Wren.
I glanced down at Kaia when she tugged on my pants, wanting me to lift her, then glared at the woman forcing the most annoying pout in the world.
Okay, so maybe I was a little hard on Wren, but I really couldn’t stand her.
“I just never see you without Hudson,” she went on, looking around again as if Gray might suddenly appear in the sea of pastel-colored families. “I thought he would be here when I saw you.”
“There’s a first for everything,” I said as I finally bent down and scooped up Kaia when the almost two-year-old gave another tug. I hated kids, but Kaia belonged to Briggs, which meant she belonged to all of us. Besides, she gave me an excuse to walk away from Wren.
“I’ll tell him you were looking for him though,” I added as I took a step toward Briggs.
“Oh, I’ll just have him come over,” Wren said with a shrug as she reached for her phone, already walking away from me as she did.
Every part of me faltered at her sure tone—from my heart to my steps. I wanted to ask where exactly she intended to have Gray meet her. There, at the farm, or at her apartment?
At the same time, I didn’t want to know. I didn’t want to think of them together, when that’s all I’d done for months now.
Turning to where Briggs was holding a basket filled with plastic eggs and little prizes, I blinked back the absurd tears pricking at my eyes and tried to keep the irritation and devastation from my tone when I asked, “Why’d we have to come here?”
“Lainey’s been promising Kaia we’d come,” he said on a sigh that let me know he was just as desperate to leave. Before I couldremind him that Lainey wasn’t here, he added, “But she hasn’t been feeling great.”
A hum sounded in my throat as I made a sweep of the people walking around the large, open space—too many people. “Let me rephrase, why’dIhave to come here?” I asked as Kaia laid her head on my chest, causing me to still.
“You know why,” Briggs muttered as he cut an expectant look my way before his stare dropped to Kaia. “Think she’s done. Let’s head out.”
Swallowing back a sigh, I hitched Kaia higher up on my hip and started following Briggs down the long path back to the cars. My lips parted half a dozen times to tell him I did, in fact, know why he’d called the meeting—even if I didn’t know why he’d forced me to Pearson Farms for it.
I just wasn’t prepared for this conversation.
Throughout watching Kaia gather Easter eggs in her basket and toddle around the rest of the activities the farm had set up, I’d had a feeling Briggs had been waiting for me to start the discussion. But I’d already done that with Gray, and it hadn’t ended well. So, what little I had said to Briggs, had been about his niece and the hoard of people.
“How’d it go?” Briggs finally asked, his tone markedly different than seconds before. Pointed. Impatient.
And wholly unexpected, since I knew with absolute certainty he was asking about Gray, when I’d expected this meeting to be about my embarrassing display the night before.
I considered feigning ignorance since his question was so vague and I really didn’t want to discuss the disaster with Gray, but I knew it would only add to his frustration.
“Not well,” I finally admitted. When Briggs just grunted, I explained, “We fought. He stormed out. I also don’t appreciate your part in helping him get inside my condo.”
Briggs’ expression didn’t shift from the permanent glower as he spared me a glance. “You wouldn’t have let him in otherwise.”
“I wouldn’t have let any of you in.”
“I’m not gonna apologize, Monroe.”
I nodded, already knowing that.
After walking a while longer in silence, he asked, “Do you still wanna work for me?”
Air punched from my lungs at yet another question I hadn’t expected. Only this one had fear clinging to my spine as that same worry from last night crept into my veins.
Don’t rip this away from me.
“You know I do,” I whispered.
“Then I need you to explain what’s going on.” His tone let me know there was no room for discussion, but I wasn’t sure where to begin.
The day I’d first met all of them? When I’d first realized I was in love with Hudson Gray? Or maybe when I’d realized he truly didn’t know how to keep himself from women? Or should I begin with Aruba?
