I laugh.
Corie chuckles. “Good to know.” She walks to where Sloane is holding her son and kisses his forehead. “Ladies, I gotta head down. I’ll see you after,” Corie calls out to everyone.
“Tell Rowan we said hi,” Eden tells her with a wave.
“It sucks they can’t be here to watch the games with us,” Bellamy says.
“It does, but those two are living their dreams,” Sloane says, rocking a sleeping Alexander in her arms.
“They are. I’m happy for them,” Eden says, bouncing Ella on her knee.
That’s the thing about this group of ladies, who my best friend brought into my life. We are all there for each other, no matter what. We all agreed to watch Alexander and Ella so they could be here for the game, and their parents could celebrate with them afterward. We’re a family, and I hope that after tomorrow, I still get to be a part of it.
While I’ll have Will, these ladies, they’re my friends, and I love them all just as much as I love Bellamy. I have so much to lose, but that still didn’t stop me from falling in love with him.
“Knock, knock,” a voice calls, and we all turn to see Knox’s mom and his sisters enter the suite.
“Hey, hey,” Sloane greets them. “Are you backup?”
“More like you’re our backup.” Kendall, Knox’s mom, laughs.
“But he’s so snuggly,” Sloane complains.
“Hand him over, Sinclair,” Kendall says, holding her arms out for her grandson.
“Yeah, you should have another one if you want the snuggles. You need to share,” Everly tells her.
“Funny, I was telling my husband the same thing just last night.”
“What?” Eden asks. “Really? Are you pregnant?”
Sloane smiles. “No, but we’re going to start trying.”
“That’s amazing.” Bellamy hugs her first, then the rest of us do the same.
In the past, talks of pregnancy would cause pain to fill my chest, but now that I have Mia, that old pang of want is no longer there. While I don’t know what it feels like to be pregnant, I am a mom, and it’s the greatest gift.
“Where’s everyone else?” I ask Kendall.
“Oh, they wanted to be closer to the action. They’ll be up later to see everyone, I’m sure.”
“All right, who’s handing over a kid? I know Mom’s not giving Alexander up yet,” Emma, Knox’s older sister, says.
“I’ll share,” Eden tells her. “My bladder isn’t giving me much of a choice.” She laughs, patting her baby bump, while Emma makes her way over and swoops Ella out of her arms and onto her hip. The baby squeals with laughter when Emma tickles her belly.