31 - Haley
31
Haley
Ugh, I wish he had kissed me .
That wasn’t how I thought the lunch would end when we’d agreed to meet, but now it was all I could think about.
Lucas had grown up.
He was totally different, yet totally the same. It was like someone had waved a magic wand and deleted all the things I disliked about him, while deepening all of his attractive features. It almost felt too good to be true, and it left me desperately wanting to see him again.
There was just one complication: Bran.
If my son wasn’t in the picture, I would have asked Lucas out on a date. We could try to rekindle things. After all, we knew we still had the same sexual chemistry. It made me wonder if we were emotionally and intellectually compatible in ways we weren’t seven years ago.
Bran made that impossible.
I’d made the decision to raise him alone because I never expected to see Lucas again. It made perfect sense back then, and I still felt strongly that it was the right choice at the time.
Now that he was back in my life, though, that lie of omission was more glaring. And it got worse the more time I spent with Lucas without telling him the truth.
“I don’t know what you want me to tell you,” Sara said while we sat on her porch that night after baseball practice. I’d already put Bran down for bed—it was easier since he began playing baseball, the sport wearing him down so much that he didn’t protest against bedtime.
“You’re supposed to have the answer,” I complained. “You’re the one who convinced me to hook up with Lucas again.”
“I did no such thing!” she protested.
“You’re right,” I said dryly. “You didn’t convince me. You stole my phone and initiated the entire thing while I was in the bathroom!”
She smiled happily. “I regret nothing!”
“That’s good. Now tell me what I should do.”
“I honestly don’t know,” Sara admitted. “If you’re going to let him back into your life, then he deserves to know about Bran. So, the way I see it, you either need to tell him about his son, or cut off all contact with Lucas entirely.”
“Well I definitely don’t want to cut off contact.”
My sister gestured. “Well, then there you go. You have to tell him.” She pointed at me. “And before you say anything, yes, he might react poorly. He might be upset that you kept it from him. He might want nothing to do with Bran. But you’ll never know if you don’t tell him. Until you do that, you’re going to be stuck in limbo.”
“I don’t like how much sense you’re making,” I muttered.
“I always make this much sense. You just usually don’t like listening.”
“Thanks, little sister,” I teased.
“What about the other two?” Sara asked.
“What about them?”
“At first, you were just having fun. But things are getting complicated. Jordan is Bran’s baseball coach. Now you’re showing Shay a bunch of different properties…”
“Ugh, I know. I didn’t expect them to get tangled up in my life like this.”
“Do you like them?” Sara prodded.
“That’s the really annoying part. I do . Jordan is so wonderful with Bran, and funny to be around. He makes me laugh. And Shay is this incredible lawyer who helps people, yet has enough money to invest in a bunch of rental properties.”
“Okay, so you like them. Now, do you like them enough to start a serious relationship?”
“If it were any of them individually, absolutely!” I answered. “But since it’s happening all at the same time, I don’t know what to do. It’s like when three people try to shove through a doorway at the same time. They just get stuck.”
“Please don’t make jokes about squeezing through tight places,” Sara said, resting her hands on her belly. “I’m three weeks from my due date and starting to worry.”
“Sorry,” I said. “But I don’t know what to do! The last time I really dated around was in college, before I got pregnant with Bran. Back then, everyone seemed so young. They were all boys. But Jordan is a doctor, Lucas is an engineer, and Shay is a lawyer. They’re all men, with jobs and power and responsibility.”
“What a terrible problem to have,” Sara said sarcastically. “You have too many flawless suitors.”
“I promise I’m not complaining,” I said as my phone rang. “One second. This is my boss. Hey, Matt. You’re calling late.”
“Wouldn’t call if it wasn’t important,” my boss replied. “Brenda’s sick and can’t go to the conference in Vegas. I know it’s last minute, but do you want to take her place?”
I stood up and paced around the porch, nodding enthusiastically. “Yes! I’d love to! Remind me of the dates?”
“Flight leaves tomorrow afternoon. You come back Friday. I can get one of the new guys to cover your open house on Friday morning. Sound good?”
I glanced at my sister.
“Let me call you back,” I said.
“That sounded exciting!” Sara said. “What’s going on?”
“My boss wants me to go to a realtor conference in Vegas tomorrow. I would get back Friday,” I said. “But I can’t dump Bran on you last minute like that.”
“Why not?” Sara replied. “I was already going to pick him up tomorrow and Thursday while you worked.”
“That’s different than watching him for three straight days without a break,” I insisted. “And you’re almost ready to pop.”
“I’ll be fine. Wouldn’t this be a huge career move for you? You’ve been complaining about how they need to send you to more things.”
“Yeah… but…”
Sara stood up and shook her head. “I understand your reluctance to accept even more help. But you have to go. You’re just lucky this is happening now, instead of next month when I’ll be home with the twins! Besides, Harper is working from home both days. He can help.”
I allowed myself to feel excited. “Okay. But I’m going to insist on helping even more when the twins are born.”
She raised an eyebrow at me. “I’m counting on it, Hales.”
My phone rang again. I thought it was my boss calling me back, but it was a different number. One I had already saved in my phone.
“This is the Worthington Academy,” I told Sara.
“They’re calling this late?” she looked at her watch.
“Here comes the rejection,” I muttered. Then I answered the phone. “Haley Mercer speaking.”
“Ms. Mercer! My name is Juliana Vortsch, with the Worthington Academy. I’m sorry to disturb you so late, but I was wondering if you and your son would be able to come in for an interview next week.”
I blinked in surprise. “An interview?”
“Yes, an interview is the next step of the admissions process,” she explained. “After reviewing your application and reference letters, we think Bran might be an excellent candidate for admission at our school.”
I had to force myself not to jump up and down with excitement.
“Yes of course, we’re available any time!” I replied. But something she’d said confused me. “I submitted an application, but what reference letter are you referring to?”
“The one from Mr. Laramie and his firm,” she replied. “That letter bumped your son’s application to the top of the pile.”
I stared off in confusion.
Shay put in a good word for me?