“He sings about riding solo, and I’ll be flying solo to Miami. It feels symbolic somehow.”
“Mel, that song is so old.”
The light signals we can cross and she leads the way. “So what if it’s an old song? It’s still good.”
“You make me laugh. I’m going to miss you so much.”
“Why? You told me on Friday that you’re moving there soon. Time will fly and we’ll be together again.”
I step up onto the sidewalk and walk toward the deli. “I don’t know, Mel.”
She stops mid-stride and faces me. “Do not tell me you’re backing out.”
I sigh. “I have to find a job first.”
“Move first and find one once you get there.”
“How am I supposed to move when I don’t know how much money I’ll be making? I need the specifics so I know what I can afford.”
She raises her brows and plants her hand on her hip. “That is the weakest excuse you could’ve given.”
“It’s not an excuse.”
“It is because you have plenty of money. Shit, Dori. You have enough money to never have to work another day in your life.”
I shake my head. “I am not touching that money. It’s going to be returned as soon as I can get the routing numbers from Hunter.”
“Then move in with Jami. You’re practically living with him now, so I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t mind.”
My heart balloons at the thought. “Maybe, but he hasn’t broached the subject. I don’t want to put that kind of relationship pressure on him.”
She shrugs and continues to the deli. “Jami won’t think it’s pressure if you bring it up. Before he got shot, he told me he was going to your loft to get you back, and he wasn’t going to give up until he made you his for life.”
I look at her with rounded eyes as I open the door to the sandwich shop. “He told you that and you’re just now telling me?”
She strolls in before me. “I got distracted by his near-death experience.”
“That makes sense.” I follow her in. “I told him this morning I was afraid to get pregnant again. It was terrifying.”
“Hold on to that thought. We can talk about it over lunch.”
I nod as we reach the counter and order our sandwiches and drinks. We find a table in the corner of the deli and get seated for lunch.
She lifts her turkey club. “Tell me about your conversation with Jami.”
“I was in the nursery, considering all the loss it represents. He came in and told me he wanted kids with me. It went from there. The worst part is it’s the anniversary of losing his son. I felt like the biggest asshole alive.” I take a bite of my avocado BLT.
She swallows her food. “Oh, Dori, that’s terrible for both of you. So how did it go?”
I pause until my mouth isn’t full. “He broke down, but once we talked, he asked me what I thought about surrogacy or something along those lines.”
“We’ve never talked about that. How do you feel about it?”
“I need to do more research about it and talk to my therapist. I don’t want to make a quick decision and then, for whatever reason, change my mind and hurt him.”
“That’s good thinking.”
“But I have to admit, knowing he wants to have a baby with me makes me…happy.”
