“Charlie wouldn’t let you do that.”
“Probably not.”
“And you’re about to be someone’s mother, Hails.”
Hailey’s face brightened immediately.
“I am. We’re going through with it. Next month, I’m going in, and we’re starting the process.”
“So, it’s you then?” Emma asked.
“We actually did a whole thing. Did Summer and Lena not tell you?”
“No.”
“I thought they would. We had everyone over last night since they had to leave for Connecticut today. We put Charlie’s name and my name into a hat ten times each and had Alyssa, Hannah and their twins, along with Summer, Lena, Ember, and Eva all pull out names. Oh, and the twins were so cute. Tyler pulled out all the pieces of paper, so we had to start over. Then, Lizzy dumped the hat over.” She laughed. “Anyway, that made eight people, which could have made it an even split. We decided that one of us would draw if there was a tie, but that led to another discussion over which of us would draw. We just started, and my name came up six times while Charlie’s only twice.”
“Congrats, Hails. I’m happy for you both.”
“She is too. I know she did the tests and everything, but I think she wants me to carry our little one or maybe little ones.”
“I think you do too, though.”
“I do. I’ve always wanted that, but I would have loved a little Charlie. God, just thinking about having a miniature version of my wife around makes me want to change my mind.”
“Let her have the next one,” Emma suggested.
“I’m going to be a mom, Emma.”
“I know.”
“And I don’t want to hijack this conversation from you. Talk to your girlfriend, Emma Colton. Tell her you’re worried about her, and ask her to tell you what’s going on.” She paused. “It’s your only option.”
“I know that too.”
“Then, do it,” she encouraged.
CHAPTER 26
“It’s really that bad?” Hillary asked.
“Yeah,” Keira replied to her question, wishing she had a different answer.
They were sitting on her couch. Kellan was on the floor next to the coffee table, and Greene was in the chair next to the sofa.
“Why didn’t you tell us?” Greene asked.
“Because there’s nothing you guys could do. You all live here too. It’s incredibly expensive, and my business is just not providing me with the income I need to live here.” She took a sip of the wine Hillary had brought for them all to share.
“Maybe we can all chip in,” Kellan suggested. “Help you out until things turn around.”
“Yeah,” Hillary agreed.
“I can’t take your money, guys.”
“It’s a pride thing,” Kellan suggested.
“No, it’s not. It’s a reality thing. Even if you guys could help for a month or two, it wouldn’t be enough. I have no idea when I could pay you back. I’m going to try to find something part-time to make some extra cash.”
“Can you talk to Andi?” Greene suggested. “Would she hire you back?”
“About that…” Keira told them the story of her inadvertent altercation with Andi in a moment of sheer frustration with the world.
“Well, I can see how that might not be an option,” Green replied after the story.
“Even if she’d entertain the idea, I couldn’t work there now after accusing her of trying to steal my clients.”
“Are you sure she was telling the truth, though?” Kellan asked and took a drink.
“Yeah, she would have admitted it. Plus, she had a point. I’m no threat to her company. I barely have any clients these days. I lost one to no funding and one to her. And to quote the magic eight ball I borrowed from Kev’s room, ‘the outlook does not look good’.”
“It kind of sucks that none of us works in industries you can just hire anyone for,” Greene explained. “I play the violin and teach it, Kell’s a vet, and Hill’s a prof.”
“The office isn’t hiring right now, or else I’d put your name in for a receptionist or something,” Kellan offered.
“I can maybe check the university and see if there’s a non-teaching position available,” Hillary offered.
Everyone looked at Greene who had started this part of the conversation.
“Want to be a conductor?” She shrugged.
This caused everyone to laugh, including Keira.
“All this job and money stuff is crap, and I have to figure it out, but the thing that has me really worried is Emma.”
“Why?” Hillary asked and refilled her glass.
“I haven’t exactly told her about all this. I think she’s starting to suspect something’s going on.”
“Why haven’t you told her?” Kellan asked.
“We just started dating. How would you feel if you started a new relationship with a woman and she couldn’t afford to go out to dinner or drinks and had to ask for favors to pay for stuff and get help from her roommate to cover rent and utilities? How would you feel, Hill?” She turned to Hillary.
“Depends. Is it a guy or a girl?”
“Why does that matter?” Greene checked.
“Because I don’t want no scrubs,” Hillary smirked. “A scrub is a guy that can’t get no love from me.”
They laughed again.
“And a woman?” Keira pressed.
“A woman like you, Keira? I think we could work something out. I don’t think your girlfriend is the kind of woman that cares about that.”
“We’re still so new,” Keira insisted. “This stuff shouldn’t be happening right away. We should be in that honeymoon phase right now.”
“Who says you’re not?” Greene proposed. “You two have done it now, right?”
“Greene!” Keira exclaimed.
“Did you or did you not have sexual relations with that woman?”
“I did,” Keira replied wearing a shy smile.
“And?” Hillary asked, leaning in.
“It was perfect.” Keira shrugged
“Which time?” Greene questioned.
“Every time.”
They talked and drank for another hour before everyone decided to call it an early night. They’d all had long weeks at work, but when Keira called them for an emergency squad meeting to discuss her problems, they came running. Hillary and Greene hugged her, told her it was all going to be okay, and then shared an Uber. Kellan remained and helped her carry the now empty glasses into the kitchen.
“Can I talk to you for a second?” She sat the last glass on the counter next to the sink.
“Sure.” Keira opened the dishwasher door. “I don’t know why I bother. He’s just going to reload it later.”
“Keira?”
“Yeah.” Keira stopped and looked over at her.
“I lied.”
“About?” Keira closed the dishwasher without putting anything in it.
“About that thing where I’m not still in love with you.” Kellan bit her bottom lip.
“What?” Keira’s eyes went big.
“I thought I wasn’t anymore. I thought I got over you. But recently, it’s all kind of been coming back.”
“How recently? Emma recently?” She crossed her arms over her chest.
“Technically, yes. But–”
“You’re not still in love with me, Kell. It’s just because you’re seeing me with someone else,” Keira posited.
“It was before Emma, actually. I realized it that night you mentioned her for the first time. I know what that sounds like, but it’s not just about her or the fact that you two are dating.”
“We’re together, Kellan. She’s my girlfriend.”
“I know. I know you aren’t in love with me.”
“Okay. Why are we having this conversation?”
“I just need you to tell me that you’re not in love with me.” She paused. “It would also help if you’re already in love with her.”
“How does that help anything?”
“Because I need to hear it. I need to know there’s no chance with us.”
“You lied to me. You told me you were good, ready to be friends. And you’ve not exactly been welcoming to Emma.”
“I know. I’ve been kind of a jerk to her. I’m sorry. But, Keira, I need you to say it.”
“Kell, I’m not in love with you,” Keira gave her. “I’m sorry, but I’m not.”
“Okay.” Kellan nodded. “There it is,” she added. “Are you in love with her?”
“I haven’t said that to her yet. I think she should be the first one to hear about that.”
Kellan nodded and said, “I think I might disappear for a while.”
“Disappear?”
“Get some space between me and you, try to move past it; that kind of a thing. I guess you were right. It was okay when you were alone. I could sit there, be a friend, and it was fine. But when you started mentioning that there was someone you liked, it put things into perspective for me.” She paused and exhaled. “I don’t want to just be your friend, and that’s all I can be.”
“I want us to be friends, Kell. You know that.”
“And that’s what I want too, but I need to move beyond these feelings.”
“I understand,” Keira offered.
“I’m going to take off. I’ll talk to Hillary and apologize to her for lying too. She was kind of feeling me out the other night to see if I was going to cause problems with you and Emma. I’ll let her know I’m taking a group sabbatical.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“No, I do. It’ll be good for me.”
“Okay,” Keira obliged. “Can I still text you sometime just to check in on you?”
“Sure,” she replied, but Keira could see it wasn’t necessarily a genuine response. “I’ll see you around.”
Then, Kellan was gone. This week, Keira had lost not one but two major clients, had managed to make her girlfriend upset, and just lost a friend. Keira could only stand in her kitchen as the door closed behind Kellan and wish for this week to end.
◆◆◆
“I didn’t call her,” Emma told Joanna while they ate lunch in her office.
“Why not?” she asked.
“I don’t know. I wanted to.” She dropped the plastic fork into the salad and looked toward her window. “I got nervous each time I went to pick up the phone.”
“Why? She’s your girlfriend,” Joanna asked and took a bite of her turkey club.
“She just seemed like she wanted some time alone. And it’s not like she called me.”
“Well, that’s mature,” Joanna offered sarcastically. “You two are playing a dangerous game.”
“What?”
“This passive-aggressive crap has cost a lot of people their relationships,” she provided. “It’s Monday. When did you last talk to her?”
“She sent me a text Friday night that her friends were coming over to the apartment. I was about to call her to see if she wanted to grab dinner and talk. When I got the text, I didn’t.”
“Couldn’t you have gone to the friend thing?”
“She didn’t invite me.” Emma picked up her fork.
“Again, you’re being incredibly mature here.”
“I realize that, thank you,” she replied with matching dry wit. “I didn’t hear from her on Saturday. I didn’t reach out. It was the same on Sunday. So, here we are.”
“You’re really worried.”
“I am.”
“Do you think she’s going to break up with you or something? That this is her way of letting you down easy?”
“I don’t know. I don’t think so. I keep going back in my mind, trying to figure out if I did something wrong, but I can’t pinpoint anything.”
“Then, it’s probably not you, and there’s something going on with her that she’s just not ready to discuss yet.”
“And I’m just supposed to wait?” She finally stabbed a rogue tomato and popped it into her mouth, closing her back teeth around it and releasing sweet and tart juices into her mouth.
“Wait, or pressure her into talking to you about it when she’s not ready and risk a bigger issue,” she returned.
“I’d take the bigger issue over the silence,” Emma replied.
“Then, I guess you have your answer.”
“Emma, did you talk to Keira yet?” Ivy stood in Emma’s office doorway.
“Excuse me?” Emma’s eyes grew big at the mention of Keira’s name.
“About the fair?” Ivy walked into the office. “About next year?”
“Oh, sorry. No, I haven’t yet.”
“I don’t want to miss booking her and getting that same spot in the park. It’s where they hold a lot of concerts and events in the summer. We normally have to book it out a year in advance. Do you want me to have Mason give her a call and set it up?”
Emma actually thought about having her assistant call her girlfriend to talk about work.
“No, I’ll talk to her tonight.”
“Tonight?” Ivy lifted an eyebrow.
“I meant this afternoon. I’ll call her after my last meeting. I think I remember her saying that was the best time to reach her,” she lied.
“Great. Thanks.” Ivy turned and left the office.
Well, she now had a reason to call Keira, but she wasn’t sure if it was one that would anger her girlfriend. She might get upset further if Emma only called her about work. But in her haste to leave the apartment, she’d failed to tell Keira the good news about the fair. She had a meeting in five minutes. Yeah, she’d call her after, just like she told Ivy she would.
CHAPTER 27
There was a problem with being a company of one, Keira reasoned as she sat in front of a prospective client, who wanted an event planned for the following weekend and had a small budget, too many guests, and wanted a discount on Keira’s work because she could “plan the thing herself if she had the time to do it.” Keira was in a bind. She had a few clients that she was currently working with. Each job required time. She was at the point where she needed more work to bring in money but couldn’t handle all the work required on her own to get that money. She needed staff but couldn’t afford the staff.
“I don’t think I can pay you that to put on this party. It’s just a small wedding reception, and most of the work was already done. The previous planner we hired just couldn’t finish,” the woman continued.
“Why not?”
“She claimed that she couldn’t work within our budget,” the woman replied.
“I see. Well, I have to tell you that the budget you’ve provided and the things you’d like done with that budget are incompatible at best. And it’s this weekend as well, which means I’d have to drop all other work to make this happen. I’m happy to do that, but there are expedite fees and things that we’d need to discuss.”
“Expedite fees? For what?” the woman pestered. “You’re going to work harder in the same amount of time?”
“I have other clients. Their work will have to be postponed to make this happen for you,” she reminded. “What I think you need to decide is what your time is worth.”
“Excuse me?” The woman lifted her eyebrow. “This is my daughter’s wedding. I want–”
“I understand. But I can’t put off work for other clients without receiving compensation to balance that out,” she interjected. She normally avoided these kinds of interactions and did her best to avoid clients like this as well, but desperate times called for desperate measures. “You can plan your daughter’s reception and wedding the rest of the way yourself for free, or you can pay me to do it for you and focus on enjoying this time with your daughter and your family, not worrying about the details. Those are the options.” She closed her binder that included her price sheets and sample packages.
“Will you make this your number one priority?” she asked with a glare.
“If we agree to terms – absolu
tely,” Keira replied with a defiant stare.
“Fine,” the woman returned between gritted teeth. “But we start now. I don’t have time tomorrow, and you need to get moving.” She leaned forward and pulled the binder from Keira’s grasp.
Keira was not looking forward to this job at all, but she had no choice. If she could get the expedite fees and manage to still work on the other stuff in her evenings and late into the night so she wouldn’t lose ground on them, she might make it through the next month without having to get that part-time job she’d already begun considering.
A few minutes later, after the contract was signed, she was going over the work the previous planner had already done with her new client when her phone rang. She didn’t dare look at it. Based on the glare she received from the mother of the bride, it would not have been prudent to take a call during their work time. She let it go to voicemail and resolved to calling whoever it was back later.
◆◆◆
She left a voicemail. It was the best she could do if Keira didn’t pick up her phone. Emma wrapped things up at the office and began her walk home with headphones in her ears. Again, she found herself trying not to think about Keira and not having any success. Keira was on her mind now more than ever. She could have been busy, but she also could have been avoiding Emma’s calls. Either way, something was wrong. Emma hated that she didn’t know what was causing Keira to act this way. She also hated games like this. She wanted a mature relationship. She made it home and decided she’d had enough. She called Keira and was again met with her voicemail. She decided maybe a text was in order, and through her frustration, she typed her message and hit send. She immediately regretted it.
◆◆◆
Keira gathered her belongings, the signed contract and deposit check and headed straight for the bank. She knew it wouldn’t show up tonight since it was already late, but she wanted to get the check into her account as quickly as possible. For one, she needed to buy supplies and get vendors on board, and she also needed to pay herself. She needed money in her bank account to afford groceries for the week.
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