Undeniable (Indulgence) - Aleatha Romig Page 0,18
you think that’s okay?” I ask.
“Do you think it would be better just to invite her to the wedding and let her learn there?”
I don’t know what I’m thinking. “She’ll hate me.”
“Why would she hate you, Sophie? At one time you were best friends. You can be like that again.”
I shake my head as bile bubbles in my stomach. The nausea is caused by more than the news about Becky. Pushing off from the bed, I run to the attached bathroom and kneel before the toilet just in time. Matt’s voice chases after me, but all I hear are my mostly dry heaves. When the uproar of my queasiness finally stops, Matt is beside me, a cup of water in one hand and a dampened washcloth in the other.
“Sophie, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize it would upset you this much. I can reschedule and talk to Beck alone.”
Standing, I take what he is offering and rinse the bad taste from my mouth. “No, I don’t think I got sick because of Becky.” My head tilts. “I think it’s our baby. I haven’t had much sickness, but…I don’t know.”
He reaches for my hands. “What kind of father do you think I’ll be to our baby?”
Images of Matt holding a small baby and playing with a toddler come to my mind as my cheeks raise in a smile. “Amazing. I know you will be. I remember how you were with Becky when we were younger.”
“I want to be. What kind of father would I be to Becky if I didn’t try to include her in our lives?”
I take a deep breath. “You’re right but…I’m scared.”
“Of what?”
“That this will end.” I motion between us. “Maybe this is a dream and telling Becky will make it end. I’ll wake up and…” Tears come to my eyes. “I don’t want you to have to choose between Becky and me.”
“I’m not.”
“What if you have to?”
He wraps his arms around me and pulls me close against his wide chest. Beneath my ear, his heart is pounding out a rhythm. “Can you hear that?” he asks.
I nod. “Your heart? Yes.”
“Listen closely.”
I do as he says, listening to the thump, thump.
“Do you hear what it’s saying?”
I look up, my gaze meeting his. “Saying?”
“Yes, Sophie. My heart is saying that it has plenty of room for more people to love.”
The tears are back. I think it’s the hormones.
He cups my chin and holds my stare. “Wouldn’t it be awful if a heart could only love one other person? What would happen when children are born or grandchildren? You love your grandparents, right?”
“I do.”
“What about me?”
A smile comes to my lips. “Yes, I love you. It’s different.”
“Of course it is. That’s what my heart is saying. It’s possible to love many people. Think about it. What about parents and siblings and good friends?”
I suck in a ragged breath and nod. “Good friends,” I repeat. “Do you think Becky and I can be that again?”
“I think she’ll be surprised and relieved.”
“Relieved?”
“I told her I wanted her to meet the woman I’m dating. She’s probably nervous, wondering what that woman is like and if that woman will like her.”
I nod. “I guess that would be normal.”
“So imagine her excitement when she finds out that the woman I love has loved her too—since they were children.”
“You met with my grandparents. I can do this.”
He again pulls me close. “How are you feeling?”
“Hungry,” I reply with a grin.
Matt
The doors to the pool deck are open, and a soft, warm breeze skirts around us. Beyond the deck, the water glistens with the midday sun, and high above the sky is a cloudless cobalt shade of blue.
“I can help,” I offer as Sophie empties containers of food I picked up at the grocery store into different dishes, placing each on the island in the kitchen.
“You bought it all. That is a help.” She shrugs. “One day, I suppose I should learn how to cook.”
I take a deep breath and sit on one of the tall barstools near the kitchen island. I don’t care if she learns to cook or not. When it comes to Sophie, her cooking isn’t what I want to eat.
“Remember,” she says, pulling me away from my improper thoughts as she spoons chicken salad into croissants before putting them on a tray, “I’m studying event planning. I learned presentation is equally as important when I worked for a caterer.” Her smiling gaze meets mine. “That was before you convinced me to concentrate on school.”
“I