Page 126 of Beautiful Thing

Felix rolls his eyes. “I’m pretty secure with my catch. Did you see that sucker? Should feed me and the missus for a week.” He beams with pride. “So seriously, what’s eating at you?”

I heave a long, weighty sigh. “Layla is moving out,” I admit finally.

“Whoa, what?” He scratches his head, looking downright shocked.Yeah, you and me both, brother. “When?”

“After your wedding. The minute she’s done pretending to be my girlfriend.” Layla can’t get away from me quickly enough. I shrug, doing a shitty job of trying to pretend that doesn’t bother me.

Felix doesn’t buy it. Maybe it’s my bitter tone that gives me away.

He shakes his head. “This isyourdoing,” he tells me with absolutely no pity. “It’s your own fault, y’know?”

“How is it my fault? She doesn’t want me. I haven’t held back in showing her how much I care but she doesn’t want me. There’s nothing else I can do.”

“Nothing, huh?” he scoffs. “Well, I’d try to come up with something if I were you. Because you’re about to let the woman of your dreams slip away.”

“If I try to change her mind, she’s going to break my damn heart.”

“Maybe,” Felix quips as he rises from his stool. “But when she leaves, you’re going to get your heart broken anyway. You might as well put your pride aside and try to get her to stay. What’s there to lose?”

Everything, dammit. Everything.

51

LAYLA

Today, I’m on my own.

I don’t understand why that simple statement feels so heavy.

With Archer being at work right now, it takes me longer to get around. It’s almost embarrassing how much I’ve come to rely on him without even realizing it. I’m going to owe him a gigantic thank-you when all of this is over.

He just always jumps in and does whatever he can to help me or Sky when we’re leaving the house. Putting on Sky’s shoes. Zipping up jackets. Making extra trips back into the house to grab whatever we’ve forgotten.The man is a lifesaver.

Maybe he loves you, a voice at the back of my mind whispers.Maybe he does all that for you because he loves you.

But I know the truth. Unless Archer utters those three little words to me, it would be stupid of me to make assumptions about his feelings. For now, I choose to assume that he’s only doing all these nice things because he’s a good guy. He’d help any woman in distress, no matter the situation. Besides, waiting around for my son and me to get ready would probably makehim late to work every single day if he weren’t pitching in so much.

In any case, it’s going to be tough when it’s time to move out. Not just because I’ll miss the extra help. Because I’ll missArcher.

My heart is already broken and we haven’t even moved out yet. I can imagine it’s only going to get worse when there’s actual distance between us.

I load Sky’s diaper bag full of toys and snacks into my car. Then we make the short drive to visit Razor’s grandmother at the nursing home.

After signing in at the front desk, we meet Grandma Dory in the cafeteria area. The room is buzzing with chatter and music, with lots of elderly men and women working together on an arts and crafts project. Glitter flecks and snowflake cutouts litter the floor as I carry Sky across the room.

We find that Grandma Dory is sitting off to the side at a smaller table. I’m about to ask why she’s not doing crafts with her friends, but as I approach, I notice a well-dressed gentleman standing next to her with a briefcase in front of him.

I frown. “Grandma Dory?” I say, a little uncertainty in my voice.

“Layla! Skylar!” With a smile, the older woman waves us over. “Sit. Sit.” She points at the extra chairs at the table.

I quickly get Sky set up with his toys on the floor nearby so he can play. Then I sit where I’m told. There’s a stack of paperwork on the table in front of me. I eyeball the documents warily.

Grandma Dory is wearing a cheeky grin as she slides a pen in my direction. “I just need you to sign a few of those papers for me, dear.”

My eyes dart up to the man who’s hovering over us. I feel a little weird with him watching me.

Then I look back at the older woman. “I don’t understand. What’s happening? Is something wrong?”

---