Page 4 of Serving the Maestro

But I was.

“Alright.” Nodding, I said, “Set it up.”

“Excellent.” Stephen grinned and clapped his hands together, his eyes sharp and bright, a look I often saw when he was about to close a deal. “I knew you’d see the light on this one.”

TWO

JAZZ

“To Cam, the best friend and business partner a girl can have!”

Numerous other voices rose in chorus as I lifted my drink and let it clink against the salted rim of my best friend’s virgin Margarita.

She leaned back, her face glowing. The glow had nothing to do with the drink, or even the surprise birthday party she’d somehow put together at our office.

Cam Hollander, my best friend, was five months pregnant, and she had the stereotypical ‘glow.’

She was sailing through pregnancy, her happiness practically contagious.

I was glad we’d been able to upgrade our office to a larger space a few years ago. The sound of somebody puking was usually enough to make me do the same, but in the new location each of us had a bathroom.

That made me sound awful. But Cam had laughed when I told her. It’s okay, honey. I wouldn’t sit around and listen to me puke either, but I don’t have much choice.

Then she hugged me. But when you get hitched and end up in my condition, I’ll be there and hold your hand or your hair while you’re puking. I’ve got a stronger stomach than you.

She would, too. I hated that I couldn’t look at her without hurting.

I loved Cam dearly. She was the best friend I had, my only “family” since my mom had died a couple of years earlier. Before the accident that killed my mom, I’d been even closer to Cam.

That only made me feel worse about the envy I felt looking at her. Today was my thirty-fifth birthday, and the clock was running out fast for me. But maybe a baby wasn’t in the cards for me. A relationship certainly wasn't on the horizon, which was okay. I actually enjoyed being single and independent.

Forcing a light note into my voice, I said, “There’s nobody pounding down the door to be Mr. Moors, Cam.” Giving her fiancé a teasing look, I winked. “I think you grabbed the last good man in New York City.”

Danny Padua, her fiancé, said. “Hey, I do have a younger brother, Jazz.”

He delivered that remark while I took a sip of wine, and I almost choked.

Once I managed to clear the tears from my eyes and the wine from my windpipe, I shot him a dark look. “That’s not funny.”

“Hey, he’s a good kid! And in five years, he’ll be done with medical school.”

“Ha, ha.” I knew Danny’s brother. He was a nice kid—emphasis on the kid. Definitely not what I was looking for. I wasn’t going to discuss that I didn’t know what I was looking for—or even if I wanted to look for anything.

The whole relationship thing was a mystery to me.

Rubbing my still tight chest, I accepted a glass of water from the server. When the conversation around us picked up, I was grateful for it. Cam got up from her place by Danny and came to my side of the table. After moving several gift bags, cards, and boxes out of the way, she took the empty seat and perched next to me.

With big, bright green eyes, she studied me.

“You’re never going to find it if you refuse to look, honey. You know that.”

Resisting the urge to squirm, I caught Cam’s hand and squeezed. Being honest, I said, “I don’t know if I even want to look for it, Cam. Really.”

It was the whole kit and caboodle—what Cam had managed to find, the guy, the happy ending...the baby. But Cam knew me too well not to recognize what she saw in my gaze from time to time.

“So, you’re not feeling that baby fever every time you see me rubbing my belly or hear me talk about how to decorate the nursery?” she asked with wide-eyed innocence.

“I might be having baby fever, but that’s about it.” Giving Danny a rueful smile, I added, “As cute as your soon-to-be brother-in-law is, Cam, I’m not interested in dating a guy more than a decade my junior and lately...” I struggled to articulate my lack of interest in any of the guys I’d dated over the past few years. “There’s just nobody catching my interest.”

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