I flinch at the mention of my boyfriend… or ex-boyfriend now, technically. “I ended things with James.”
“Why?” She doesn’t sound all that surprised by my news and even I have to admit, I’m not even a little upset by the fact that we broke up so maybe she saw this coming before I did. I glance back at her.
“We didn’t want the same things.”
She arches a brow. “Which means what? That he wasn’t Wy…”
“Don’t finish that statement,” I warn her, shaking my head. There are some things I like about Eden knowing everything about my past and then there are things that I really hate like her calling me on my shit each and every time. “He didn’t want to have kids.”
“Oh,” she whispers. “Are you okay? With the breakup, I mean?”
I nod. “Yeah. Honestly, I’m not even upset about it. More relieved than anything else… I don’t know. I guess I only started dating again to try and move on with my life but I’m starting to wonder if it’s a lost cause.”
“You’re not a lost cause, Piper. Don’t talk about yourself like that.”
“I just mean… maybe I’m not meant to have all this,” I answer, motioning to the reception surrounding us. “Maybe I had my shot at love and a family and I screwed it all up.”
Wrapping her arm around my shoulders, she pulls me into a hug with a sigh. “People don’t just get one shot at love, babe. That I’m sure of and if you’re serious about wanting a family, you don’t need a man for that.”
“Uh, technically you do need a man. That’s like one of the two main ingredients.”
She laughs. “Don’t be a smart ass. You know what I meant. You could get a sperm donor and get inseminated or whatever.”
“Do it myself? Seriously?”
“Why not?” she answers with a shrug. “It’s two thousand nineteen and you are a strong, independent woman. If you want to have a baby, find a way to make it happen.”
Staring out at the newly married couple as they dance, I chew on my bottom lip and raise my camera to my eye to snap a couple photos as the thoughts bounce around in my mind. Could I really do it all myself? I mean, anytime I thought about the family I wanted to have, Wyatt was always a part of that picture and no matter how hard I tried, the image never changed. That’s probably why none of my other relationships worked out - not that there were all that many - but still, there is no room in my life and my heart for anyone else because Wyatt is always there. Having a baby, though… it has always been one of my greatest dreams.
“Just think about it, okay? Don’t sell yourself short because this is the kind of thing that you’ll come to regret if you don’t go for it.”
Pulling the camera away from my face, I meet her eyes and nod. “Okay. I’ll think about it.”
“That’s all I ask,” she answers, grinning at me and I snort out a laugh.
“It’s a pretty big ask. We’re talking about a baby here and me being a single mother.”
She shrugs. “Just imagine how happy you’ll be when you have that little baby in your arms.”
“Hold up. I thought I was just thinking about it and now I’m picturing my fictional future baby?”
Looping her arm through mine, she guides me to the corner of the ballroom where we can stay out of the way while we talk and snap candid photos. “Yes. Visualization is an essential part of destiny manifestation.”
“I said I’ll think about it, Edie. Don’t push your luck.”
“Okay, fine.” She laughs. “But in all seriousness, I don’t want you to think you’re doing this alone. If you decide to go down this road, you’ll have Lillian and me in your corner. Always.”
I nod, my chest aching at the thought of having a baby on my own. Not because I think I couldn’t do it or because I know it will be hard but because anytime I ever pictured my baby in the past, he always had Wyatt’s hazel eyes and I’m not sure if that is an image I can let go of.
Chapter Three
Wyatt
“How many?” the cute blonde hostess asks as Smith and I walk into the homey little Italian restaurant that our client’s father owns and I hold up two fingers as I scan what I can see of the dining room. She grabs the menus and instructs us to follow her as she turns and walks further into the restaurant. After leading us to a table situated along the front windows that gives us a perfect view into the bustling kitchen, I flash her a smile of thanks as I slide into my seat and Smith sits across from me. She briefly runs over the day’s specials as she lays our menus in front of us.
“Can I get you two started with a drink? A beer, maybe?”
I shake my head. “Just water.”
“I’ll take a beer,” Smith answers and she nods.
“Okay. I’ll be right back with those and your waitress will be with you in just a moment.”
As she turns and leaves, I scan the dining room, searching for the subject of our investigation but he is nowhere to be found. Sighing, I turn toward my menu and flip it open. When our client, Marina, came to us a couple weeks ago to ask for our help, she told us that her father has owned this restaurant for damn near forty years but as he got older, it was harder for him to keep up so he took on a partner to ease the workload. The only problem is, Marina has been hearing from the other staff that the partner, Ben, is a sleaze ball and running this place into the ground but she needs rock solid proof to try and force Ben out which is where we come in.
“I’ll tell ya, brother,” Smith says, engrossed in his menu. “I’ve definitely been on worse stakeouts.”
I snort out a half laugh. “Yeah, I suppose.”
“What’s your deal lately?” he asks, glancing up from his menu with a knitted brow. I shake my head.
“I don’t have a deal.”
“Bullshit. I mean, you’re usually pretty serious but you’re not this damn grouchy. What the hell is going on?”
I run my hand through my hair. “Just worried about the club and the girls.”
“Ah,” he whispers, nodding his head before he turns to look out at the dining room. “I don’t know, man. I don’t want to believe that you’re right but I’m not ready to proclaim that you’re wrong either. Plus, that shit you said at church about it being someone we love next, well… I can’t get that shit out of my head and with Quinn pregnant…”
“I never got a chance to say congratulations, by the way.”
He nods, studying me. “Yeah, you bailed pretty quick after my announcement…”
“Yeah, I did.”
“That’s all I’m going to get?” he asks, irritation creeping into his tone. “I mean, you know that I know that it’s bullshit, right?”
I arch a brow. “That your new favorite word?”
“Bullshit?” he questions and I nod. “Only when I smell the overwhelming scent of bullshit like right now.”
“You can’t smell anything but lasagna and garlic bread.”
His stomach growls and his gaze flicks to the kitchen before he turns back to me. “I really wish I could smell that cause it sounds amazing but I’m like drowning in bullshit right now so…”