My phone buzzed in my pocket as I reached the bottom step and saw Liv punching out in the back hallway of Harrison’s.
“Mommy!” Kaylee yelled, running to her. Olivia bent down and wrapped her in a hug, her smile so radiant that I had a hard time lookingaway. She looked at me, her smile filling her face and her chocolate-brown eyes showing genuine affection that made my heart skip a beat.
Friendly affection, Jace. Calm down.
My eyes roamed over her quickly. I tried not to linger when it came to stealing glances at Olivia, but I couldn’t stop myself from wanting to drink her in for a moment before she was gone for the night. She stood up and hoisted Kaylee on one hip, the small, silver hoop in her nose catching the light as she tossed her long, brown waves over one shoulder. She wore jeans and a low-cut, black tank top, a strip of her stomach visible between the waistband and the hem.
“Did you have fun with Jace?” Olivia asked Kaylee.
“Yep. He read me five books,” she said, smiling wide with excitement.
Olivia chuckled and smiled at me. “She has you wrapped around her finger.”
I ran a hand through my slicked-back, brown curls. “Yes, she absolutely does.”
Because she looks exactly like you.
I waved to Jackson, the manager and chef, who passed us on his way to the kitchen. Jackson had been running the bar for Adrian for more than twenty years and made some of the best food I’d ever eaten. I’d had my fair share of free meals after returning home from late nights at the office and was going to miss his cooking almost as much as I’d miss the bartender who’d no longer be waiting for me after a long day.
My phone buzzed again, and I pulled it out of my pocket, seeing my cousin’s name on the screen. I furrowed my brow as I started reading his message, quickly catching myself smiling broadly at the phone.
Leo:Soph’s pregnant! We’re having a party at my parents’ condo in a few weeks when I get back from my away stretch.
Leo:Dude! It’s been three minutes. My wife is PREGNANT! Pay attention.
I fired off a quick response.
Me:Congratulations, little dude. I’m happy for you both. I’ll be there. Give her a big hug for me.
“Everything okay?” Olivia asked, looking between me and the phone.
“Yeah,” I said, tucking my phone into my back pocket. “It was Leo. Sophia’s pregnant.”
“Oh, good for them!” she said. “Tell him I said congratulations.”
Olivia knew our family well since Harrison’s was a family business and all of us traipsed in and out of this bar on the regular. Leo and I were more like brothers than cousins, and he came up to my apartment to hang out more than anyone else in my life—a little less so now with his busy schedule, but still more than anyone else. Leo was entering his fourth season as a professional hockey player for the Bruins and Sophia was a romance author he’d met in college. They’d been married for two years, and Olivia took great pride in being the one who’d served them at this bar the day they’d met.
I wasn’t even remotely surprised Sophia was pregnant. They both claimed to want half a dozen kids—no, thank you, two, maybe three tops—and Leo had a way-less-subtle-than-he-thought breeding kink. Lucky for him, I had enough kinks that I didn’t even bat an eye or feelthe need to point out to him how obvious his was to everyone around him. Needless to say, I’d expected him to beveryexcited about her first pregnancy.
“I will pass along your congratulations,” I said.
“Mommy,” Kaylee cut in with a pout. “Jace didn’t let me have soda.”
Olivia smirked at me with one eyebrow raised. “So, youdoknow how to say no to her.”
I shrugged playfully. “Once in a while.”
“Jace knows it’s already past your bedtime, honey,” Olivia said to Kaylee. “We’re going to go home now and then it’s straight to bed for you.”
“Aww, but Jace isn’t going to bed,” Kaylee whined and gestured at me.
Olivia’s eyes roamed over my body, and I felt my temperature rise several degrees. It was clear I hadn’t planned to sit around the house tonight. She knew my at-home attire consisted of gray sweatpants and white T-shirts, not ripped jeans and tight shirts. After a long day at the office in a suit and tie, I usually wanted to wear the most comfortable clothing possible at home.
Putting effort into my look meant I was likely going out with an intention to hook up. Which is precisely what I was doing tonight.
“Do you have a date?” Olivia asked, looking disappointed. I never hid that I went out and hooked up from her. In fact, I usually told her about my hookups because they were always meaningless and talking to her was the easiest thing in the world. Information poured out of me way too easily when we were together and she seemed to enjoy hearing about her single friend’s adventures since she hadn’t dated since Kaylee was born. There was a small part of me that hoped that when she diddecide to start dating, my openness would prompt her to give me a heads up so I wasn’t blindsided when she fell in love with someone else.
I got the sense that she wished she could go out too. She was usually home with Kaylee in the mornings and then her mom took Kaylee during her shifts at the bar. Occasionally, I’d pick up Kaylee from Olivia’s mom when I got out of work and bring her here to hang out. Either way, Olivia usually left the bar and went straight home to put Kaylee to bed before doing it all again the next day. She was a devoted, single mom, making it all work, and leaving herself no time to enjoy her own life in the process.
