Page 36 of The Game Changer

“It is.”

“And you used to be a paralegal, right?”

“Yes. I earned some scholarships and worked my way through in state school. Did my best to get out of school with as little bit of debt as I could. My last two years of school I worked for a larger law firm. They offered tuition assistance once you’d work there for six months. I planned things out perfectly and they basically paid for my final two years of school, so that definitely helped me graduate with very little school debt.”

“Good for you. I also went to school on some scholarships. My parents were able to help out with the difference and they also helped me out with a loan when I started my business up a few years ago.”

“That’s really awesome.”

“Did you meet Stephanie at that firm?” I ask. I finish off my wine, setting the glass down on the ground next to my chair.

“Yep. She started working there during my junior year of college. We didn’t work directly with each other, though, until after I’d graduated, so we didn’t really know one another all that well. It’s a pretty big firm, they usually have around twenty attorneys on staff at any given time.”

“Wow, I didn’t realize that it was that large.”

“Yep. We started dating a few months after I graduated. It was big office gossip, at first, but then people got over it. When we decided to start a family and I got pregnant with Mason, we decided that I’d quit and stay at home with him and now, of course, these two that are on their way.”

“Do you miss working at all?” I ask. With owning my own business, I have no idea how that will look for me down the road when I’m ready to start a family.

“Sometimes, but I also love being at home with Mason. I love not stressing over daycare pickup and drop offs and the hectic hours. With being married to an attorney, I keep my skills up to date helping her occasionally when she’s working at home late at night or if she needs a second pair of eyes on something.”

“And Stephanie likes being the breadwinner?”

“I think when she picked the career path, she knew that it was definitely a possibility. She hasn’t complained yet,” she says, laughing.

“That’s great that it all worked out so well for the two of you. Since I haven’t been in a serious relationship since opening my business, I haven’t really thought ahead to what things would look like if and when I have kids. Do I stop seeing patients and just run the business side of things? Sell the business to someone else? Keep working? So many possibilities to consider. But before I need to worry about that, I have to find a husband.”

“Have you and John talked about a possible future together?” she casually asks.

“Nothing like marriage or kids. I mean, I think we’ve said casually how we both would like kids, but that it isn’t something on either of our radars, at least not in the next year or two.”

“Like I said just a little bit ago, my brother is pretty taken with you. If you want my two-cents on the two of you…” she pauses for a second.

“Yes, please,” I tell her.

“He’s very smitten with you. I’d be willing to say head over heels in love with you, he’s just scared to come out and say it. He doesn’t want to get hurt or put you on the spot. He’d probably marry you in a heartbeat if he thought that’s what you wanted out of your relationship.”

I’m a little shocked over what she’s just said. “I knew things were good between us, and I know that I’ve developed big love feelings for John, I just haven’t been sure if he’s on the same page,” I tell her honestly. “It’s only been a few months since we started dating, so I didn’t want to rush things.”

“I don’t think things need to be rushed, but I’d encourage you to maybe have some of those bigger talks with him. I know love can be scary and marriage takes work, trust me. But it can also be the best thing in life. To have that one person—your person—to lay in bed with every night and just talk about random things, or whatever is bothering you or what you’re excited about. Just having that person that knows you had a bad morning so they show up at the office with your favorite cup of coffee or lunch, or make you your favorite dinner just because.”

“We already have some of that down. I know this might be TMI, and I’m sorry if it is. But some of my favorite moments are when we’re cuddling up together in bed at night, all sleepy but not yet asleep. John likes to run his fingers through my hair—I think he doesn’t even realize that he’s doing it sometimes—but anyway back to what I was saying. We’ll talk about our days or what we want to get done the next day or weekend or whenever. He’ll sometimes tell me a story about something that happened during college or his early years playing in the pros.”

“Stephanie and I do the same, and I agree, it is some of the best moments of my day.”

“There you two are,” John’s deep voice greets us, causing me to jump slightly.

“Did Mason give you any trouble falling asleep?” Cindi asks him as he walks over and leans against the balcony railing.

“Not really. We did his bathroom stuff and then read a couple of books. He fell asleep about halfway through the second one, but I kept reading until the end just to make sure he was completely out.”

“Thank you for taking over and doing that for me tonight.”

“I don’t mind, you know that. Plus, it gives me a little bonding time with my little man,” he tells her. The love for his sister and nephew is so evident on his face that it makes my heart melt. It also has me thinking of what it would be like to watch John holding his own child—our child. I can only imagine that he’d be an amazing father, especially after seeing him with Mason tonight.

“I know, and he loves it, too,” she says.

“So, what are you two chattering about out here?” he asks, looking between the two of us. I don’t know if we look guilty, or he just assumes that we were discussing him. “Don’t believe a word she says,” he tells me, pointing at his sister. He almost finishes his statement without cracking a smile, but all it takes is Cindi to start laughing and he loses it.

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