Chapter 45
BILLIE
Lloyd’s during the daytime carries a very different vibe to how I’ve seen it at night. The place feels more like a luxury restaurant, only with live sports on the screens above the bar.
Taking a bite of Caesar salad, I tip my head at Blake as she sits in her stroller, mesmerized by the soccer game in front of her.
“Kendra has a hundred dollars on Blake playing for the New York Storm by the time she’s eighteen. She and Jenna want me to sign her up for their soccer program as soon as she turns five.”
Taking a sip of water, Emmett sets his glass back down on the table.
The second I told him that I’d accepted an internship with Morgan Jones, he has been desperate to take me out and celebrate.
Easier said than done when trying to fit in a few hours around playoff games, endless team briefings, and practices at every hour of the day.
“I can personally see her following in her mommy’s footsteps and ruling the world, one court case at a time.”
I snort out a laugh, still high from meeting Felicity and Kate at Rise Up a week ago.
Reaching across, I go to steal a cherry tomato from his plate when Emmett catches my hand in his, bringing my knuckles to his mouth.
He kisses them gently, never taking his eyes away from mine. “I’m seriously so damn proud of you, Bill. You deserve all the good things that are coming your way.”
“I honestly can’t wait to have my own money,” I say when he releases my fingers.
Emmett clasps his hands under his chin, expression pensive. I kept the money he gifted to Dad, but he knows I’ve only ever wanted to pay my own bills and not lean on others.
“I wanted to talk to you about finances and get your opinion on something. But maybe we can put a pin in that conversation until we get back to my place.”
Intrigue and excitement buzz through my body.
Tonight will be the first night I’ve stayed over at Emmett’s penthouse in way too long.
Finally, a night where we can put Blake to bed, and neither one of us has anything early scheduled the following morning.
God bless Coach Morgan for giving the boys a rest day tomorrow.
I quirk a playful brow at my boyfriend. “Sounds ominous.”
He just chuckles, laughter fading when he notices that I’m no longer looking at him, but over his shoulder.
Emmett turns in his chair, fixated on my dad as he takes a seat at the bar and orders a drink, eyes glued to the soccer game.
I know that other than a mutual interest in classic cars, Emmett and Dad would frequently catch live sports, and so seeing him show up alone must feel a painful kind of weird.
“Do you think he’s noticed us?” Emmett asks.
I shrug and take another bite of salad. I’ve seen and spoken to Dad when they’ve cared for Blake, but we haven’t uttered a word about Emmett. Mom was right when she said that he would need more time.
When Dad briefly glances in our direction, his eyes burn into the back of Emmett’s head.
I don’t need to be a mind reader to figure out that he’s still as mad as he was weeks ago.
Not that Emmett needs to know that. I guarantee he’s sitting here, thinking over ways he can break the ice and make everything right again.
Pushing his plate of food away, Emmett runs a stressed hand through his hair. “Maybe now that Freya has calmed down, she has had an influence on Scott?” He inconspicuously thumbs over his shoulder. “Is he still sitting there, or has he left?”
“He’s still sitting there,” I reply.
Dad’s eyes remain lasered on Emmett’s back. The tendons in his jaw flex as he accepts a beer from the bartender and takes a large pull.
Emmett shakes his head slowly. “I didn’t think it through, bringing us here, or even register that Scott could show up, unannounced. Lloyd’s was a place where we’d frequently catch the games.”
The way he refers to their friendship in the past tense breaks my heart.
This time, I take Emmett’s hand in mine, fingers stroking his palm. “And maybe, one day, you will watch a game together again or hit up a classic car show.”
I flick my eyes back to Dad. Bumping into him in here was a total coincidence, but maybe it was also a sign from the universe. Emmett thinks that this is all his fault, but honestly, I’m fifty percent of this relationship, too, and maybe the time has arrived for me to tackle things head-on.
After all, at the sight of us having lunch together, Dad hasn’t stormed straight out of the bar, and that can only be a good omen …
Right?
“Is Blake due for a diaper change?” Emmett pulls my attention to him.
I nod once and push back my chair, unhooking Blake’s change bag from her stroller.
Emmett rounds the table, lifting Blake into his arms. “Let me take this one, Mama. The male restrooms have a change table, and B doesn’t mind her daddy taking charge in the diaper department.”
He sets a soft kiss against her forehead, and my heart detonates.
Dad watches Emmett’s every move as he heads for the restroom, and I pick up my purse and approach the bar, rehearsing what I’m going to say right up until the point where I take the seat next to him.
In the end, it’s a long moment before either of us speaks. Dad is watching but not really absorbing the soccer game as it heads into halftime.
“Daddy Emmett sure is taking to the role like a duck to water.” His tone drips with sarcasm, and all I can do is respond with facts.
“He’s incredible with Blake, and she loves him too.”
At the use of the L-word, Dad’s eyes meet mine before they’re back on the TV.
Sarcasm is replaced with disdain when he asks, “Is he still giving you money?”
“You make it sound like he’s buying access to me and my daughter when you couldn’t be further from the truth,” I challenge, done with the passive-aggressive way this conversation has started.
“That’s precisely what he’s doing, Bill,” Dad volleys back.
I huff out a despondent breath and ask the bartender for a Diet Coke.
“With the way you’re carrying on right now, it’s almost like you never knew Emmett before you found out about us dating.”
He winces as I finish up my sentence, taking another mouthful of beer, likely to wash away reality.
“I didn’t know him before,” he argues. “Sometimes, it takes years for people to show you their true colors, no matter how well you thought you knew them. Look at Maria.”
Anger swells in my gut. “Emmett is nothing like Maria, and you know it. That’s a really unfair comparison to make. And a really hurtful one too,” I tag on.
He just scoffs at that, finally turning to look at me.
Maybe it’s the bar lighting, but Dad’s face is way more drawn than the last time I saw him a week ago.
Just like Mom in my apartment, he looks like he’s merely going through the motions of life, no longer thriving in the close relationships he once had.
Including with me and Emmett. I’m desperate to wrap my arms around his large frame, like he has done so many times with me, and whisper a promise that everything will be okay.
And I would, if I thought he would listen.
“You want to know what’s hurtful? Finding out that your friend has betrayed you in the worst way possible and pulled your only daughter and her baby into his post-divorce midlife crisis.”
I shake my head at him, and he nods back.
“Mark my words, sweetheart. In six months, this will all end in disaster. Freya and I will be the ones picking up the pieces of your life.”
“My life is going great,” I clarify. “I just got offered a position as a legal intern at a friend’s law firm.”
Swallowing another mouthful, he sets his glass back down. “Freya told me all about it. I’m happy for you.”
Everything, even landing my dream job, is overshadowed by this goddamn mess that no one seems able to fix.
I gaze over at my dad as he watches the halftime commercials.
Nothing is ever going to be the same again, is it? The devastating damage Emmett feared is being perpetuated by my stubborn dad, who won’t even hold a reasonable conversation with me, let alone his former best friend.
“Have you heard from Tucker?”
“Why would it matter if I had?” I snap, right on the edge of losing my cool.
He lifts a single shoulder. “He’s Blake’s real father, and I wanted to check that he was at least keeping his end of the bargain.”
My parents don’t have a clue about Tucker’s visit to Brooklyn, and right now, that’s the way I intend to keep it.
If Dad caught wind that Tucker had asked me to get back with him—even if it was for all the wrong reasons—Dad would likely try to set me back up with my ex, his deluded mind convinced that Tucker and his dreadful family would be a better match for me and Blake than the man I’m actually in love with.
“He pays the bare minimum, and that’s where his efforts end. Emmett is way more of a real father than Tucker will ever be.”
My words bounce off Dad’s impenetrable armor.
“Bill?”
We both spin around at the sound of Emmett’s voice.
With Blake in his arms, he points toward the exit, eyes briefly flashing to Dad’s. “I’m going to take Blake back to the car and wait for you there.”
“Sure,” I confirm, my voice barely able to form a single word without it wobbling.
Emmett rolls his lips together as Dad smiles at his granddaughter. This whole situation is heart-wrenchingly fucked up.
“Hey, Scott.”
Dad doesn’t even look at Emmett, let alone return his greeting.
It’s the final straw—or maybe nail in the coffin—as I jump down from the stool and hook my purse over my shoulder.
Turning back to Dad, I set a single kiss against his cheek.
“I love you with every piece of my heart, so please, don’t let pride and bitterness stand in the way of the truth.
When you’re ready to talk, I’ll always be here, and when you want to see Blake, I’ll always bring her over to see you.
But for now, I need to step away from our relationship because, clearly, this level of anger isn’t doing either of us any good. ”