Page 47 of Beautiful Mess

She huffs out a humorless laugh, and my heart squeezes for her. God, I remember how lonely and isolating it can feel after having a baby. Not to mention, all the intense hormones rushing through your body, never knowing if you wanted to laugh or cry or scream.

“Gemma, hey, look at me.” Reaching over, I squeeze her hand. “You haven’t missed a single thing, I promise. Where is this coming from?”

“I promised Sutton earlier this week that I would take him to the game shop yesterday morning so he could pick up some new game that came out yesterday that he’s been so excited about.” Smiling at me through the tears welling up in her eyes, Gemma goes on. “Then Rosie was up every half hour the entire night cluster feeding, and I ended up sleeping in too late. By the time we got there, they were sold out. And because Sutton is such a sweetheart, he told me it was fine, even though I know he was bummed out. I ordered it for him online as soon as we got home, but still, I let him down.”

“Oh, Gem, I’m so sorry. I know it’s easier said than done, but try not to beat yourself up. You’ve got so much on your plate, and in a week when he has the game, he won’t even remember this.” All I want is to get up and give my sister a huge bear hug, but the woman doing my toenails probably wouldn’t appreciate that. “Please believe me when I say Sutton knows you love him, and he knows you’re doing the best you can. Have you talked to Everett about this?”

She nods, swiping away the moisture under her eyes with her fingers. “Yes, and he’s been so amazing and understanding and helpful, but it really helps talking to another mom who gets it.” Blowing out a breath, Gemma smiles and says, “Now, please, let’s change the subject. These lovely women didn’t agree to a therapy session when they sat down to do our nails.” The nail techs smile up at us awkwardly, and it makes both of us chuckle. “Tell me all about your date, and don’t leave a single thing out.”

My cheeks heat as I dive into the concert and how much fun I had. My stomach does a series of somersaults recounting how it felt when I realized how much effort Conway put into planning the evening. The heat on my cheeks spreads down to my neck when I tell her about going back to his place after the concert ended. I don’t give her every juicy detail because one, we’re in averypublic place and we live in averysmall town. People talk, and I don’t need to be the center of town gossip for the dirty, filthy sex I had last night. But also, because last night feels special. Conway was vulnerable and honest with me after we had sex. He told me things I’m sure he doesn’t normally share.

Hearing him describe how he got to where he is professionally left me in awe, and learning about his second divorce and how he was cheated on brought me a better understanding of him. The way he recognized his own wrongdoings in their marriage when he could have easily blamed her for everything, refusing to take accountability of his faults like so many men do, took me by surprise. Conway’s been burned in the same way I have, and I can’t help but see him in a different light.

“Wow,” Gemma breathes out, a huge grin on her face, as I finish. “Way to go, C—guy!”

I snort at her almost failed attempt at not saying his name because, again, very public place. The last thing I need is people finding out it was Conway I went out with, and it somehow getting back to one of our kids.

“Do you think y’all will go out again?” Gemma asks as we stand up and head toward the front to pay.

The million-dollar question.Scrunching my face, I shrug. “I don’t know. We didn’t talk about much before I left this morning.”

Nudging my arm with her elbow, Gemma gives me a shit-eating grin while wagging her eyebrows. “Yeah, I’m sure you two didn’t talk much, you dirty girl.”

“Oh, shut up.” I roll my eyes, breathing out a laugh as I reach for my wallet and grab my debit card to hand the lady behind the register. “I’ll pay for hers too.”

“Oh, no need, Miss Grace,” the woman says. “It’s already been taken care of.”

My eyebrows pinch with confusion. Turning my head toward Grace, I ask, “Did you already pay for both of us?”

“Nope.” My sister looks as puzzled as I do.

“I’m sorry, I’m confused.” I huff out a small chuckle, shaking my head. “What do you mean, it’s been taken care of?”

“Oh, uh, there’s a note in the system that your account has been prepaid for a whole year.”

“What?”I screech louder than I mean to. “No, I think there’s been some sort of mix-up. I don’t think I’ve ever pre-paid before. Is it possible that another Grace pre-paid and it got accidentally credited to my account?”

Shaking her head once, she turns the monitor around, pointing toward the note in question. “No, ma’am. Grace Astor, that’s you.”

“Oh my god,” Gemma murmurs beside me.

I whip my head to the side to look at her. “What?”

“Look at the bottom of the note, Grace. Right there.” She points toward the screen. “The name on the card that was used.”

My eyes scan the tiny text, heart jumping clear into my throat as read the name.Conway M. Levine.

Holy. Shit.

There’s no way.

The woman claps her hands together and smiles cheerfully at us. “So, you’re both all set. Have a wonderful afternoon, and we’ll see you next time.”

Stuffing my wallet back in my purse, I look over at my sister as my mind races. It’s not until we step out onto the sidewalk that either of us says anything.

“I take it Conway didn’t tell you he did this?” Gemma asks, sliding her sunglasses on her face as I do the same.

“He sure did not.”This doesn’t make any sense.

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