Page 54 of Whatever You Want

Brina’s forehead wrinkled while Madison groaned in annoyance. “Come here.” I walked over and patted the cushion next to me on the couch. “Have a seat.”

I’ve never been so nervous to talk to my own daughter before. I was a freakin’ mess.

“Logan and I want you both to know that you girls are the most important people in our lives.” Two sets of confused eyes searched my face, wondering where I was going with this speech. God, I sucked at this, and I was making this situation more awkward than it needed to be. You would think I could do a better job of easing into this conversation. “The four of us have been spending a lot of time together, right?”

They both nodded as I forced the rest of my words out. “Well, during that time, Logan and I have developed feelings for each other. I know this is probably very confusing and I’m not sure how much you understand, but we make each other happy.” I exchanged a look with Logan, who was casually sipping his coffee in the chair across from me. I wanted to throttle him for acting so composed while my heart hammered away in my chest. I gave him the evil eye and turned back to the girls. “Now, I’m sure you both have tons of questions and we will do our best to answer them.”

“You mean you like each other like boyfriend and girlfriend?” Brina asked, and it was hard to tell, but she didn’t seem too excited about that.

Logan scooted forward so they were at eye level. “Would you be okay if I asked Ava to my girlfriend?” he asked, all steady and calm.

“Will you be Madison’s new daddy?” She looked down at the floor; the worry in her voice was unmistakable.

I held my breath, waiting to see how he would answer that question.

Emotion swam in Logan’s eyes as they shifted to my daughter briefly. “Drew will always be Madison’s dad, but he’s in heaven now. I was thinking that maybe we could include her in some of the things we do together, wouldn’t that be nice?”

Brina pursed her lips; she seemed to ponder that for a minute. “Will we still get to do things together, just the two of us?”

“Absolutely.” He bent forward and squeezed Brina’s knee.

Madison grinned up at Logan. “I knew you liked my mom.”

I let out a relieved breath while Logan laughed. I thought if anyone would have asked questions, it would have been my daughter.

I pulled her into a tight hug. “I love you.”

She looked up at me. “Love you too. Can we go outside and ride our bikes now?”

That was a lot easier than I expected. Things couldn’t have gone any smoother.

“Sure, let me grab the helmets out of the garage.” I stood up and made it halfway across the room when my phone started ringing. “Madison, can you get that, please?” I pointed to my cell phone that was sitting on the table.

I was just about ready to open the side door when I heard Madison’s high-pitched voice.

“Uncle Jeremey.” My hand froze on the doorknob. “Yes, we are home. Okay, I’ll tell my mom. See you soon.”

I rested my palm against the wall for support. “What did your uncle Jeremey want?”

“He’s on his way over. He’ll be here in thirty minutes.” She set my phone down. “Come on, Brina, we can get the helmets. I know where they are.”

I looked across the room in a panic, searching for a way out of this.

“Who is Jeremy?” Logan asked, watching me cautiously.

“He’s Drew’s best friend.”

His eyes continued to study me. I hated feeling like I was being scrutinized. “Okay, I’m assuming he doesn’t know about me?”

Leave it to Logan not to miss a beat. “You are correct.”

“Why haven’t I heard of him before?”

“He lives in Colorado.”

He placed his hands on my shoulders. I was hyperventilating. “Ava, breathe.”

“I know you probably think I’m overacting.” I paused, waiting for him to tell me I was being ridiculous, except he didn’t say anything. Great.

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