Chapter 3
AVA
I laid a sleeping Maisie on the bed. The excitement of the day had finally caught up with her, and she had fallen asleep halfway between the restaurant and our hotel room.
My car keys burned a hole in my pocket, telling me to take Maisie and run, but I couldn’t do that to my sister.
I paced the length of the room, my breath coming in harsh gasps.
How could Luke’s best friend, the man they described as the total package, be the same guy who left me all those years ago?
The Cole I remembered was an unapologetic player.
The kind of guy I doubted would show up for a kid, even if he knew he had one.
Was I wrong to think that?
I was surprised he recognized me, but the shock on his face when he saw me made me certain he did. And the way he looked at Maisie told me he’d figured out the truth. I always knew she resembled him, but seeing them so close made it obvious.
At least he said nothing in front of everyone.
Maybe he would continue to pretend we’d never met before.
That would be the easiest for all of us.
I didn’t trust him with Maisie, and I refused to let her get hurt by a father who was there one day and gone the next.
We’d managed just fine on our own all these years.
Things were tight, sure, but we had everything we needed.
A knock on the door had me jumping. My heart raced. Cole didn’t know our room number, but he could probably find out. I glanced over at Maisie, still sound asleep, before walking to the door. I paused, hand on the knob, wondering what I would do if it was him.
“Ava?” My sister’s quiet voice calmed my racing nerves, and I opened the door for her. She stepped inside, brow furrowed. “Where’s Maisie?”
“She’s sleeping.”
“Good.” Becky hesitated a moment before her words came out in a rush. “What was that downstairs? You and Cole both looked like you’d seen a ghost.”
Of course she picked up on that. I wasn’t lucky enough to get away with hiding it. I thought about brushing her off, making up an excuse that he looked familiar, but Becky and I were more than just sisters. We were best friends.
I peeked at Maisie, confirming she was still out and unable to hear us. Then I took a few deep breaths, preparing for her reaction. “Cole is the guy I had the one-night stand with on spring break six years ago.”
She stared, mouth open. I watched the pieces slipping into place. “He’s Maisie’s father.”
“Yes.”
“Oh my god. After all these years?” She sat down hard on the closest bed. “I saw the resemblance at lunch, but I didn’t think…”
She lowered her voice. “Does he know?”
“I think so.” I swallowed hard. “The way he looked at us, I’m sure he put it together.”
“Ava, the Cole I know, the Cole Luke describes, would support you two.”
“I won’t risk Maisie.”
“Ava—”
“Don’t tell Luke. Not yet.” I grasped her hands, pleading. “Let me get through this weekend. It’s your wedding. You don’t need this drama. You deserve to have a weekend free of my troubles.”
“I’m sorry, Ava, but I can’t hide this from my fiancé. Cole’s his best friend. And Luke cares about Maisie.” Becky shook her head, stilling my protest. “I won’t go into my marriage lying to Luke. But I will ask him to give you two time to sort it out on your own.”
My shoulders slumped. She was right. It wasn’t fair to ask her to keep secrets from Luke. “Okay. But you have to promise to stay out of it. I’m Maisie’s mother, and it’s for me to decide what to do. You may know one version of Cole, but the Cole I met wasn’t the most stand-up guy.”
“I promise.” Becky’s eyes were troubled. “But try to give him a chance, Ava. People change.”
After she left, I lay down next to Maisie and tried to rest, but my mind wouldn’t stop turning around.
Could I reconcile the man from six years ago with the one Becky and Luke knew?
Cole never lied to me. He said from the start that anything between us would just be for one night, and I agreed anyway.
It was my fault that I’d hoped for more, thinking the hours we spent talking meant something to him. I was just another notch, and he’d made no secret about that.
When Maisie stirred an hour later, I still hadn’t slept.
I got us ready to help Becky and Luke set up for the rehearsal dinner that evening.
Maisie kept her tutu on but agreed to switch out the superhero T-shirt for a clean one with a purple unicorn.
She also insisted on wearing her bright pink sneakers.
I kept her by my side through the setup and avoided Cole.
He hoisted a stack of heavy oak chairs like they were made of plastic, and his t-shirt strained across his back, damp with sweat.
My mouth went dry. The boy I remembered had been lean and pretty, but the man in front of me was built for hard labor.
A deep, rich laugh rumbled across the room. My spine stiffened. I knew that sound. I’d heard it in my dreams for six years.
I tore my gaze away when his met mine. I didn’t want him to think I was trying to get his attention. The easiest thing for me would be if we pretended we’d just met that morning. Then Maisie wouldn’t get hurt.
“Hey, Ava, can you grab the box with the place cards? I left it by the door.” Becky and Maisie rearranged the flowers in the centerpieces. “I can watch Maisie.”
“Sure.” I was grateful for the excuse to move. My skin felt too tight, my awareness of Cole a constant, low-level buzz in my veins. I kept my head down, navigating the maze of half-set tables to the entrance.
I found the box on a side table. I grabbed it, turned, and nearly dropped it when I bumped into a wall of solid muscle. Cole. He didn't step back. He loomed over me, smelling of sawdust and sweat, blocking out the rest of the room as heat radiated from his chest to me.
My eyes flitted to the side, looking for a path past him, but his broad frame in front of me and the boxes at my sides hemmed me in. I took a step back, clutching the box like a shield. “Excuse me.”
He didn’t move. His gaze dropped to my mouth as I spoke, but then returned to my eyes. It was a complicated look. But I recognized the impatience. He was done waiting.
His voice rumbled through me, pitched low enough only we could hear. “We need to talk.”