Ava
Cohen had been on the road for the last week, and I didn’t want to admit how much I’d missed him.
Today, Ellie had her check-up at the pediatrician, and Cohen had a day off, so he wanted to join us.
I loved Dr. Sarah Townsend, one of Addison's clients at her barn, so, annoyingly, Ellie’s pediatrician was all the way in Primrose Hill.
Harper, my sister's best friend, was also now the nurse practitioner for Dr. Townsend, so that was just an added bonus.
Cohen smiled warmly and shook her hand. "Hey, nice to meet you. I've heard a lot about you."
"Hopefully all bad," She winked before flipping her long blonde braid over her shoulder. "So, Dr. Townsend is actually out of town this week, so I'll be seeing sweet Ellie today. You can go ahead and follow me back." She gestured towards the door.
I grabbed Harper's hand, stopping her. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold up. What’s this satellite on your finger, Harp?"
She grinned as I inspected the rock. "Archer and I are engaged! He proposed this past weekend." She let out a disbelieving laugh. “Who would’ve thought a little one-night stand would turn into an engagement to the man of my dreams? Not me, that’s for damn sure.”
Archer was Dean’s younger brother. Harper met him when Addison and Dean were… figuring things out. A one-night hookup turned into a couple of years—and now they lived together.
Harper was the exception, not the rule. Things like that rarely ever turned into forever.
Certainly not for me.
I forced a smile and pulled her in for another hug. "That's amazing! Congratulations! I'm so happy for you two. I'm going to call Addison and lay into her for not telling me," I teased.
Harper grinned. "To be fair, today is only Monday, he just asked me yesterday."
We followed Harper back into room four. "Let's get her down to just her diaper and then set her here on the scale." Cohen did as instructed.
Harper took her weight, measured her length, and the circumference of her head.
Ellie wiggled around, cooing at the attention.
When Harper was finished with her assessment, she brought her focus back to Cohen and me, propping her hands on her hips.
"She looks great. She’s measuring right where she should be on her growth chart.
Do either of you have any questions or concerns for me today? " She glanced down at her chart.
I was about to shake my head no, but Cohen immediately spoke up. "Yeah, so Ava is going back to work at the end of next month, and we were going to transition her to formula. What’s the best way to do that so it doesn't upset her stomach and so she adjusts to the taste?"
I blinked, dumbfounded.
Harper smiled. "Good question. Start by adding one ounce to the breastmilk she's having, and after monitoring her for about three days, just keep gradually increasing it.
It should be about a two-to-three-week transition process.
Some babies take to it immediately without issue, so just see how she does. "
Cohen nodded. "Okay, that seems easy enough. Also, I read we should start seeing her lift her head on her own. I don't feel like she’s quite there yet. Should we be concerned?"
Again. I was silent.
Harper smiled. “Sounds like you’ve done your homework.”
“I like to be prepared,” Cohen said easily.
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Or melt. I had a lot of conflicting emotions happening at once.
Harper gently placed Ellie on her tummy and observed.
Ellie lifted her head slightly and then lay it back down on the table.
"It's still early; every baby develops a little differently. The fact that she’s attempting is good, but keep doing tummy time.
She should be able to steadily lift her head in the next month or so. If she doesn't, then let us know."
"We can do that," Cohen said matter-of-factly.
"How's she eating and sleeping?"
I jumped in, suddenly feeling like a terrible mother who had something to prove. "She eats great, and we've been working on sleep training, so right now she does about eight to ten hours a night."
Harper smiled, "That's great, I love to hear it. Any other questions?"
Cohen shook his head. "Nope, I'm good." He looked over at me.
I shook my head. "I'll call you if I do."
"Perfect. Well, you can get little Miss Ellie dressed, and you’re good to go. It was great seeing you, Ava, and nice to meet you, Cohen."
As Cohen started getting Ellie dressed, I just stared at him—shocked. And, if I were being honest, a little impressed.
His eyes flicked up to me, and he flashed a smile. "What?"
"Way to make me look bad, CoJo," I teased as we settled into a booth at Bluebonnet Cafe—a little breakfast and lunch spot in Primrose Hill.
Cohen dropped his head back on a laugh. "I wasn't trying to. I had questions!” He parked Ellie's stroller at the end of our table. She was already sound asleep.
I narrowed my eyes at him, "Well, next time let's discuss our questions prior to the appointment so I don't look like such an incompetent mother."
"Please. You're the best mom, Trouble," he said simply, his eyes scanning the menu, completely unaware of what his words just meant to me.
Before I could reply, our waiter appeared beside our table, and Cohen ordered for both of us, as if it were something he normally did.
It wasn’t.
He brought his attention back to me. "How did you know I wanted the potato soup and a side salad?" I cocked my head in question.
"Because you love potato soup and you always add a salad to make yourself feel better by eating vegetables," he smirked.
Totally going to ignore the butterflies that just took flight.
Cohen started fiddling with his napkin. "Did you want to head right back? I thought maybe we could swing by Walk's and show Ellie the horses."
I grinned. "I love that idea. Plus, I haven't seen Hadley in a minute."
"Cool. I'll shoot him a text."
Between him ordering for me and handling plans, I felt a bit out of sorts. I wasn't used to being taken care of. Having someone anticipate my needs. Cohen may have thought what he was doing was minuscule and unimportant.
But it was everything.
Once we got our food, we ate in a comfortable silence while Ellie snoozed away.
It was the most content I had felt in a long time.
Being with Cohen was easy, effortless, but I had to keep reminding myself that our dynamic would always remain like this—friends, co-parents.
It was what I told myself was best for Ellie.
I broke the silence first. "You played great in Chicago. You’re insanely fast, definitely faster than your rookie year,” I teased before continuing. “It’s incredible to watch. I don't get how you can anticipate where the ball’s going to go before the batter even hits it."
A cocky grin tugged at his lips; his eyes locked on mine. “Because I’m good at reading people. Most players don’t realize what they’re giving away.”
I leaned back. “Is that so? Can you read me?”
“Enough to know you don’t give much away.”
“Maybe I don’t want to be predictable,” I countered.
His gaze lingered—long enough to make my pulse stutter. “Yeah,” he said quietly. “I’ve noticed.”
I pushed Ellie's stroller down the aisle of Walker's barn, both Tex and Ranger popping their heads out to see who was coming. I stopped in front of Tex’s stall and ran my hand up his face, "Hey there, big guy.
" Tex bobbed his head, nickering. I glanced at Cohen as he cautiously held his hand out for Ranger to sniff. "Not used to horses?" I asked.
Cohen shook his head. "I haven't been around very many."
Walker and Farrah strode in with Hadley hot on their heels.
"Auntie Avs!" The blonde Tasmanian devil launched her little body into my arms. I stroked her curls away from her face.
"Hey, Hady girl! How's pre-K treating you?
" I set her back down. Hadley was now four and probably even more of a spitfire than she’d been at two… which was saying a lot.
She propped her little hands on her hips. "It's okay. Kinda boring. You wanna see my horseys?"
I chuckled. "That's why I'm here. Your cousin Ellie wants to meet your new pony." Once Farrah and Hadley had moved into Walker's house and they’d become a family, my brother had wasted no time buying Hadley a pony of her own.
Hadley glanced over at Ellie, uninterested, and grabbed my hand, leading me further down the aisle. Cohen stayed back with the stroller, chatting with Walker and Farrah.
She stopped in front of a stall, and a little dark bay head popped out. "This is Hershey. He's mine."
I stroked the little guy's neck. "He sure is cute."
Hadley gave a swift nod. "I know."
After Hadley told me all of Hershey's twenty favorite things, we rejoined the group.
"I’ll put the boys in the crossties so Ellie can see them up close. They love babies and kids." Walker opened Tex's stall and placed his halter over his head. Farrah did the same with Ranger.
I unbuckled Ellie and held her close to my chest as I approached the horses. Tex leaned down to gently sniff Ellie's back, and when he trailed his soft muzzle over the back of her head, Ellie let out a little giggle, only increasing Tex's interest.
I patted Tex with my free hand. "You’re such a gentle giant, buddy."
Walker handed Cohen a peppermint. "Go on, give him a treat."
"Are you sure? He is just… so…. big." Cohen hesitantly edged closer to Tex.
Walker deadpanned, "Don't be a pussy."
Cohen scoffed. "I'm not a pussy, just inexperienced."
Farrah snorted.
"This conversation is riddled with innuendos," I laughed.
"Bro, you don't need to be experienced to feed a horse a treat," Walker pushed.
Hadley tilted her head, confused. "Why is Uncle Coh scared of horseys?" Hadley had been calling him Uncle Coh since before he’d knocked me up.
Cohen finally walked up close enough, his hand flat, and slowly lifted it towards Tex. Tex happily swiped the treat from him. "Okay. That wasn't so bad," Cohen said quietly to himself.
Everyone in my life was such a horse person; sometimes, I forgot what it was like when someone was uncomfortable with them.
As I brought Ellie over for Ranger to investigate, footsteps came clicking down the aisle.
“Are those my two beautiful granddaughters?” my mom called, appearing out of nowhere. Hadley ran straight into her arms, excited. I swear that woman could sense when her grandchildren were nearby and just materialize wherever they were.
"Hey Mom, we decided to swing by after Ellie's doctor’s appointment so she could meet Walker's horses." After Hadley ran off to God knows where, I handed Ellie over to my mom.
Softly bouncing Ellie, my mom looked at me, then at Cohen. "Why don’t you two go on a trail ride? Take a break. I can watch Ellie and get some quality Grandma time in."
I glanced over at Cohen, whose eyes looked at me with slight panic.
"I'm sure Walker wants to take the boys out himself later," I tried to telepathically signal to my brother, hoping he'd agree and give Cohen a break.
Walker interrupted. "Nope, I wasn't planning on riding today. You can totally take them." He grinned. "You should take Cohen to my spot—best view of my property."
Such a dick.
Cohen glared at Walker.
"Cohen's not used to being around horses; he's never ridden," I said, trying again to help Cohen out.
My mom smiled at Cohen. "What better way to get used to them than to ride them? You can't come all the way out here and not ride."
Cohen shoved his hands into his pockets and took a deep breath. No one ever said no to Laurel James. "All right. I'll give it a try."
I tilted my head in surprise. "Really?"
He nodded. "I trust you won't let me fall," he said quietly.
Something warm settled in my chest as he said it. A slow smile tugged at my lips. "Never."