And there was no way to get these negative feelings out of my head. What I needed were my girls. Fast.
I sent out an S.O.S., asking Delaney to bring the coffee. I wasn’t at all surprised when Josie ran through the door not two minutes later, huffing and bending over, gasping for air.
“That was fast.”
“You—needed—here—water…”
I rushed to the back and grabbed her a bottle, thrusting it in front of her just seconds later. She gulped it down, holding her tummy the whole time. By the time she was done with her water, she was finally breathing normally again.
“Should you be that out of breath from running across the street?”
She shook her head. “I ran out of the shop, then remembered I left it unlocked. Then I ran out again, but had to go back because I didn’t flip the sign, telling customers I’d be back soon. Then I ran back again. It was a whole thing.”
“Clearly.”
“So? What was so urgent?”
“Well, I’m not going to tell you, then repeat it when Delaney gets here.”
Her jaw dropped in shock. “You mean to tell me that I ran all the way over here multiple times, only for you to hold out on me?”
“I’m not holding out on you,” I said, rolling my eyes.
“You won’t tell me until Delaney gets here. By definition, you’re holding out on me.”
“Because I don’t want to tell it twice!”
“You’ve known me longer!” she argued. “I was your friend long before Delaney came along. I bet she doesn’t even know your deepest, darkest secrets.”
“Neither do you,” I smirked.
She tried to argue, but nothing good came to mind. Finally, she just sat in a huff, crossing her arms over her chest as she waited impatiently for Delaney to arrive. Which she did, five minutes later.
“Coffee, coffee, and caramel latte, extra whip,” she said, handing the last to Josie.
Grumbling, Josie grabbed the coffee. “Fine, I forgive you and you’re officially in the club.”
“Um…what club? And why am I forgiven? What did I do?”
“Nothing,” I jumped in. “She’s just pregnant cranky.”
“Okay, now that we have coffee and Delaney is here, tell us what’s so urgent!” Josie pushed.
A smile crept over my face as I remembered the horrible date I was waiting for last night. “Well, I went to the bar to meet a date.”
Josie’s face fell. “Oh. So, this isn’t about Ryder?”
“And I was really not in the mood for a date after the way my day went. And yes, I realize that I was hung up on Ryder.”
“So, it is about Ryder,” Josie beamed.
“But I didn’t want to wait around for a man who returned to New York. I mean, that would be stupid.”
“Not as stupid as dragging out this story!” Delaney snapped.
But I didn’t rush it.
“So, I went to the bar, and while I was waiting for my date, a very unexpected surprise showed up.”
