“I still think you should have told Jared that part,” Ashley adds.
“It would only hurt him. I want him to be happy even if it’s not with me.”
“I saw the news online,” Cay says before her lips pull into a tight line.
“What news?” Ash’s gaze dances from me to Cay.
Pain stabs me through the heart. “Vittoria’s pregnancy has hit the headlines. I’m surprised you didn’t hear it on the radio on the drive here. It’s all I see when I turn on the TV and my social media feeds are full of it.” The sooner they move to Florence, the better.
“I thought they wanted to keep it a secret?” Cay muses, remembering what I told her of that day at the gallery. “She only has a teeny bump. I’m sure she could have disguised it for longer.”
For someone who is four and a half months pregnant, Vittoria is tiny. You would barely know she is pregnant. “Someone in their entourage probably blabbed,” I surmise. “They were completing the last leg of their tour, and someone must have noticed and sold them out.”
“I don’t think so.” Cay empties that box and lifts a second one, leaving the contents for me to decide where they go. “From what I’ve read, she was in L.A. the whole time they were touring.”
“Can we change the subject, please. It hurts too much to think of him having a baby with her when ours was stolen from me.”
“Aw, babe,” Cay says as they both rush to my side and hug me.
A sob rips from my mouth. “Sorry,” I whisper as tears roll silently down my face. “I’m trying to move on. I thought it would be easier after I knew he didn’t purposely abandon me, but it’s harder. We would be together if our parents hadn’t kept us apart. That should be me having his baby. I should be the one wearing his ring, and it fucking hurts.”
I fall apart, letting weeks of pain run free as I lean on my cousin and my best friend for support. After a good cry, I feel a little better. Not cured. I doubt I will ever get over losing Jared and our baby, but at least I’ve purged some of my emotions.
We make quick work of the kitchen, and the girls move on to the living room while I head to my bedroom to tackle it.
Hours later, as nightfall encroaches, we call time-out on the unpacking, order takeout, and escape outside with a bottle of wine.
“Man, it’s so peaceful here.” Cay rubs a hand over her full belly and kicks her legs up on the empty chair across from her. “Maybe we should have bought here too.”
“You love your apartment, and it’s in a fabulous location. Neither of you have far to travel for work.”
“It’s only a fifty-minute drive for you,” she reminds me, swirling the white wine in her glass. “That’s a workable commute.”
“Yeah, but I’m only working part-time at the museum, and I won’t be driving in rush hour.”
“That makes a big difference,” Ash agrees, topping off our wine in between texting her husbands.
“You and Jerry can come here on the weekends if you want to unwind. I have plenty of room.”
“You might regret offering that.” Cay smirks as she clinks her glass against mine.
“You know I won’t. You’re family.”
“Maybe, next weekend, if it suits, we could do a barbecue here. Jerry could invite Logan. It’d be more casual than a double date.”
“Cay.” My tone warns my bestie. She’s been trying to set me up with this guy Jerry works with, but I’m having none of it. I have enough on my plate without adding another complication to the mix.
“You need to get back out there, babe. You’re not going to sink into another Jared-induced depression on my watch. Logan is hot. He’s totally your type. And he’s a fucking sweetheart. I think you’ll love him.”
“What harm could it do to meet him on your terms?” Ash suggests, gulping back wine. “If you don’t gel with him, it doesn’t have to go any further.”
“Maybe you’re right.”
What is the point in clinging to memories of a lost love who has moved on? This is a fresh start. Another chance to start over, only this time I know exactly where I stand with Jared. There is no point pining over a man who will never be mine. Maybe throwing myself into the dating scene is what I need to put Jared behind me once and for all.
He’s not mine to love anymore, and I need to start accepting the harsh truth.
It’s time to prioritizemyhappily ever after.
