Page 89 of By the Letter

The living room was covered in blue streamers, balloons, presents, and a banner that said, “Happy Baby Shower!” Standing in the middle were my handful of friends, including Terry, Annabelle, Gabriela, a few other women from GoldMed, and even Kit, with her baby, Brooke, in a wrap on her chest.

Behind them all was Roman. His eyes locked on me as he mouthed, “Heeyyy, Goldie.”

I burst into tears. Ugly, scrunched face, racking sobs. I cried so hard I couldn’t see or speak or move.

Warm, strong arms wrapped me up and pulled me into an even warmer chest. I pressed my face against Roman’s shirt, wetting it with the river flowing down my cheeks.

“Shhh. I know those are happy tears, but I can’t even stand those, baby,” he cooed. “Settle down. Settle and let your friends celebrate you.”

“What are you doing here?” I cried softly.

“Someone has to lug all your gifts home.” He chuckled, his arms holding me tighter. “Your girls told me this was happening, and I couldn’t miss it. That okay?”

“Yeah,” I quaked. “It’s okay.”

Bea’s soft body molded to my back, and her lips pressed against my crown. “If you go into labor, Roman will have Clara and me thrown into jail.”

I snorted a laugh and turned my face to see her. “I’m not going into labor. Everyone’s lucky we’re not standing in a puddle of pee, though.”

She curled her lip. “Okay, maybe surprising you wasn’t the most well-thought-out plan.”

Sniffling, I wiped my cheeks and eyes with the back of my hand and turned in Roman’s arms. He held me against him, his hands roaming over my belly before settling in the middle and cupping it possessively.

“What did you do, Beatrice?” I whispered, overwhelmed by the beauty of this gesture.

Clara crowded into our group, her hand on my shoulder. “We love you so much, Shira, and you and this baby deserve to be celebrated. I knew you’d never ask for this, so Bea and I decided to give it to you. Are you mad?”

I shook my head, biting on my lip to stop a fresh wave of sobs. “How could I be mad? This is the sweetest thing anyone’s ever done for me.”

“Then come on. Let’s celebrate.” Clara took my hand in hers. “There’s cookies.”

With that promise, my feet came unglued, and I followed her into the living room, where all my friends were waiting.

Kit and Elliot’s first two children had her auburn hair. The newest one had thick, ebony hair, just like her father. She was tiny and adorable when strapped to Kit’s chest, but in Roman’s arms, she looked like a miniature baby doll.

He was holding her to give Kit a minute to eat, and I couldn’t take my eyes off him. He didn’t seem frightened by holding something so innately breakable. She was nestled in the crook of his arm, peaceful as he cooed at her.

Terry slid in next to where I was perched on a stool at the kitchen island. Retirement suited her. She’d cut her hair to little more than a buzz and had exchanged her power suits for athleisure. As shocked as I'd been by my departure from GoldMed, I was happy Terry finally got to relax after devoting so many years of her professional life to the company.

“I see it,” she stated.

“You do?”

“Mmm.” She rounded on me, stern and serious. “I was worried about you when you told me Roman Wells had gotten you pregnant. I truly thought you’d lost your mind. But now I see it.”

“Bright side, he’ll be a great dad,” I told her, knowing in my gut it was true.

One eyebrow winged. “That’s all?”

“That’s all. Well, we’ve become good friends over the last few months, which I think is important—”

“Okay, honey. Just let me know when the wedding shower is. I’ll be there with bells on too. That’s my bright side. I’m retired now, so I never turn down an invitation to a party.”

A laugh burst out of me. “Your bells are going to get rusty since that won’t be happening.” I squeezed her hand. “Thanks for coming all the way to Breck. It means a lot to me.”

“Of course.” She leaned closer, squeezing my hand in return. “I miss my friend, but seeing you move on like this makes his absence less hard to swallow. You need to make the most of this life you’ve got, Shira. Grab it with both hands.”

“I’m trying.”

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