Chapter 28 Piper
PIPER
I wake up to sunlight peeking through the edges of the curtains and the warm weight of Felix’s arm across my waist. For a moment, I lie still and listen to his breathing. I want to memorize this moment.
I could get used to this.
The thought would have sent me into a rumination spiral a month ago, but this morning I’m okay letting it just feel right. Like I might be done running because I’ve found something—someone—worth standing still for.
I love Felix Barlowe.
I admitted it to myself last night while he was tracing patterns on my shoulder in the dark, and now in the soft light of morning, it remains true.
I love his terrible jokes and his sourdough obsession and the way he looks at Ellie like he’d go to the moon and back for her.
The way he makes me feel like I can be both independent and vulnerable enough to let someone hold me.
“You’re thinking too loud,” he mumbles against my neck.
I smile. “How do you know I’m thinking?”
“Your breathing changes.” He turns me to face him. “Plus, you get a cute little line between your eyebrows.”
“Wrinkles are not cute.”
“Yours are.” He kisses the spot in question. “What’s going on in that clever brain, Hart?”
I could tell him. The words are sitting on my tongue. Instead, I tilt up my face and kiss him, slow and sweet, trying to communicate what I’m feeling without saying it out loud.
When we break apart, his eyes are dark and his mouth curves into a smile that feels like it’s just for me.
“Good morning to you, too,” he says.
“Morning.” I trace the line of his jaw. “What time is your workout with Tyler?”
He groans. “Nine. It’s leg day. I’m thinking about canceling.”
“Don’t be a wuss, Barlowe.”
“Wuss my ass.” In a flash, he’s on top of me, pinning me to the mattress in the most delicious way. His arms cradle my head, the heat of him sending need spiraling through me. “I’d rather get in a workout right here.” He leans in and nuzzles my neck.
I laugh, but it quickly turns into a moan thanks to the way he’s nipping along my jaw. “I’ll be here for your cardio workout later.”
“Promise?”
“Promise.”
“What if I like morning cardio?” he asks, the words tickling my skin as he presses his erection into my belly.
“I guess I’m due for a workout,” I agree with a grin.
The monitor on my dresser crackles, and the sound of Ellie babbling to herself the way she does upon waking fills the room.
I groan softly. “The bean has other plans.”
He smooths my hair away from my face. “Nighttime cardio is good, too.” He kisses me again, like he can’t help himself, then rises from the bed.
We move through the morning in a way that already feels familiar. He makes coffee and pours me a juice while I get Ellie up and changed. We all crowd into the kitchen together, Ellie in her highchair, smearing yogurt on her face, while Felix toasts sourdough, and I cut up fresh fruit.
Felix hasn’t promised me anything or made any grand declaration. But the ease of us—the way we fit so effortlessly—it’s too good to be one-sided. I have to believe he feels it too.
He laces up his training shoes after breakfast, kisses me goodbye like it’s the most natural thing in the world, then crouches down to Ellie’s level as she whips up something in her play kitchen. “Save me some food, okay?”
“Fee go?”
“I’ll be back soon.”
As she throws her arms around his neck, his handsome face softens. His eyes meet mine over her blonde head.
“I’ll be back in a couple of hours,” he says as if I need the reminder.
“We’ll be here.”
I should say it now. I love you. Three simple words.
But he’s already out the door, and it’s just me and Ellie in the quiet house. She runs over and lifts her hands in the air. “Up.”
“Alright, Miss Bean.” I hoist her onto my hip. “What should we do this morning?”
“Blocks.” She points toward the living room where her toys are stacked in one corner. We’re well on our way to creating a block tower that defies the laws of physics and my architectural skill level, when the doorbell rings.
Ellie’s head whips toward the door. “Fee!”
“Not Felix, baby.” I set her down and stand, brushing off my leggings. Probably a delivery.
I pull open the door and find myself face-to-face with a stranger.
She’s maybe mid-fifties, with dark hair cut in a neat bob that curls under at her jawline. She’s wearing pressed khakis and a lavender cardigan that looks expensive. Something about her stiff posture makes me instantly nervous.
“Hi,” I say, trying to keep my voice friendly. “Can I help you?”
The woman’s eyes flick past me into the house, and her face lights up. “Oh, is that Ellie?”
I turn to find the girl toddling toward us, her hand reaching for my leg. She latches onto my pants and peers up at the stranger with those wide brown eyes.
The woman puts her hand to her mouth. “She looks just like Julie did when she was small.”
My stomach drops, the hair on my arms standing on end. “I’m sorry, who—”
“Nancy Harmon.” She extends her hand, and I shake it automatically. Her grip is firm. “I’m Julie’s aunt. Her mother’s sister.”
For a second, I can’t process the words. It’s as if she’s speaking a foreign language.
Julie’s aunt, which makes Nancy Harmon Ellie’s great-aunt.
“I—” My mouth is dry. “Did Felix know you were coming?”
“Not exactly.” Nancy’s smile is apologetic.
“His attorney reached out to me a few weeks ago. I’ll be honest, the news was overwhelming.
It took me some time to return his call.
” She looks at Ellie again, and there’s something raw in her expression.
“But once I did, I couldn’t wait for Felix to have time for an official meeting.
I flew in from Charlotte late last night and drove here this morning. The attorney gave me the address.”
I bend down and scoop Ellie into my arms, holding her against my chest like a shield. “I don’t understand. The attorney gave you this address?”
“He wanted to coordinate a time for me to meet Ellie, but he mentioned he was having trouble reaching Felix.” She glances past me into the house. “Is he here? I’d like to meet him, as well.”
“He’s not.” My heart is pounding so hard I’m surprised she can’t hear it. “He’ll be back soon.”
Nancy nods, and there’s a hope mixed with nervousness in her expression that makes me instantly trust her.
“I know showing up unannounced is unusual. But my sister and I were estranged for years, and I hadn’t seen Julie since she was about Ellie’s age.
” Her voice cracks. “I didn’t even know she’d passed until Felix’s attorney contacted me. ”
Blood rushes to my head like a freight train. “Can you just—” I step back from the door, arms tightening around Ellie. “Can you wait here for a minute?”
She inclines her head. “Of course.”
I close the door too quickly to be polite and carry Ellie into the kitchen. My hands are shaking as I grab my phone from the counter.
“Pi, ’k?” Ellie pats my cheek, and I realize I’m scaring her.
“I’m okay, sweetie.” I force a smile. “Everything’s okay.”
What a damn lie. Things are very much not okay.
I dial Felix’s number, and he picks up on the first ring.
“Hey, Pip. What do you need?” His voice is breathless, like he’s mid-set.
“I need you to explain why you didn’t mention Nancy Harmon to me.”
Complete silence on the other end of the line.
My voice shakes when I continue. “Because she’s standing on my porch wanting to visit her great-niece.”
“Fudge.” The word is G-rated but still comes out like an expletive.
“No.” My laugh is sharp. “Fudge you, Felix. You better get back—” I almost say home, but the word sticks in my throat. This is my home, not his. “Get back here right now.”
I end the call before he can respond and hold onto Ellie, trying to breathe through the panic rising in my chest.
The attorney tracked down Ellie’s great-aunt, and Felix didn’t tell me.
What else hasn’t he told me? Well, that he loved me. And now I know why. Because he’s not planning to stay. Why would he be willing to let Ellie go if he was?
I can’t fall apart right now.
I carry Ellie back to the door and open it. Nancy’s still there, like she’s willing to wait all day.
“I’m sorry,” I say, although I’m not sure what I’m apologizing for. “Please come in.”
Nancy steps inside, and I close the door behind her. She looks around the space at the scattered toys, the coffee table covered in board books, the corner of Ellie’s play kitchen just visible in my kitchen.
“You have a lovely home,” she says.
“Thank you. It was my mother’s.” The words come out automatically. “Can I get you something to drink?”
“Water would be wonderful.”
Nancy follows as I move into the kitchen, and Ellie watches her with wide eyes, a thumb creeping toward her mouth.
“I see so much of her mother in her,” Nancy says softly. “The shape of her eyes and the little cleft in her chin.” She breaks off. “I’m sorry. This must be so strange for you.”
“For both of us.” I pass her a glass of water with a hand that’s steadier than I feel. “Felix should be here soon.”
“I really didn’t mean to ambush anyone.” Nancy takes a sip.
“I know I should have waited for the attorney to set up a proper meeting. But I’ve been thinking about Ellie ever since I got the call.
I had to meet her. My sister and I hadn’t spoken in over twenty years when she passed. I missed everything.”
“Oh.” I don’t know what else to say. This woman has every right to want to know her great-niece. But Felix should have told me. And given that he didn’t, I can’t help but assume the worst about his intentions.
Ellie squirms in my arms, and I set her down. She immediately grabs her favorite stuffed animal from the stuffy basket next to the sofa.
“El’phant,” she announces, holding it up.
“That’s a very nice elephant,” Nancy says with a watery laugh.
Ellie considers this, then toddles over and holds the toy toward the great-aunt she doesn’t even know.
“Oh.” Nancy crouches down. “Is this for me?”
“El’phant,” Ellie repeats, more insistent this time.
Nancy takes the stuffed animal as if the girl has gifted her the Hope Diamond. “Thank you, sweetheart. What’s your elephant’s name?”
Ellie babbles something incomprehensible and pats Nancy’s knee before moving toward the block tower again.
When Nancy looks up at me, tears shimmer in her hazel eyes. “I’m sorry. I promised myself I wouldn’t cry.”
I grab a tissue from the box on the counter and hand it to her. “It’s okay.”
“I always hoped Ellen and I would reconcile someday.” Nancy wipes her eyes. “That I’d get to know Julie again when she was older. I never imagined this.”
The front door bursts open, and Felix strides in, hair damp with sweat and a wildness in his eyes I’ve never seen before.
“How did you find us?” His voice is tight.
“Felix,” I cut in before Nancy can answer. “This is Ellie’s great-aunt, Nancy Harmon, who was sent here by the attorney you hired. The same attorney you’ve apparently been ignoring.”
He runs a hand through his hair but doesn’t deny it.
“Fee!” Ellie squeals, abandoning her blocks and racing toward him as fast as her little legs will carry her.
Felix lifts her into his arms, and she immediately wrinkles her nose. “Stinky Fee.”
He laughs, but there’s no joy in it. He presses a kiss to the top of her head, and I notice how sad his smile is, like he’s already bracing for a loss. Then he sets her back on the floor, and she returns to her blocks like this is still the ordinary day I was so pleased with earlier.
Nancy holds out a hand, and his giant one engulfs hers. “It’s good to meet you in person.”
“You too.” He doesn’t sound like he means it. “I wish the circumstances were different.”
“So do I.”
I watch them size each other up. Two strangers bound together by a little girl who doesn’t understand any of this.
“I think we should talk,” Nancy says when the silence stretches a beat too long.
Felix’s gaze flicks to me. I want to run. I want to grab my keys and drive until I’m so far away that my heart can’t feel the connection I have to this infuriating man. Instead, I plaster on a smile that says everything’s fine. I’m fine. We’re all fine.
I gesture toward the living room. “Let’s sit down.”
Ignoring the awkwardness of the situation, we arrange ourselves with Nancy on the armchair and Felix and me on opposite ends of the couch.
Ellie’s oblivious to all of it, happily playing with her toys like her life isn’t about to change again. But my heart is breaking, because everything has changed.
And Felix didn’t trust me enough to warn me it was coming.