“I’m sorry,” Danny said, an uncomfortable look on his face. “I know I’ve asked you some shitty questions in the past.”
“Thanks, I appreciate that,” West said with a smile.
I really was proud of them. I hadn’t expected anything like this to happen, but it felt like we’d needed it.
And all it had taken was me being a complete twat.
Hopefully, I didn’t have to make a habit of it to get everyone to open up like this.
“Okay,” I said. “I’ll be open with him. And I’ll apologise for not talking to him sooner and the way he found out. But what do I do about the job aspect?” Even though either one of us could have started that conversation about what we were doing, I should have taken the initiative. Especially because the guys had made it very clear why Harper hadn’t.
Hindsight wasn’t very bloody helpful when it didn’t offer any solutions.
“Honestly, I think you can offer options, but it also has to come from Harper,” Mason said. “This is his job, his career, one I assume he’s worked bloody hard for.”
“He has. You should see all his qualifications, and one day he even wants to do a master’s degree about the impact of imaginative play. Something like that anyway,” I said.
“You already know how important this is to him,” West said. “That’s good.”
“Why?” I asked, although I thought I already knew.
“Means you’re not going to dismiss it as a silly hobby or something less important,” Bailey said.
“Yeah, working with kids is hard and he’s clearly dedicated. If that’s his dream, you have to let him follow that,” Danny added. It was a surprisingly pertinent point from him, and when we all turned to him in shock, he just shrugged and said, “My sister works with kids. Her ex used to think it was a joke. Just something to fill up her time until she got knocked up. He was a proper wanker.”
“He really was,” Charlie said in quiet agreement.
“I don’t think it’s a joke,” I said. “Fuck, sometimes I’m jealous of Harper’s childcare skills because there are times he makes it looks easy. He even knows how to manage Jack’s screaming tantrums without wanting to cry into a pillow. I don’t know how I managed for so long without him.” I sighed and rubbed my face. “This is so much harder than I imagined.”
“Kind of what happens when you fall for your nanny,” Mason said with a wry smile.
“It was never going to be easy to untangle,” West said, patting me on the shoulder.
“We’ve got you, though,” Bailey said. “Well, the ones who’re actually in good relationships. The rest of us are all just here to rip the shit out of you.”
I chuckled. “I don’t think I deserve that.”
“Sorry,” Danny said. “That’s just the way it is. Do something stupid, and we’ll remind you of it forever.”
“We’re never gonna let you forget that mullet, that’s for sure,” I said.
“Oi! Lay off the hair! It’s a classic.”
“We’ll come back to it in ten years, see if you still feel that way.”
There was some laughter and a few comments from other people about style choices they regretted, from bad shirts to even worse haircuts.
And as I looked around the table at the men crowded around me, I couldn’t help think about how lucky I was.
My whole world might be falling apart, but at least I had people ready to catch me.
Maybe I should be more open with them, let them see more of who I was and what I liked. It would be good for me.
I turned to West and Mason and smiled. “I don’t suppose either of you ever watchDrag Stars?”
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Harper
