Page 77 of Baby For The Billionaire Silver Fox

Cue the waterworks again. I sniffled and gave a watery smile. “You’re the best.”

“You know what? I think you need to celebrate this pregnancy. No more hiding it. You are not ashamed. This child is a blessing, and we are going to honor that,” Nana said.

“Let’s get Heather over here, and how about Matt’s mom, Santana?” Lexi asked. “Ready to tell them the good news? I’ve got snacks, plus I can make up a quick charcuterie board.”

“Um, okay. Is this a baby announcement party? Can I invite two new friends from work?”

“Yes and yes. We’re going to circle the wagons,” Nana said firmly. “We women have got each others’ backs, and we’re going to celebrate you and your daughter. Wait... do you know if it’s a girl?”

“Nope. Not yet. I’m just going with a gut feeling.”

It was a relief to finally share this secret with others. For the next hour, I made myself not think about Dan and enjoy the little impromptu party. The women were all truly happy for me, and that made me feel so good.

I hugged them all as they left. “Good night, ladies. I didn’t know we could be this silly without alcohol. I’ve clearly been missing out.” This had been wonderful and what I desperately needed. I leaned against the door frame and yawned.

“Get to bed, Nana. Need any help?”

“No. You can go ahead and take Buddy out.”

Buddy looked at me in anticipation as I pulled on my coat and snapped the leash on him.

“Brrr, Buddy. Let’s be quick tonight, okay? I mean, you’ve already sniffed all the bushes and all the trees a million times. Just do your business, so we can go to bed.”

I pulled the leash up my arm so I could thrust my hands into my pockets. I hit the familiar shape of my phone. I must have gone several hours without looking at it, which was not like me. I pulled it out and saw I had several missed calls from Dan. He hadn’t left any messages, though. Anxiety slammed into me full force, and my hands shook as I looked to see if there were any new texts from him. There were not.

He probably wanted to tell me in real-time what a horrible person I was. I already knew. I knew what he would say about me and my baby. And I didn’t blame him one bit. But I didn’t want to hear him say it because I didn’t think I could take it. It might break me in two. Again, thewhat-ifscircled in a continuous manic loop through my head.

What if I’d met him before I got pregnant?

What if I’d never gotten pregnant?

What if this baby had been his?

I shook my head angrily. This was a useless exercise that would make me crazy. “Buddy, please go already,” I pleaded with the dog. He did as asked.

“Good boy. Let’s go to bed. I need snuggles, okay?” His tail thumped against the wall as he pushed past me up the stairs hitting the cone on the railing a few times. I was so glad Buddy didn’t judge me.

- 28 -

Dan

“Mandy,it’spasttimefor you to leave Cooperstown and go back to Chicago,” I said, scowling at her. The coffee was churning in my stomach. I’d ended up dragging her back to my place, intending to have it out with her. I really wanted to get her out of my life once and for all. I was beyond pissed at her for the scene she created in the coffee shop. She was mean and vindictive. I didn’t know how I hadn’t seen that in her before, but it was obvious to me now.

With Mandy, I had gone from loving her, to being destroyed when she had an affair and then to accepting she was gone. I had moved on. Now I was seeing her as she really was. Maybe I chose not to see her before because I was looking for love and normalcy after Afghanistan.

“But darling, I don’t have a place to live anymore. I thought I would stay here with you,” Mandy pouted.

“No,” I said emphatically, my arms crossed and my legs spread in a stance that looked like I was getting ready for a bar fight.

“I can’t afford to live in Chicago on my own. It’s so expensive,” Mandy whined. She looked up at me with sorrowful eyes.

I marched over to a drawer where I stashed the checkbook I rarely used. Many things can’t be solved with money, but I was sure this one could. I quickly wrote out a check for an obscene amount and handed it to Mandy.

Her eyes bulged when she noted the amount. “Oh my!” She drew it to her heart in a pose of gratefulness.

“This is not a loan, in case you were wanting to pay me back,” I said, knowing that sounded snarky.

I tried to speak gently. “This is to get you back on your feet.”

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