Page 47 of Rockstar Baby

“And there’s Maggie and Wolf to do that as well.”

“Yes.” He smiled, so quickly that it would’ve been easy to miss if the effect hadn’t lingered in his eyes. He might not go on about them to a near-stranger, but his family provided him with a solid foundation that had changed his view.

A month ago, I hadn’t understood it. Not that I did fully now either. But here I was in Crescent Cove again, looking for Ivy around corners and peering toward the kitchen for any random glimpse of flame-red braids.

Polly, the waitress, returned with our drinks and asked for our orders. I had to get a big boy breakfast, even if Kellan cleared his throat about six times.

Whatever. At least I wasn’t wearing can headphones large enough to make Dumbo jealous.

We made small talk about how Kellan’s songwriting had been going and his current talks with his band. They hadn’t jammed together in a while, but he’d invited them all out to the cabin this summer. He also invited me—and Ian, who I hadn’t realized he knew on any more than a casual basis. The rock business was pretty damn incestuous. That was how I’d met Ian in the first place, after all.

“His fiancée is pregnant, so I’m not sure how he’ll be with traveling this summer. She’s due soon, I think.” Even as I said the words, they shocked me all over again.

Ian was younger than me, and he hadn’t even drawn a short straw in Crescent Cove. He’d actually—wait for it—planned and hoped for and actively tried to plant one in his not-even wife. And he’d succeeded in remarkable time.

“So, he can bring her along too. And the kid. Wolf could use a pal.” Kellan shrugged, pausing as Polly returned with our food. Quick service in this place. “We keep adding on. We’ll need more guest rooms at this rate.”

“You can actually meet his fiancée before you invite them to stay for a week. Zoe’s family owns Happy Acres.” I circled my finger over the table. “In your milieu here, isn’t it?”

Kellan dropped a French fry in his cup of salad dressing on the side and didn’t seem to notice. “No shit? Wolf loves that place. We do the hayrides up there in the fall.”

“I’ve never been. Ian is there now spending time with his new family-to-be. Said it was kismet or some rubbish that I was meeting you here.” I rolled my eyes and forked up sausage. I sampled it, deciding right away it wasn’t as good as Ivy’s.

Surprise, surprise.

“So, you’re going up?”

“I didn’t make any plans. I came here to work with you, not run off on jaunts to the country.” Not that Crescent Cove was exactly a metropolis.

Kellan chuckled. “Dude, I respect your work ethic, but you know, loosen your shorts now and then.” He saluted me with his coffee cup. “Life’s more enjoyable that way.”

“My shorts are not too tight.”

At least they wouldn’t be until I saw Ivy again.

A low hum buzzed under my skin. Where was she? Day off? Vacation?

Had she met some new man and run away to Paris?

Gee, fanciful much?

After plowing through his salad, Kellan shoved the plate aside and went to work on his sandwich. He didn’t say anything while I poked at my potatoes and wished they’d been made by a red-haired siren rather than a kindly older woman.

“You know what I did last time I was here?”

“Yeah, you worked with me.”

“Before and after. Let’s just say I wasn’t alone.” I stabbed a sausage. “My shorts were all the way loose then, let me tell you.”

He winced and held up a hand. “TMI, bro. It wasn’t an insult. Really. Just saying you come across the country, you should make time to see your buddy if you’re able to.” He jerked a shoulder. “If not, no harm, no foul.”

I forced down some sausage. It had a nice flavor, but I wasn’t thinking about food. I was thinking about Ivy, and how I was in her town and had no fucking way to contact her unless I sat here in this diner day and night. And that was if she even wanted to see me again.

A lot could change in a month.

Your fault, genius. You were the one who wanted to keep it simple.

I tended to do that too often. I didn’t know how to foster connections with people outside of a work sphere. Even Ian was only my friend because he’d practically shoved himself into my life. I certainly hadn’t opened the door. Although he had a family of his own now, he still made time for me, but I usually didn’t feel it necessary to return the favor.