“Why did I just now get a text from my husband telling me he saw you leaving Rowdy’s cabin?”
I lifted a shoulder. “I dunno. He’s your husband, and you and I both know that he’s always been sort of a gossip.”
“Kessler,” he repeated, annoyed.
I chuckled into my mug as I took my first sip of coffee.
“Kessler, I swear to God, if you don’t...”
“He’s mine,” I said, setting my mug on the counter and crossing my arms over my chest. “We kissed, among other things. It’s new, but it’s not. And...Rowdy is mine.”
The frustration on Emery’s face bled into a big, bright, beaming smile. “Really? He’s yours?”
I uncrossed my arms and rubbed my sternum. “We’re taking things slowly?—”
“Sure, Jan,” Emery said, quoting our favorite meme.
“—but we’ll get there in due time.”
“You were leaving his place this morning.”
“I slept over,” I said, holding up my hand. “But it wasmostlyjust sleep. We are taking our time and stopping at some delightful spots along the way.”
“Is that why you’re smiling like a jackass?” he asked, clearly enjoying this.
“He’s beautiful, Emery. I’d always known he was sexy and smart and had a sharp mouth, but...”
“It’s better?”
I let my head drop back and closed my eyes, remembering how he felt in my arms. “So much better. So muchmore. There’s so much more to him, Em.”
“Like what?” he asked, leaning in.
“A lot of it’s private, so I’ll respect that. But he’s a man with a lot of integrity, and he needs and deserves something slower, more substantial.”
“This already sounds very serious,” he said, a note of warning in his voice.
I nodded along. “It is. There’s not a lot I wanna share about him right now, but I think he’s had feelings for me longer than I realized.”
Em tilted his head to the side. “I wonder if you’ve had feelings for longer than you realized, too.”
“I definitely have,” I admitted. “I have to keep reminding myself to stop picturing him as the father of my children.”
Emery’s eyes blazed wide. “Rowdy?Really?”
My throat constricted, and I took in the bright, open space. The way the gnarly branches of the junipers outside threw shadows, snaking through the space, interspersed with bright sunlight.
I envisioned Rowdy walking into the living room, our children hanging on him like he was a mobile set of monkey bars, screeching with laughter as he spun them and hugged them and loved them unconditionally. The way he would look at me, love shining out of his eyes as he kissed their sweet heads.
“Holy shit. You’re thinking about it right now.”
“I am, Em. I very much am.”
We stood there, drinking our coffee as Emery seemed to look at me with fresh eyes.
“I’m happy for you, my friend,” he finally said. “Some of it feels sudden, but it’s also been building for a while.”
“That it has.”
