Page 44

CHAPTER

FORTY-THREE

AMBER

I’m tired after our full day of eating, my tour of the salon, and then shopping for nursery furniture. But I’m excited for my first WAG night and had an iced coffee on the way home to perk up.

I change out of my jeans into leggings and a pink sweatshirt. Mel said it was casual, and I’m all about comfort.

I tie on white tennis shoes and head downstairs where Ford is feeding Nella her bottle. Ford and Nella are studying each other intently while she eats, and I take a moment to watch the sweetness of their quiet moment.

When I walk into the living room, they both look up. Nella grins around the nipple of her bottle, making milk drip all over her chin.

I snort a laugh. “Babies are kind of disgusting.”

He wrinkles his nose and nods. “Have fun with the girls tonight.”

“Are you sure you’ll be okay taking care of Nella?”

His eyebrows raise slightly. “We’ll be fine. Have a safe walk,” he teases, knowing Mel and West live just down the street .

I step forward, first kissing him on the cheek, then Nella. “Text me if you need anything.”

He waves me off, and I leave through the front door to find four giant hockey players on the front stoop. “Hey, guys.”

One at a time, the guys say hi. I recognize the foursome as Colby Knight, Weston Kershaw, Bruce McBride, and standing at the very back is Mitch Anderson.

“I’m so excited to babysit,” Bruce says, grinning.

“Me too!” Colby shoves him out of the way and rushes through the front door.

Bruce gapes for a moment, then runs after him, yelling, “Don’t hog the baby!”

West laughs and follows them inside.

Mitch lingers for a second, his hands in his pockets. “It’s been nice to see Remy so happy these past few weeks,” he says. Then, as if he’s self-conscious about his own comment, he grunts. “I only came for the pizza.” Without another word, he walks inside and shuts the door behind him.

I laugh to myself and head down the street. I don’t need the house number to find West and Melanie’s house because all the girls are huddled by the front door, grinning and waiting for me.

“Amber!” Mel yells, waving me forward like she’s paranoid I’ll run away.

“Hey, ladies!” I wave back.

They pull me into the warm home. I expect to find moving boxes and materials still scattered about, but there’s no sign they just moved in a few weeks ago. Pictures are hung on the wall, furniture and rugs are in place, there’s even a dry-erase calendar on the wall that’s filled in and color coordinated. It looks like they’ve lived here for years.

“Wow, you didn’t waste any time unpacking. ”

Noel scoffs and elbows Mel playfully. “This one’s a bit of an organizer.”

Andie laughs. “That’s an understatement.”

Mel rolls her eyes. “Oh, stop! Keeping my hands busy helps my anxiety,” she explains.

“Fair enough,” I say. “You’re welcome to put together Nella’s nursery, if you need something to do.” I’m joking, but the way her face lights up tells me she would go over there right now and put it all together. And she’d have a blast doing it.

“You can have her after she plans my wedding,” Noel teases. “I didn’t hire her; she just took over.”

“And you love it,” Mel says with a harumph.

Mel guides us through the foyer and kitchen, into a formal living room. It’s not attached to the kitchen like Ford’s. I like that all the houses in this neighborhood look different, and are not all the same layouts.

Mel and West have tasteful tufted suede couches, in a medium brown. The earthy color contrasts beautifully with the indigo paint color and white stone fireplace.

A round wooden coffee table sits in the center of the room, and it’s covered with chopping-block cutting boards and lined with meticulously plated charcuterie. There are four champagne flutes filled with Prosecco, and Mel hands one of them to me.

“Wow, you girls know how to throw a party. Ford just ordered pizza and called it a day.”

Andie giggles. “Can we talk about how cute it is that you’re the only person who calls him Ford?”

I take a sip of my Prosecco and snatch a piece of dark chocolate from one of the charcuterie boards. “I always forget the rest of the world knows him as Remy. ”

“It’s so sweet,” Noel says, picking up one of the champagne flutes. “It shows you know him on a more personal level.”

Andie waggles her eyebrows. “Very personal.”

Noel sighs. “How do you turn everything dirty?”

Andie shrugs, grabbing a crystal plate and loading it up with meats and cheeses.

Mel takes a plate and fills—no, organizes—her plate. Meat on one side, cheese on the other. Macadamia nuts in the center. Nothing touching. “So, the guys got Nella tonight, but do we get her next time?”

“It sounds like you want partial custody of Amber’s baby,” Noel jokes.

The comment reminds me of Theo’s text. I thought he’d give up easily if I just ignored him, but then he tried to call twice today. I’m so happy here with Ford, starting a new life. And I hate that he’s dragging me down, making me worry. Can’t he just let me be happy? He already made his choice, and he didn’t choose me and Nella. And although a year ago I was crushed by that, I’m grateful he didn’t. He showed me he wasn’t the man for me. And in turn, I learned how great Ford and I are together. I might have never had the chance to discover this had he stayed with me just to do the honorable thing. There’s a part of me that’s sad for my daughter, of course. I know she’ll have questions about her father someday.

But Ford has stepped up as her dad, and he’s done a damn good job of it.

“You okay?” Noel asks, looking regretful about the joke she made.

“Yeah, sorry.” I shake my head. “Nella’s dad keeps contacting me, and it’s kind of stressing me out.”

“You want to talk about it?” Andie asks, looking supportive but not trying to pressure me .

I smile. “Yeah, it’s nice to have girls to talk to. I didn’t have this back in Ohio.”

“You have a whole slew of us now, girl.” Mel pulls me into a quick side hug.

“I love it.” I hug her back, then sigh. “I’m so happy with Ford. And it feels like my ex, Theo, waited until I was happy to try to have a relationship with Nella. Like he can’t just let me live my life in peace.”

“Ugh, what a prick,” Andie’s face scrunches in annoyance.

“Right?” I groan. “But someday, Nella might want to know her father. Even if he’s not the man who acted as her dad. If that makes sense.”

Mel nods and sits on one of the couches with her plate in hand. “I see how that could be complicated. Trying to make the best choice for her without her being old enough to have an opinion.”

“What does Remy—sorry, Ford—say about it?” Noel asks.

I hedge, not knowing how to answer. So, I opt for the truth. “We’ve barely had time to talk about it, honestly. But I know he’ll support me no matter what.”

Our relationship is new and wonderful and blooming. This whole situation feels like a lot of pressure to add to something so delicate. Like a butterfly trying to pry itself out of a cocoon too soon. We need time to grow and thrive before the outside elements get us down.

But at the same time, I know Ford is a sturdy place to land. That his big shoulders can handle more than I’m giving him credit for. And I want to talk to him about all of this, but every time I try, we get interrupted with something else. Or he kisses me, and I forget anyone else exists.

I resist the urge to fan myself. Just thinking about Ford Remington has me dizzy in the head .

“Oh, girl. You’re smitten.” Andie rolls her lips, trying not to laugh.

Noel grins. “She’s a woman in love.”

“Madly in love.” Mel sighs.