Caleb
Bright balloons lined the fence, superhero banners fluttering in the warm afternoon breeze. A massive inflatable slide towered in one corner while tables covered in blue and red tablecloths overflowed with superhero plates, cups, and decorations that screamed Lucas.
Children in masks and capes ran across the grass, their laughter mixing with the music, drifting softly through the yard.
At the centre of it all stood a long table stacked with gifts, and right in the middle sat a tall Superman cake frosted in bright blue and red. The familiar “S” emblem gleamed across the top while candles flickered in front of Lucas.
Everyone around him had already started singing Happy Birthday.
Wait a minute…
Was that Karl? Elle’s husband?
My grip tightened instinctively around the gift bag in my hand.
If Karl was here, that meant Elle was here too, which meant Jiya had stayed in contact with them this entire time.
How the hell had my PI missed that?
I stepped into the backyard just as Jiya leaned toward Lucas and said, “Don’t forget to make a wish, baby.”
Beside her, Emma stood on her toes with frosting already smeared across her cheek, her tiny fingers inching toward the cake the second nobody was looking.
Lucas squeezed his eyes shut tightly before leaning forward to blow out the candles while cheers erupted around him.
Then he cut the first slice.
He fed Emma first.
Then Jiya.
And the moment he turned toward the entrance, he froze.
“My wish came true!” he shouted suddenly, staring at me. “My wish came true!”
Before I could even react, he came running toward me with frosting still covering his fingers.
Heat radiated through my chest when I saw him running toward me.
I barely had time to drop to one knee before he slammed into me, throwing his arms around my neck. I wrapped my arms around him automatically, holding him steady as his excitement nearly knocked us both over.
A quiet breath escaped me.
I had wanted to be there earlier, to see him walk into the surprise party, but the disappointment disappeared the second I held him.
I pulled back slightly, keeping one hand on his shoulder while reaching for the gift bags beside me.
“Are these all for me?” Lucas asked, his eyes widening.
I smiled and handed him one of the bags. “And for Emma.”
That was when I looked up and saw Jiya walking toward me.
The pale yellow dress moved softly around her legs as she crossed the yard, the late afternoon sunlight catching against her skin and hair. Brown ankle boots completed the look, effortless in a way that made my pulse stumble anyway.
“You came?”
“Yes,” I replied, standing up and forcing myself to look away before my thoughts betrayed me.
Because the truth was, there was nowhere else I wanted to be.
Greg’s voice immediately echoed in the back of my mind.
This is a mistake. You’re just making excuses to be around her because you’re still in love with her.
Maybe he was right.
I still did not know what this was between Jiya and me. I only knew that every time I tried to stay away from her, I found myself coming right back.
And that terrified me.
“I bought some gifts for Emma too,” I said.
“You didn’t need to.”
“I wanted to.”
Elle and Karl stepped forward and stood beside her, positioning themselves like protective guards without saying a word.
“Umm... you remember Elle and Karl?” Jiya asked.
“I do,” I replied, shaking their hands and offering a polite smile.
“Nice to see you again,” Karl said.
“You too,” I replied.
“Mingle around. I’ll be right back,” Jiya added, glancing toward the group of mothers chatting near the patio.
I watched her as she slipped into the conversation before turning my attention back to the group in front of me.
Karl clapped a hand on my shoulder with an easy grin. “I’m glad you made it. Lucas has been talking about this party all week.”
“I wouldn’t miss it,” I said, glancing toward the backyard where the children were sprinting around with balloons tied to their wrists.
Jack stepped forward with a soda in his hand. “Good to see you again, Caleb. It’s been a while.”
“It has,” I replied, shaking his hand. “Thank you for having me.”
“You’re always welcome here,” Jack said warmly. “Anyone who makes those kids smile like that is family in my books.”
Jack took a sip of his soda and looked at me.
“When are you coming back to the restaurant? It’s been a while.”
I smiled faintly.
“Soon. I’ll probably drag Greg with me next time.”
Jack chuckled.
“Good. We’ll be happy to have you.”
“The food was great,” I admitted. “Honestly, I was impressed. The place has a good atmosphere too. You’ve done a hell of a job with it.”
Jack barked out a laugh.
“You should tell Jiya that.”
I frowned.
“Jiya?”
“Yeah. She owns the restaurant.”
“The Tipsy Cow belongs to Jiya?”
“Sure does,” Jack replied. “And two cafés.”
My eyes drifted across the yard toward her.
She was crouched beside Emma, wiping frosting from her face while Lucas laughed about something nearby.
Jack followed my gaze and smiled.
“She’s worked hard for everything she has.”
Another piece of the puzzle slid into place.
A successful restaurant.
Two thriving cafés.
A partnership in a major development project.
An entire life she had built for herself.
Despite everything I felt toward her, I couldn't deny one thing.
I was impressed.
Liam chuckled beside him. “Careful, Jack. You’re going to scare him off with all that emotional talk.”
The corner of my mouth twitched.
“I think I’ll survive.”
Elle crossed her arms lightly, studying me. There was nothing unfriendly about her stance, but there was something protective in her gaze.
A thought had been bothering me since I walked into the backyard.
“I thought you and Jiya didn’t keep in touch,” I said evenly. “At least that’s what you told me.”
Elle met my eyes without flinching.
“She got in touch with me after she left, and we stayed in touch,” she replied. “But that didn’t mean I was going to call you and tell you about it. My loyalty lies with her, not with you. That’s what best friends do.”
I shifted my weight, aware of Karl watching the exchange while Liam deliberately kept his attention on the children tearing across the backyard.
The conversation hung there, balanced on a thin line between seriousness and social politeness.
Jack clapped his hands together loudly.
“Well,” he said with an easy grin, looking at me, “now that the serious business meeting is over, who’s ready for another slice of cake?”
Karl laughed under his breath, and even Elle’s mouth twitched slightly.
Liam shook his head. “You just want more cake before the kids finish it.”
Jack placed a hand dramatically over his chest. “Of course I do. I helped pay for that cake. I deserve at least two slices.”
The tension finally loosened enough for a few chuckles to ripple through the group.
Karl nudged my arm lightly with his elbow. “Careful, Caleb. Around here, if you hesitate too long, Emma will claim your dessert as her own.”
Almost on cue, Emma ran past us with frosting smeared across her cheek, clutching a half-eaten cupcake in both hands.
“Mine!” she declared proudly.
Laughter broke out through the group, and just like that, the heaviness from a moment ago dissolved into the easy rhythm of the party.
I lifted my drink slowly, but my attention drifted across the yard again toward Jiya, who was crouched beside Emma, wiping frosting from her face.
And for the first time, a new possibility crept into my mind.
If Elle had known where Jiya was all those years, then maybe there had been more to the story than what I had been told.
The investigator I had hired through my mother had insisted Jiya cut contact with everyone after disappearing.
Yet here they all were together, comfortable and connected, as though the years between them had never existed at all.
A cold thought slid quietly into my mind.
The investigators had worked for my mother for years. She trusted them completely.
Had she interfered somehow? Had she wanted me to believe Jiya had vanished completely?
My grip firmed slightly around the glass as my thoughts began turning faster than I could stop them.
If the investigators had been wrong about this, then what else had they been wrong about?
I found myself wondering if Jiya had attended Patty’s funeral too.
A memory hit me suddenly.
After discovering her apartment empty, I had gone straight to her office at the Lexington Hotel, tearing through drawers and files, searching for anything that might lead me to her. But every personal belonging had already been removed, and Amy, her assistant, had known nothing.
At the time, I had been consumed by the need to find her, confront her, demand answers, and make her pay for what I believed she had done.
I had promised myself I would never stop searching for her.
No matter how long it took.
No matter where she hid.
And now, here she was, standing only a few feet away from me.
My resentment seemed to weaken whenever I was around her, as though her presence kept chipping away at it piece by piece.
I hated that.
Taking a slow sip of my beer, I watched Jiya join the children in a game of musical chairs that Elle had organized. Her laughter carried across the yard while the children cheered each time the music stopped.
Two hours later, after the children had devoured slices of pizza, cans of cola, and far too much cake, the crowd began to thin out. Parents rounded up tired children, balloons slipped from tiny wrists, and the noisy backyard gradually grew quiet.
By 6:15 p.m., only Elle and her family remained.