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“Mom, they are young enough to be my sons!”
I gulp my wine.
“Oh, are they?” She shrugs.
Yes. Yes, they are.
And it’s their father who takes my breath away.
“How’s James?” Dad asks.
This.
This is why I stayed away for two weeks. I want to escape these questions, make an excuse, and head home to hide under my duvet.
Being forty, single, and childless is not fun. While my parents love and support me, they want grandkids. Neither Eric nor I have given them any yet. Though Eric is five years younger than me, so he has a greater chance.
The familiar tightness in my chest returns.
It’s a reminder that I need to make smart decisions from this point in my life. Sleeping with Ward might’ve been incredible in the moment, but it wasn’t taking me in the direction I want to go.
Being a mother.
Finding a life partner.
He is going to take time to get over her—time I don’t have—if he ever truly will.
So, I’ve decided, I need to take matters into my own hands. I’ve booked appointments at an IVF clinic and a top dating agency.
It’s doing things upside down, I realize, but at forty-one, I am not waiting for anyone anymore.
I suppose it’s like buying two lottery tickets and seeing which one I win.
Or perhaps I won’t win either.
What I do know is that Ward Montgomery is unavailable and is on a different path in life than I am.
You will never love me.
Goodbye, Ward.
CHAPTER TEN
WARD
I STAND IN MY OFFICE—WHICHI still maintain at Montgomery Enterprises—with one hand nestled in the pocket of my Tom Ford pants and the other holding a coffee mug to my lips as I stare at the gorgeous woman on TV.
Penelope.
My Penelope.
She’s not yours.
“This morning on the breakfast show we have Penelope Goldsmith here from Paws Welfare. Good morning.”
“Good morning, Kelly.” Penelope smiles, and the sound of her smooth, sexy voice slides through my body like a lightning bolt.
I can’t look away. I’m mesmerized.