What's Life Without the Sprinkles - By Misty Simon Page 0,5

alive, to see them go to the right person.”

“You’re damn right she’s bringing me.”

A headache roared behind Claudia’s eyes, compounded by the metal digging into her elbow and the plastic trying to work its way under her shoulder blades. She couldn’t think for all the emotions, memories, and anger running through her. But beneath all of that, a part of her wanted to see what May’s dad had to say. And Peter no longer had any effect on her. It had been over ten years since he’d walked out on her at three months pregnant, seven years since she’d heard from him at all. His power to hurt had long since faded. She was sure of it. It hadn’t been tested until now, since he’d always stayed far away, but she could stand being in the same room with him for an hour or so without puncturing his head with her high heel.

“Fine,” she said, raising a hand to stop the bickering going on between Zoe and May. It wasn’t worth fighting over. He wasn’t worth fighting over. And if she didn’t like what Roger Drake felt her son needed, there was nothing that said she had to keep it.

“Fine?” Zoe and May said at the same time.

“Yes, fine. I’ll go. Peter has nothing on me anymore. In fact it will be interesting to see him after all this time. It’s not like I haven’t thought of him in one way or the other over the years.” Like when she had used one of his yearbook pictures as a dart board. “We did share something, but he can’t hurt me at this point.”

“Wow,” Zoe said. “You’re a lot bigger person than I am. But we need to do some serious shopping, if you’re going to see an old flame. He needs to know what he missed out on.”

He missed out on his son’s whole life, Claudia thought, but she wasn’t going to bring that up. In fact, she wouldn’t bring up Justin at all, other than to say thanks or no thanks at the meeting. She didn’t even have to make contact with Peter during the lunch if she didn’t want to. But she would look astounding, in case he decided to look at her. Nothing better than having a chance to make an ex-boyfriend regret that ex part.

“All right.” She put her hands on her knees and rose from the uncomfortable chair. “Anyone have any appointments this afternoon?”

When the two other women shook their heads, she said, “Then shopping it is. And while we’re out, we really need to get some new chairs for this office. These are ridiculous. We need to be happy, rich owners, not stiff ones.” And she needed to have her head checked, if that was what she’d decided to cling to so she didn’t have to think about sitting in the same room with Peter again.

****

“I’m worn through.” Claudia threw her bags onto the side table in the entryway of her apartment over their shop, then threw herself on the couch. She could happily sleep, or at least rest, for the next ten to fifteen days.

“Me, too.” Zoe lowered her bags to the floor and stretched her back. “Power shopping is not my idea of a good time. I much prefer being able to look at the stuff in a leisurely manner instead of feeling so rushed. I like to shop, but not like we’re on some sort of recon mission. Jeez.” Zoe took the big chair in the corner and rested her head against the low, rounded back.

“May had to go home and deal with some family stuff. We needed to get done as soon as possible.” And Claudia couldn’t be happier. Her feet were killing her, and her stomach churned with all the things she hadn’t let herself think about since May’s announcement. Three more calls from Nate, and now she wasn’t sure she wanted to answer him at all. He was not going to be pleased that Peter was back in town.

“I hate to leave you alone right now, but I really have to get back to Decadence to see if I have any other orders to fill.” Zoe said but made no move to get out of the chair.

“Eh, don’t worry about it. I’m just going to hang out here for the next twenty minutes, until Justin gets home from school, and then I’m taking him to Mom’s.”

“And then you have the pony date. Excuse me, the stale cookie date.