“It’s fifty-eight degrees,” I tossed back.
“Exactly,” she said. “Can we sit in my warm car?”
I laughed. “Sure.” I gathered the wrapped presents I had on the table and then followed her to her car. She was already getting back inside, and when I got there, she was holding her hands in front of the vents.
“Have you always been this cold-blooded?” I asked her once I got in. My knees were bunched up by the dash.
“Yes—lever’s under your feet.”
I had to hold my breath as I bent over to give myself some room, but finally the seat was back.
“Is it my birthday?” Rei asked, gesturing at the presents.
“That’s not until April,” I reminded her. I already had it marked on my calendar because it would be her first birthday since we became friends.
“Oh, right, well what’s with the gifts?”
I twisted my lips to the side. “You’ll see.” I passed one to her. It was wrapped in white paper with a silver satin bow.
With a giddy expression, she tugged the ribbon back and then lifted the lid. Her eyebrows pinched as she squinted to read the script on the coffee mug.
It said,Bestie, Godmother, Legend.And then there was a bag of coffee beans with a label that said,Pairs well with becoming Twyla’s godmother.
The more she read, the more her expression pinched. She looked at me, saying, “Who the fuck is Twyla?”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “She’s my daughter. I’m telling you that I’m pregnant and that I want you to be the godmother.”
Her mouth fell open almost comically. “WHAT?”
I nodded.
“You and Bryce?”
“Well...” I tried, and failed, to hide my smile.
She hit my shoulder. “Tell me!”
“We did, and it was amazing, but he’s not the father.”
Rei slumped in her chair. “Bitch, you’re gonna give me an aneurysm.”
I let out a strangled laugh. “Rei! This is serious.”
“No shit! Tell me everything,” she ordered. “And start from the beginning.”
Filling her in took longer than I thought it might. Glancing at the clock, twenty minutes had passed from me telling her about my one-night-stand with Mr. Horrible to going on a date with Bryce and falling for him. I didn’t tell her about the marriage agreement, because my NDA wouldn’t allow it, but that didn’t matter. To me, I was marrying Bryce because I had fallen for him and would do what it took to help him save his business. Just like he’d do what it took to make me feel supported for the rest of this pregnancy.
Rei seemed more concerned than shocked by the end. “You’re not marrying him for financial reasons, right?”
There wasn’t a hint of judgement in her voice, which made it easy for me to say, “I mean, that’s how it started, like I said, but it’s more than that now.”
Rei set the gift aside and held my hand. “I know I’m usually joking with you, but I need you to know I’m one hundred percent serious when I say this. I will help you with this baby. Food, rent, clothes, anything. You will not be destitute by any means if you don’t go through with this.”
“You mean that?” I asked her. She worked as a janitor. She couldn’t be making much more money than me. And at least Glamma had a little social security coming in to help with the bills.
She nodded. “Money is not an issue.”
I arched an eyebrow. “You have a rich uncle or something I don’t know about?”
