Page 114 of The Fake Out

Lily slumped into one of the kitchen chairs and drained her glass. Max and I shared a concerned look.

“Everything okay, Lil?” I asked.

“No.”

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

Max bit her lip, and I could tell she felt uncomfortable.

“This single mom thing’s hard.”

“You looked pretty cozy with Logan,” I teased. “Noticed you decided to sit next to him when you got here.”

She shook her head. “It was the only open seat. We were just commiserating about how hard it is. I can’t believe he’s raising a kid. He’s so young.”

I laughed at her. “Um, so are you.”

I handed Max platters to take out to the backyard, and I think she was grateful to get the escape. I sat down next to Lily and pulled her into a big hug.

“Thanks, I needed that,” she said.

“I could tell. Listen, Seth straight-up sucks, but you know Blaise and I are here for you. I’ll babysit whenever you need. You have a team to lean on. And you can still move in here.”

She shook her head. “Thanks for the offer, but no. I can’t do that. Some days it’s just hard.”

“I can’t even imagine, but you’re so strong, and your little girl’s gonna grow up kicking ass and taking names.”

She wiped her eyes. “V, I’m glad you don’t hate me and that we became friends.”

“I could never hate you; you didn’t know. Worked out for me, and it will work out for you someday soon.”

She sighed. “I hope you’re right.”

I knew I was right. I saw the way she and Logan looked at each other today. If that wasn’t love at first sight, I didn’t know what was. They might need a push about it, though. And yes, Logan was exactly the teammate I had in mind for my friend. He was a gentleman, and he knew how to take responsibility. They were both single parents, too; it was a perfect match.

The rest of the afternoon went off without a hitch, and by the time we were crawling into bed, I was too tired for anything but sleep. I laid across Blaise’s chest, and he played with my hair.

“Sweets?” Blaise asked.

“Hmm?”

“I want a baby.”

I looked up at him in surprise. “What?”

He sighed. “Sweets, we see Lily’s little girl and Logan’s nephew all the time, and I want that. I want to hold my own baby in my arms and give them the world.”

When we got back together, we talked about wanting kids eventually, but we weren’t in a rush. So this was a surprise.

“Okay…”

“If you’re not ready yet, that’s okay.”

“Blaise, I have baby fever. And every time you hold Rosie, I think about what a good daddy you’re gonna be. It does something to me.”

I felt his chuckle vibrate across my whole body, and then he shifted me so I was straddling his thick thighs.

He reached up and caressed my cheek. “Yeah, what does it do to you?”