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All because I had a whirlwind fling with the wrong guy three years ago, and now he’s back, telling me he might want to be a dad after all.

My phone rings and Travis’s name flashes across the screen like a warning, setting off alarm bells ringing in my ears. If only I could actually do something to protect myself.

I let the call go to voicemail before taking a deep breath and calling him back.

“Lily.” As always, Travis’s voice lacks feeling, making it easier to give him the same lackluster response.

“Travis.”

“Still screening calls, I see.”

“No, actually. I wasn’t ready to have this conversation.”

“And you are now?”

“I’ll never be ready, but it’s not going away, is it?” My pitch rises in hope, but Travis’s audible scoff rips that dream from my grasp. It’s not going away. He’s not going away. Ever.

Travis and I met the summer after I graduated from college. I was twenty-two and he was weeks away from his thirtieth birthday. We only spent two months together, but while it blew by at lightning speed, it was enough time to completely change the trajectory of my life.

It wasn’t love. I wasn’t even falling. I was fascinated with his world, and I wanted to get to know him better.

A week of talking led to a romance that ended in me trembling in a medical clinic, my future uncertain, while Travis was booking the next flight out of there.

I had plans to be a journalist. I was going to travel the world for a few years before deciding where to settle. Until two words changed everything for me…and nothing for him. “You’re pregnant.”

I’ll admit I was distraught at first, but the second Ava was born, my world shifted, my priorities changed, and she became my everything. Her birth was the beginning of the amazing life I have now.

And it’s all about to change. Again.

“How’s it going to work, Trav? You live in New York. Ava and I live here.”

“It’s a three-hour flight from New York to New Orleans. We’ll get Ava an airline loyalty card, and she can rack up some points traveling back and forth.”

“I hope you’re joking.”

“I am. I can afford the flights without the points.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“I know. But what other options do we have? You seem pretty content to stay there, and I sure as shit don’t want to leave New York. My whole life is here.”

“Your whole life?”

“Except Ava, obviously.”

I roll my eyes, my expression mocking as I silently repeat obviously in my head. If only I could throw a childish tantrum and demand he change his mind. “Why now?”

“What does that mean?”

“Why do you want to be a bigger part of Ava’s life now specifically?”

Travis sighs heavily, and it almost sounds like a hint of emotion seeps through. “I miss her, Lil. We had a great time when I was there for her birthday. I hate myself for not bonding with her sooner, but for the first time, we really connected. I want her in my life.”

“She is in your life.”

“Hardly. I see her twice a year.”

“Which is exactly what you asked for. How often do you want to see her? You work crazy hours. I usually have to schedule calls with your personal assistant. How are you going to take care of her when she’s there?”