“Boy or girl?” Kids seem the safest topic, given the situation.
I don’t want us to talk, but it’s not as challenging as I imagined since she seems the polar opposite of the Blair I’m used to.
“A girl. You don’t have any nieces yet, right?”
“Not for the lack of Logan’s praying. I’m pretty sure he’s ready to sell his soul for a daughter.”Maybe you can hook him up? I’m sure you and the devil are besties.
Blair shifts her arm, circling River’s back so he’s safe in her lap, then covers her eyes with the other hand, playing peek-a-boo again. “Are they planning another baby soon?”
“Not that soon. Cassidy barely had time to breathe between Eli and Noah. We had a good chat with Logan about giving her a break before knocking her up again.”
“I bet she could use a year off.”
Every sentence Blair speaks lacks her usual superior confidence. Her voice quakes at the edges—something I’ve never heard—and I can see her trembling, as if she’s trying to hide that she’s afraid to be in the room with me.
“That’s the problem,” I say, purposely losing the disdain from my tone. It works only because I face this unsure-of-herself girl and not Blair the bitch. “She’s as baby-crazed as Logan but doesn’t want to be pregnant at their wedding. Once that’s out of the way, I expect another pregnancy announcement by the end of the year.”
Just like that, the topic changes from kids to the upcoming wedding, and somehow, the conversation flows without a hitch, question after question for over an hour. A few times, she looks ready to start apologizing or explaining the past, but she pinches her lips, gently shaking her head as if she doesn’t think the moment’s right.
It isn’t. Not just because River’s here, but mainly because I don’t give a shit about her excuses. Nothing she could say would change what I think of her.
Nothing.
At some point, River crawls further over her until his head rests against her shoulder and he nods off.
“I think you’ll be fine for a while,” she whispers, gently stroking his back. “Where do you want him?”
“Stroller,” I say, wheeling it closer. “He moves in his sleep too much to leave him on the couch. He’d end up face-planting the carpet.”
“Better safe than sorry.” She gently transfers River from her arms to the stroller, then covers him with a fluffy blanket. “Feel free to knock on my door if he wakes up.”
I won’t.
Blair initiated every interaction between us since we moved into the building, and that won’t change. Still, I suddenly find myself out of rude comments, and when my lips part, I sound far from hateful.
“I bet you’ll hear him first.”
“I bet I will.”
I hold the door open, watching her cross the corridor. “Blair?”
She turns, worrying her bottom lip, probably expecting something nasty because, save for tonight, that’s all I’ve been to her for a long time. “Yeah?”
“Thanks.”
Those blue eyes give a tiny spark, and an uncertain smile twists her lips. Her whole face lights up, her features prettier than ever before.
I don’t like what it does to me, that smile.
I’d much prefer my dick turning hard since there’s not much I can do to control that brainless organ. But my dick’s been up the entire time she sat in my condo, and now, on top of that inconvenience, I feel like someone took a baseball bat to the back of my head.
“Thank you for letting me help.”
SEVEN
Cody
THE NEIGHBORHOOD IS ONE OF THE FANCIER ONES, not far from Nico’s house. I’ve been here a few times, but it’s been a while. Brandon Price is only throwing the graduation party because, just before he took Mia to Europe, Nico categorically declined my, Conor, and Colt’s pleas to throw the party in his garden.
