I hesitate, thinking about how much detail I really want to give about Leon and how hard Mom is pushing him toward me. Not wanting to get too deep into it, I decide to keep my response pretty surface level, instead.
“Leon is the guy my parents really want me to marry,” I explain. “He’s a total creep. I have absolutely no interest in him whatsoever.”
“So, why are they so insistent you marry him?” Hadley questions.
“Because they think I need a husband to help me take over as CEO of our family’s company.” I wrinkle my nose in disgust thinking about Leon getting his grubby hands on my family’s legacy. “Leon and his mom are all too eager to jump in. The way he treats me is so…agonizing. Like I’m just a simple female who can’t do anything for herself.”
“Sounds like that dickhead deserves to be forever stalked by a slug that will switch bodies with him if it ever touches him,” Skyler quips.
“That’s a very specific threat,” Grace murmurs, brows raised.
“Why can’t you just tell them you don’t want to marry him?” Stacey asks gently.
I shrug, fiddling with a strand of my hair, briefly wishing it wasn’t brown and that my whole head was teal and not just the underside. I could tell them the truth, that I’m constantly trying to make up for Colson’s loss and can’t stand disappointing my parents, but I don’t. All they know about Colson is that he died young, but I’ve never gone into detail about the part I played in it. The guilt is too much.
“It’s complicated,” I say, finally. “They mean well. They just…I don’t know.” I shake my head, forcing a smile back on my face as I look around at them all. “Enough about me and my silly family drama. Let’s talk about something more exciting. Rylee! How are you feeling? Excited to have your own baby consuming your ever waking moment.”
Rylee hesitates a moment, and I know she wants to press me for more about my messy life, but she eventually lets the subject change stand. “Hell yes I am.”
“When are you due?” I ask.
“We’re due in July.” Her eyes go bright and her lips curl into a silly little grin.
“Annnnd?” I prod. “What about the wedding?”
She grins. “If the Night Hawks continue having a winning season, we make it to the finals again, that could run through June. So, we’re thinking we’ll do a small wedding after the baby’s born. Maybe early September in Nashville. Avoid all the Stanley Cup craziness completely.”
“Very nice,” I nod. “Let’s see that ring again, yeah?”
Rylee holds out her hand, the diamond sparkling in the afternoon light.
“Still not over it,” Skyler sighs.
“Neither am I,” Rylee admits with a dreamy smile. “We’re doing the gender reveal in May, by the way, so everyone better be here.”
“Are you having the baby here, too?” Grace asks. “I know you were kind of torn about that.”
“Yeah.” Rylee shrugs. “I really wanted to have it in Nashville, so we could be close to both our families, but I love the doctor I’ve found here and don’t want to change just for the delivery. So, we came up with a compromise. Mom’s coming here right before the baby’s born, and then we’ll visit Nashville in August.”
“How very sensible of you,” I say, snapping my fingers in approval.
“Speaking of weddings, though.” Rylee turns to Skyler. “How goes your wedding plans?”
“I hate wedding planning,” Skyler mutters. “I haven’t even set a date. Honestly, if someone could give Carson the hint to whisk me off to Vegas, I’d be forever grateful.”
“Noted,” Grace teases. “I’ll text him later.”
“Do it,” Skyler says. “Save me from all this seating chart and color palette bullshit.”
I laugh, turning to Grace. “What about you? You’re already a wifey, so any baby plans in the near future?”
She snorts. “Not yet. Jensen suddenly wants a hockey team’s worth, but I told him the line’s drawn at three. Maybe in a few years. My career’s finally taking off, and I’m not ready to give that up just yet.”
“I respect that.” Skyler gives Grace a salute. “I don’t even know if I want kids at all. I’m perfectly content being Aunt Skyler for now.”
We chat for another hour, laughing, trading stories, and taking turns cuddling baby Henry when he finishes eating. Sitting back in my seat, I quietly watch my friends and take in just how happy they all seem. I’m so glad they’re all living theirbest lives right now, especially Rylee. She’s my ride-or-die, and after everything she’s been through with her family, reuniting with her estranged Dad, she deserves to have someone like Zander who adores her. Still, it’s weird to think of her settling down and having a kid. It only makes my own anxieties and worries about my life starker in my mind. They have doting husbands and boyfriends who adore them, and who they love wholeheartedly in return. On the other hand, I’m facing the very real possibility of a loveless marriage with a man who literally makes my skin crawl.
If that husband were Jayce, it might not be so bad. For a moment, I consider telling the girls about our hook-up, but quickly decide against it. I don’t want to make things weird or complicated for their guys, and I don’t want them jumping to any conclusions about us. It was just a one-time thing, after all. No big deal. Still, at least he’s fun to be around, and we could be genuine friends. That’d be so preferable to the alternative, where I dread every moment I have to spend with Leon.
