Page 95 of I Loved You First

“So, have a conversation.”

She adamantly shook her head. “There’s no point. We’re heading down different paths. He wants what I most likely can’t give him. Brady deserves brothers and sisters. Cam’s such a good dad.”

Mom sighed. “There’s more to a love story than children.”

She hurried back to the drawers for her shorts and jeans, eager to be gone and get lost in her work. “Cam and I don’t have a love story. If we ever did, it’s well in the past.”

Mom toyed with the zipper on Brady’s backpack beside her on the bed. “You’re sure this is what you want? Because you’re scheduled to stay until next Wednesday.”

“I’m sure,” she said as she wiped at more tears. “I need to finish packing and drop off the truck. Can you give me a ride to the bus station?”

Mom stared at her for several long seconds before she nodded and stood. “Let me know when you’re ready to go.”

“I need to take care of a couple of things, but I’ll be ready in a few minutes.”

“Just let me know,” Mom repeated as she walked out of the room again.

twenty-four

Cam glanced at his dashboard clock as he drove downtown in the busy morning traffic. He had just over thirty minutes until his meeting with Darius, which couldn’t come soon enough. His lifelong friend had done him a major solid by squeezing him into his packed Monday schedule.

Rubbing at the tension in the back of his neck, he steamed out a breath, exhausted after a long night of little sleep and plenty of worrying. The weight of the world suddenly sat squarely on his shoulders, and it felt incredibly heavy, but he needed to stay strong for his son.

Gripping the wheel tighter as he accelerated through a yellow light, he found himself consumed by a new low-grade fear for Brady. He’d worked so hard to raise a happy, healthy little boy. Now, the emotional security he’d created for his five-year-old felt like it was in peril.

Ally’s return was something he’d never expected. Introducing Brady to his biological mother would take plenty of delicate navigation. But he should have paid more attention to the degree of Brady’s attachment to Fi.

He knew his son adored her. He knew the feeling was mutual, but Brady wanting Fiona to be his mom wasn’t something he saw coming. Yet he should have.

He and Fi had regularly talked about her eventual return to Seattle, but if he’d been more focused, he would have realized that books and maps weren’t enough of an explanation for Brady’s current level of understanding.

It made him sick to know that he’d ignored the most important rule he’d created for himself as a single father. He was crazy in love with Fiona, but allowing Brady to become confused by how much time the three of them were spending together was unacceptable.

Brady had been crushed when he didn’t get to share his surprise picture with Fiona yesterday—when Cam had told his son that Fi wouldn’t be able to come over after all.

Telling Fi that they needed to take a step back was one of the hardest things he’d ever done, especially when the time they had left together was so short. He’d yearned for her last night. He craved to be with her right now, but moving forward with Fi felt impossible when his life was off the rails.

Mostly, he had no idea what to do about much of anything at this point, but making sure Brady weathered the current storm unscathed was paramount. Dropping his son off at day camp and watching him laugh and play with his friends had been a good start to fixing the mess he’d made.

Cam turned right on Fifth Street, spotting the truck Fi was borrowing parked in its original spot in front of the Bennet & Sons building. Everything was falling apart, but seeing her was exactly what he needed.

Pulling into a parking space, he hurried to the door, frowning when he realized it was locked and all of the lights were off. Letting himself inside, he walked through the quiet common area. “Fi?”

He stopped in the doorway of her temporary office, noting that the whiteboard had been wiped clean and the desk had been pulled back to its original spot.

“Fi,” he called again, hurrying to his office as a sinking feeling suddenly consumed him.

Stepping into the room, he zeroed in on his desk, where the truck keys sat next to a zip drive and a piece of paper. Snatching up the note, he recognized Fi’s pretty handwriting.

Summer always seems to end too soon. Be happy, Cam.

—Fi

“Shit,” he whispered, forcing himself to sit in his chair and shove the stick in the zip drive when he wanted to go find Fi. He double-clicked on the file named Brady, and Fi’s gorgeous face popped up.

Cam recognized her bedroom at Stella’s place in the background. He also noted her puffy eyes and pink-tipped nose as she smiled brightly.

“Hi, buddy! I wanted to leave you this message because it’s time for me to get back to Seattle. Someone called my business card to let me know they need my help with a big party.”