Claire claps her hands. “You know the best part of this whole story? She called the baby ‘little one.’ It cracked me up because she calls everyone else baby, but then she calls an actual baby ‘little one.’”
Vincent throws his head back in laughter. “I’d never thought about it before, but that’s so true.”
Desiree gives him a playful shove. “See if I call you ‘baby’ again, baby.”
He points and hoots louder. “You just did.”
I chuckle along. “She can’t help it.”
Desiree pushes her chair away from the table. “Go ahead and keep laughing. I’m gonna use the restroom before we get on a boat.”
She saunters away, and this only fuels our hilarity.
Vincent scrapes his chair back too. “I’d better go after her and apologize.” His big grin tells us he’s not too sorry.
I swivel to share the joke with Claire and find her leaning unexpectedly close. For some reason she’s not smiling, but man, those glasses.
“Did I do something wrong?”
I wipe a smile away and rewind my memory for any possible faux pas. “On a flight? Did you break an FAA regulation?”
“I don’t think so, but Desiree seems colder today.”
I dip my eyebrows. Desiree sassed her husband, but that’s normal. “She can be a little salty at times. I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary.”
Claire bites her lip. “I thought maybe she was hurt that I didn’t go on the walk with you guys last night.”
I shake my head. Desiree hadn’t been hurt at all. Just warned me about getting hurt.
“Then maybe my dark mood about dancing might have brought her down. I’ve been trying to come across as more upbeat today.”
I lift my chin to challenge the idea her happiness is all an act. I want her new job to make her happy for real. As would Desiree. “She seemed pretty compassionate when you talked about it.”
“I thought so too.” Claire leans away, and my eyes follow.
Unlike Claire in her crazy shades, I’m wearing my normal aviators, which makes it safe to study her covertly. While she considers Desiree, I consider her.
Of all the women I could have been drawn to after Joey, why Claire?
Could it be because she’s taken, so I’m not really risking my heart? That might make our interactions feel so natural. Neither of us is putting on a show for a good impression.
Or is there more to it? If Claire were single, would I still feel this attraction?
While she’s pretty, she’s not a supermodel, like one would expect to see quarterback Andrew James dating. I wonder what drew him to her? I guess there’s a list of other things to admire. Her simple elegance. Quick wit. Authenticity. Natural charm.
Or could it be her broken heart?
This last option gives me pause. Heartbreak is usually associated with relationships, but hers comes from a shattered dream.
While the star quarterback might have seen Claire’s brokenness as something to take advantage of, I see it as something relatable. She’s not the only one who’s been lost.
Of course, Andrew James could have simply appreciated a challenge.
“What do you think?” she asks.
I’m still lost. I rub my jaw, ashamed to admit it. “About what?”
Unfazed, she props an elbow on the table and rests her cheek in her palm to better face me. “Is it because I told the baby story about Desiree? Is that’s what’s bothering her? It’s just that I made last night all about me, and I wanted to put more of the spotlight back on her.”
