JOSSLYN
My eyes pop open when the door announces someone’s opened it, and Theo lifts his head and hops off the couch. I yawn and follow along, reaching them just as Lyla bends down to hug and kiss him, while Lachlan pockets his phone and opens his arms to pick him up. Theo starts quickly filling them in on everything we’ve done in the few hours they’ve been gone.
“Sounds like you’ve had a great time,” Lachlan says, kissing his son on the top of his head and setting him down. He glances up at me. “I bet you didn’t think your birthday would include hanging out with a five-year-old.”
“I didn’t, but it’s been the best part of my day by far.” I grin and look at Theo, who’s hopping from one marble tile to another, careful to miss the grout.
“I’m sure you have plans tonight,” Lyla says, shooting me a pointed look. “I hope you do, so you can make one of those get-ready-with-me posts.”
“I’m sure Lang already called to advise you to go on, business as usual,” Lachlan adds, “If he hasn’t, that’s what he’ll say. Besides,there’s no bigger ‘fuck you’ than for Tate to see you’re doing better without him.”
“I’m always better without him.” I shake my head and try not to let my disappointment show. “It’s fine. It’s not like I was in love with the guy.”
Lachlan offers a sympathetic smile and looks at Theo, who’s still hopping. “You ready to go to the rink with me and your grandpas?”
“I thought we were going to meet new friends?” he pouts.
“You’re also going to meet new friends,” Lachlan says. “One of them will be here soon.”
My stomach tightens. It could be anyone, but knowing my luck … I push down my nerves. No. The universe wouldn’t be so cruel.
“Yes!” Theo says, snapping me out of my thoughts as he pumps his fist in the air. “Are you coming, Mommy?”
“Mommy’s tired, buddy. We’ll go get ice cream when we’re done and bring one back for Mommy,” Lachlan says.
Theo shoots me a smug look. “I told you Dad lets me have ice cream for lunch.”
Lyla raises an eyebrow. “For lunch? That’s news to me.”
“Theo, that’s not exactly true,” Lachlan says.
“It is true. You said Mommy would be mad at you if we told her we had it for lunch.”
Lyla glares at her husband, who looks like he wants to crawl into a hole right now. As he should.
“It was one time,” Lachlan argues.
“This is the second thing you keep from me. That Iknow of.” She shakes her head as she starts walking toward the kitchen.
“She’s hangry,” Lachlan mouths behind her. “Let’s get you cleaned up, Theo.”
“I want Mommy to help me.”
“Theodore, we talked about this,” his dad says in his stern dad voice.
“Apparently, you talk about a lot of things when I’m notaround,” Lyla comments as we all walk into the kitchen. “Maybe I’ll start keeping secrets with this baby. See how you like it.”
She opens the fridge and starts taking things out to make her usual granola bowl, when Lachlan walks over and grabs her by the shoulders to turn her to face him.
“I let him have ice cream for lunch once, and it was the day you had ice cream for lunch because you couldn’t stomach anything else,” he says.
“It’s not about the freaking ice cream, Lachlan.” She pulls away from him and shuts the fridge. “The other day it was ‘don’t tell Mommy you fell at the rink and got a boo-boo.’ Today, it’s ice cream. Who knows what will be next? I don’t like this little ‘let’s keep secrets from Mommy’ BS.”
“Jesus Christ.” He runs a hand through his hair. “He fell and scraped his knee. I didn’t want you to worry for no reason. It’s not like we’re starting a boys-only club without you or something.”
I start busying myself with the dirty dishes and pretend I’m not here. She’s usually only this upset with him when she’s hangry, but she’s 36 weeks pregnant and paused her life for the baby and her husband's hockey team. It’s a lot. Luckily, Lachlan always knows how to appease her.
“You’re my best friend, Lyla James. I tell you everything,” he says quietly, wrapping his arms around her from behind. Whatever he’s whispering in her ear works, because when he turns her to kiss her, she looks lighter than she did a second ago.
