Page 6 of Until You

Kayla and Lauren both gasped and reached for her, pulling her in for an awkward group hug. A cervical cancer survivor, Willa had frozen her eggs before undergoing treatment. If she and Max wanted to have a baby, pursuing IVF was likely their best shot at a successful pregnancy.

“Oh, Willa, I’m so happy and hopeful for you,” said Kayla.

“I really hope this works for you guys,” added Lauren, giving her a squeeze. “I know it’s not a guarantee, right?”

Willa shook her head, but her smile wasn’t any less bright. “No, there are no guarantees, but we’re going to try. And if it’s not successful, we’re open to adoption.” Her eyes met Max’s and he nodded, smiling softly at his wife. It was amazing how far Max had come, slowly changing from grumpy and reserved to open and genuinely happy, and Kayla knew it was because of the way Willa loved him. She knew because she liked to think she’d had a similar effect on Sebastian, who was a different man—in a good way—from the one she’d wanted to throttle just a couple of years ago.

“So when do you start the process?” asked Kayla.

“In the fall. We both have to go through some testing first, and then they’ll need to thaw my eggs. They could all die during the thawing process, or they could thaw but not fertilize at all, or fertilize but not implant, so there are a lot of steps where things can go wrong. But I’m still excited to try.”

“You’re going to be a wonderful mom,” said Lauren. “No matter how it comes to be.” Her eyes were misty and she cleared her throat, then took a sip of her wine.

Willa gently laid a hand on Lauren’s arm. “Are you guys still trying?”

She nodded. “Yeah. No luck this month, though,” she said, lifting her glass and taking another sip.

“I know it feels like an eternity, but these things just take time sometimes,” said Sebastian kindly. A fresh wave of guilt made Kayla’s throat hurt as she swallowed some of her water. Here she was obsessing over the possibility of being pregnant when they weren’t even trying, and Lauren and Theo had been trying for a couple of months now without any luck. It didn’t seem fair.

“Are Lucian and Olivia coming by at all today?” asked Theo, changing the subject. Kayla didn’t miss the grateful squeeze Lauren gave his thigh.

Max shook his head. “No, I think they’re too busy with the rehearsal dinner plans for tonight.”

“The nanny has Cora?” Kayla asked. Lucian and Olivia were parents to the cutest little ten-month-old, and Kayla was looking forward to getting some baby cuddles in.

The thought made her stomach twist and pull as what ifs and maybes swirled through her mind. God, this not knowing was torture, and it didn’t look like she was going to have the chance to escape to the drugstore anytime soon.

“It’s too bad Javi can’t make it,” said Sebastian.

Max nodded. “Yeah, but it’s the middle of the baseball season, and he’s the manager of the team. He can’t just bail on the Longhorns. Aerin’s coming though, although she’s only able to fly in for the wedding tomorrow morning, and I think she’s taking the red eye back after the reception.”

“I assume she’s not bringing the girls with her, then?” asked Lauren, looking slightly disappointed.

Max shook his head. “No. The twins are staying home.”

“Have you seen Lucian or Olivia lately?” asked Theo. “I feel like every time I’ve tried to talk to him, he’s had some wedding thing to deal with. A tasting, a suit fitting, something.”

“It’s amazing the way your wedding can just consume you,” said Lauren, shaking her head with a small smile. “When we were planning ours, it was all I could think about.”

“Same,” added Willa.

“It’s a little surreal, honestly. I always thought he’d never get married, but I guess he was just waiting for the right one,” said Sebastian, rubbing a hand over his mouth. His eyebrows were pinched, a thoughtful expression on his face.

“Yeah, waiting for her to be old enough,” cracked Theo, and they all chuckled. Given that Lucian was almost twenty years older than his bride, Kayla couldn’t help but wonder if there was a grain of truth to Theo’s joke.

“Or maybe he was just too busy babysitting my sorry ass,” said Sebastian, the crease between his eyebrows deepening. Kayla reached over and laid a hand on his knee, giving him a reassuring squeeze. Coming back to the city always brought up complicated emotions for Sebastian. It was where he’d grown up, and therefore home in a sense, but also the site of his biggest failures and regrets, and he was reminded of them every single time they came.

“Lucian looked after all of us,” Max said quietly. “He was the father figure we all desperately needed and never had. He’s not perfect, but he tried his best.”

Theo nodded. “He did. Aerin, too.” A silence fell over the group and he leaned forward, his forearms. “So…did we ever figure out if he’s in the mafia?”

Kayla saw Sebastian shift in his seat and he glanced away. “I don’t know that it’s any of our business,” he said, shaking his head.

Max narrowed his eyes at Sebastian. “You know something, don’t you?”

Sebastian shrugged. “I know a bit. But he swore me to secrecy, and I’m not going to betray him.”

“He once told me that he was mafia-adjacent,” said Lauren with a little shrug. “Whatever that means.”

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