Chapter 28
Aubrey
Per usual, Jamie and I have back-to-back meetings all morning.
I’ve been on edge for the past hour because he mentioned he might have big news later.
I don’t do well with surprises. It doesn’t help that I’m exhausted from not getting enough sleep.
Then again, it’s my own fault. When a man insists a few orgasms will help you relax, you shouldn’t listen to him.
What was supposed to be a little bit of oral fun turned into hours of him buried inside me.
No sleep was had. How he’s able to function on so little shut-eye should be studied.
I’m about to grab an early lunch when there’s an alert in my personal email from my doctor.
I can’t click on it fast enough, hoping it’s the results for genetic testing and the gender of my baby.
I squeal when I see it’s now available online and log into my account on my phone, clicking through until it appears.
Reading through it, my hand flies to my mouth. “It’s a girl,” I whisper to myself, choking on a sob.
I swipe away and call Jamie. It rings three times, and there’s a good chance he’s in a meeting or on another call. I’m about to hang up when he answers, “What are we having?”
“How do you even know that I got the results back?”
“You didn’t?”
“Maybe…” I bite my lip to stifle my laugh. “Seems you’re going to be outnumbered.”
“It’s a girl? I fucking knew it,” he beams.
Of course, I roll my eyes. “You didn’t know anything. But, yes, we’re having a girl.”
“So what color are we painting the nursery? That green you were looking at or the lavender one?”
I pull the phone away from my ear and put it on speaker.
“One second, I’m going to pull up the color.
” After searching the website, I screenshot the sage green I’ve had my eye on and send it to him.
It’s earthy and I’m sure Jamie will add a trillion plants in the room when it’s finished. “This one.”
“That’s perfect.”
“So, what have you been up to today?”
“Remember how I said I might have news? Well, I do.”
“Oh?”
“I’m meeting with Alejandro in two weeks,” he hedges. My jaw drops, and when I don’t reply, he asks, “Are you still there?” with a little fear in his voice I’ve never heard before.
“Yeah, sorry, I’m just surprised. When did this happen? Is this about a green card?”
“No, actually. I reached out to his assistant last week to set up a meeting. They didn’t get back to me until yesterday, and when they asked what it was regarding, I told them it was personal.
Alejandro called me himself about an hour ago.
I explained everything to him and he said he’d be here in-person while you’re in Vegas and wanted to meet me. ”
“Oh my God, that’s incredible! Are you sure you don’t want me to stay behind?”
“It’s Olivia’s wedding,” he chuckles. “You’re not going to miss it, but I’ll admit, I’m a little nervous.”
“I understand. If it helps, I’ve met him a few times, and we’ve worked on several projects together over the past year.”
“What if he’s an asshole?”
“He’s not,” I laugh. “You’ll like him. He’s a good man with a big heart. He truly loves his city. But more than that, I think it’s very telling that he’s willing to drive here to meet you so soon.”
“Well, I still think your news is better than mine.”
“I could’ve told you it’s a boy, and you’d be just as excited.”
“True,” he muses with a small laugh.
One of my assistants pings me that we need to meet with Olivia in a few. “Sorry, I have to go, but do you want to grab dinner before heading home?”
“Of course. Love you, mama.”
“Love you too.”
We hang up, and it hits me that it was mere hours ago that we said it for the first time, but it comes so naturally.
It didn’t matter how hard I tried to deny it, I’ve been in love with him since he moved here.
Probably before that. Cradling my belly that’s only showing a little, I take a moment to ruminate on how we got here.
I’d given up on finding love, and not only did I find a man who loves me as much as I love him—okay, I’m pretty sure he loves me more—but now we have an adorable little pup and a baby on the way.
Ever since the first ultrasound, he’s referred to this baby as ours, even knowing he’s not the biological father.
Part of me wonders if this little bubble we’re in is going to pop; things are going a little too well.
Before leaving to meet with Olivia, I send a quick text to Jamie, letting him know we’ll be celebrating with white-girl tacos tonight. He doesn’t reply, likely annoyed because he is definitely the better cook, but I don’t read into it, and make my way to Livy’s office.
When I enter, there’s a woman I recognize but can’t quite place. With a wide smile, she offers her hand. “Ms. Raine, it’s such a pleasure to finally meet you! Westley has told me so much about you.”
It takes me a second to place who she is, but then I share her smile.
“Fiona?” She nods, and I release her hand to give her a hug.
“You’re basically family, even if we just met.
” I’ve never been much of a hugger, but Fiona’s husband has been Olivia’s head of security for years.
He’s always spoken so fondly of her, and the only reason we haven’t met before now is because she’s insanely busy as one of the top event planners in California.
“We’re just going over the last of the wedding details,” she explains as we take a seat opposite Olivia.
There’s a small cake and a charcuterie board filled with what appears to be toppings for nachos. Surprising, but it is Tuesday, after all. After tacos, nachos are easily my second favorite Americanized Mexican food. With this much sugar and salt, I’ll need to hydrate.
As I open one of the water bottles, Fiona continues, “The hotel was so kind to send this in overnight. These are the samples of the wedding cake you picked out and a small version of what they would be serving after the ceremony as the requested appetizers while you’re taking pictures.
The only thing that won’t be exact is the meat and beans because I had to heat them up in your microwave.
Is the guest count still sitting at eight? ”
“I think so. Isaac said he’s waiting to hear back from two people. Aubrey, are you sure you don’t want a plus-one?” Livy asks, and I picked the wrong time to take a sip of water, sputtering a cough. “I saw something this morning about you having a new boyfriend.”
“It’s… new.” I hate lying to her, but until Jamie and I discuss how to tell everyone, I don’t want to jump the gun.
He wouldn’t be able to come with me anyway, since he’ll be meeting his dad—another fact I’ll need to sit on.
There’s a good chance Isaac has told Livy things, but until I know for sure, I want to keep my relationship with Jamie to myself, especially in front of Fiona.
“Well why don’t we shift the count to ten guests, just in case.”
My heart sinks. I’d give anything to have Jamie come with me to Vegas, but between having to secure a pet sitter and meeting his father, there’s no way he’d be able to swing it. While it’ll only be a weekend away from him, I’ll miss waking up in his arms and snuggles with Angel.
Maybe I can leave after the reception and surprise Jamie by returning early?
“Earth to Aubrey,” Livy chuckles, pulling me from my thoughts.
“Sorry, yes?”
“We’re finalizing the room reservations and want to confirm you’d still like a king bed,” Fiona repeats, though I didn’t hear her the first time.
“I was just thinking that as much as I’d love to spend the whole weekend in Vegas with you guys, the heat is going to be a bit much for me.
” I place my hand on my stomach, even if my baby girl isn’t the reason I want to leave early.
“I’ll take care of my own room reservations, and I’ll coordinate my departing flight with yours. ”
“Whatever you need. I’m just happy you’ll be there,” Livy insists. They finalize the plans, and I help myself to a serving of nachos. When Fiona is done, she leaves Olivia and me alone, and the second the door shuts, Livy begins her interrogation. “Okay, so who is the new guy?”
“I really want to tell you, but I don’t want to jinx things.”
“Bree, we tell each other everything.”
“I know,” I sigh. “I’ll talk to him about it tonight, but I wanted to wait until after your wedding.”
“He knows you’re pregnant?”
Nodding, I reply, “Yeah, and he wants to be involved.”
“What about Jamie? I thought the two of you were really connecting? Aren’t you basically co-parenting his new dog?”
“I, uh… yeah, we are. Hey, I’m sorry to do this, but I need to get a bit of work done and book my flight. Can we catch up later?”
She smiles, but it doesn’t reach her eyes. “Of course.”
I grab my bag and hustle out of her office. As much as I want to admit the guy in question is actually Jamie, I really want to wait until after her wedding—she should be the center of attention, not me. Once I’m in my own office, I pull out my phone and message Jamie.
I lied to Olivia today.
Jamie
Why? What about?
Us.
She asked about the photo and I kind of froze up. I told her I’m seeing someone and she assumed it wasn’t you. I didn’t correct her. I also didn’t want to explain why you can’t be at the wedding.
You could’ve told her. I wouldn’t have cared.
It’s your news to share.
Our news.
You know I’m rolling my eyes right now.
I’d expect nothing less. Was she excited to find out you’re having a girl?
Fuck!
I didn’t tell her. I was so stressed out about everything that I completely forgot.
Why were you stressed? You know what the doctor said about keeping it to a minimum.
I didn’t want her to judge me about us being together.
A second later, there’s an incoming call from him, and I answer, “Hello?”
“Are you embarrassed to be with me?”
“No! It’s nothing like that. If anything you should be embarrassed being with me. I just wanted to wait until the wedding was over; she deserves the attention, not me.”
“Aubrey,” he sighs, “you shouldn’t be lying to your best friend.”
“I know, but it’s only for a few weeks. If you’re okay with it, I’ll tell her before I leave Vegas.”
“You could tell her right now, and I’d be more than okay with it. I was just hoping we wouldn’t have to sneak around anymore.”
I groan, hating how he’s right. “I know, but Isaac and Olivia have proven themselves to be meddlers. She'll probably start planning the wedding the second I tell her it’s you. It’s better this way so she can focus on work and her own wedding.
” He doesn't say anything, so I offer, “I’ll be done around six today. Would you be okay starting dinner before I get home?”
“Of course. I’ll be done a little earlier. As much as I love your white-girl tacos—as you call them—I’ll stop by the store and pick up something to make.”
“Admit it. You hate them.”
“No,” he replies a little too quickly.
“Whatever you make, can you make it spicy? The baby has been craving it.”
“I think you’ve been craving it,” he chuckles. “But I’ll take your request into consideration.”
We hang up, and all I can think is how lucky I am to have Jamie. I want to shout it from the rooftops that he’s mine, but we need to be smart about it. The last thing either of us needs is it to leak before the wedding and taint Olivia’s reputation.
It’s only two weeks. I can do this.