by Kaylee Ryan
“Burn!” Kent says.
“Nope. Just the thought of it has you tied in knots,” Mark defends his statement.
“It is what it is,” I say, not giving one single fuck that they’re going to razz me about this for eternity.
“Damn, he’s too far gone. We’ve lost him,” Kent says in all seriousness.
“Har har. Eat your damn food so we can get back to work.”
We spend the rest of the lunch hour talking about the fight this weekend and who we think is going to take the win. The afternoon flies by and I’m glad; I’m anxious to get home and see my boy. Mom said he’s been great today, not fussy at all.
Then, after some male bonding, I’m going to call Kendall, if for no other reason than to just hear her voice.
I get to Mom and Dad’s about five thirty. The saint that she is, Mom has dinner ready and insists I stay and eat. I don’t fight her on it, as it’ll give me more time at home tonight. Not to mention frozen pizza can only take a man so far.
I’m sitting at the table with Knox on my lap; I haven’t put him down since I walked through the door. I miss the little guy during the day.
“How’s work?” Dad asks as we sit down to eat.
“Good. The remodel is going well. We should be done with the kitchen tomorrow and then we’ll move on to the bathrooms.”
“Need anything?” he asks.
“Nah, I’m good.” I take a bite of my pot roast.
“He was an angel today, like always,” Mom chimes in.
I laugh. “When he’s two, running around and terrorizing the place, you’ll still say he’s an angel.”
Dad chuckles. “That’s our right, son.”
I’m fortunate that they want to watch him every day. Sure, there are daycares, but I like the fact that he’s with family. I know he’s safe and his needs are met. I’m not used to having to worry about that, but now it’s at the top of the list.
“How’s he been sleeping?” Mom asks.
“The last few nights he’s slept six hours straight. I’ve felt like I won the lottery.”
“I remember those days,” Dad says.
“He’s a good baby,” Mom tells us.
We finish dinner and I offer to help clean up, but they both push me out the door, telling me to get home and get settled. Mom has Knox’s bags already packed, so I load him in the truck and we head home.
We run through what’s starting to be our routine. Knox gets his bath, which he seems to enjoy—well, at least he’s not crying. He hangs out in the swing while I clean up the house and pack his bag for the next day. I make his nighttime bottle and settle in on the couch, with him in my arms. He’s sleeping soundly, so I don’t wake him up to eat. Instead, I pick up my phone and call Kendall.
“Hey,” she says brightly.
“Hi. How was the rest of your day?”
“Same old. How about you?”
“We’ll be done with the kitchen tomorrow, and then we can start on the bathrooms. The guys and I are hanging out here Saturday night to watch the fight.”
“That’s great. You guys are making good time. Do you need a sitter?” she asks.
“What?”
“For Saturday, do you need a sitter?”
“Uh, no. I mean, we’re going to be here, so it’s fine.”
“I just thought I would ask. I know you’re doing this on your own, and it helps to get a break every now and then.”
She’s just. . . .”Thank you, sweet girl, but I’m good. I feel like I spend a lot of time away from him as it is.”
“You have to have a life too, Ridge. There’s nothing wrong with leaving him to go out with friends.”
Honestly, since the day I found out I was a father, the thought hasn’t even crossed my mind. My biggest worry was childcare while at work, but before I could even voice that, my parents’ were asking if they could watch him.
“Yeah, I just . . . we’re still learning. He and I are starting to get into a routine,” I tell her. I look down at him, grinning a toothless grin in his sleep. “He’s smiling,” I tell Kendall.
“Aww, I want to see,” she says.
“I read that he shouldn’t do this for a couple more weeks. My boy’s a genius.”
She laughs. “He’ll be four weeks on Sunday, right?”
“Yeah.”
“He’s on the timeline,” she tells me. “You have to snap a picture so I can see him.”
“Let me call you back and we can video chat,” I suggest.
“Good idea.” The phone goes dead.
“She’s excited to see you, bud. Keep those smiles coming, yeah?” He’s snoozing away with a little grin tipping his lips while I video call Kendall back.
“Lemme see.” She’s smiling.
I turn the phone so she can see little man sleeping in my arms. “Look at him! He’s getting so big.”
“He’s tiny,” I argue with her.
“Yes, he is, but he’s growing. I can tell.”
“He’s a good eater, that’s for sure. It’s actually time for his bottle, but the books say not to wake them to eat.”
“Yeah, stretch it out as long as you can. That will help him go longer and sleep longer at night.”
We talk about anything and everything for another fifteen minutes or so before Knox starts to stir. “Looks like someone’s hungry.” I point the phone back to him so she can see him. His little lip, which was just tilted in a smile, is now jutted out. He’s getting ready to cry. “I better change him and get him fed.”
“Give him a hug from me.”
“Will do. Talk to you soon. Hey, uh . . . Reagan’s coming over Saturday night to watch the fight with us. You and Dawn are welcome to come.”
“I have plans with my parents’ this weekend.”
“Right, of course. Well, if you change your mind, you know where we’ll be.”
“Okay,” she says softly.
“Goodnight, sweet girl.”
I slide my phone in my pocket then walk through the house, turning off all the lights and locking the door. Upstairs, I change his diaper and settle into the rocker to give him his bottle. He takes it like a champ as always, and then he’s right back to sleep. After placing him in bed, I make sure the monitor is turned on and quietly close his door.
I take a long, hot shower and feel exhaustion setting in. Slipping into some boxer briefs, I climb into bed. As soon as my eyes close, I hear the vibration of my phone on the nightstand. I debate on letting it go until morning but decide against it. I reach for it and see a new text message.
Kendall: Good night.
Me: Good night.
I drift off to sleep with a smile on my face and thoughts of the beautiful Kendall.
Chapter 26
Today has flown by. I had a text when I woke up from Ridge—just a “good morning, have a good day,” but really it was more than that. It’s the fact that I was on his mind when he woke up. He’s on mine too, been there for days. Mom called about two hours ago and said they were on their way home from the airport. They invited Dawn and me to dinner this evening, but I suggested we bring dinner to them. They’ve been traveling, and I’m sure going out to dinner is the last thing they want to do. Mom happily agreed, so I told her we’d be over around seven.
“You sure you’re good with hanging out with my parents’ tonight?” I ask Dawn.
“Seriously, Kendall? I can’t wait to hear about their trip.”
“Okay, just thought I’d check.”
“I’m ready to go, you?” she asks.
“Yeah, I just need to grab my phone from my room.” I grab it, throw it in my purse, and we’re off to pick up the pizza.
My parents’ are on the front porch when we pull in. Their arms are around each other, and they’re both wearing relaxed smiles.
“You two look great,” I say in greeting.
“That’s what two weeks of pampering will do for you,” Mom replies.
“We need to take a cruise, Kendall,” D
awn says.
“I agree. We should look into that, for sure.”
“Come on in, girls, and fill us in on what we missed,” Dad says, holding open the door.
“We want to hear about the trip,” I tell him.
“Your mother took a ton of pictures.” He laughs.
We devour the pizza and listen to them tell us all about their vacation. “Tell us about you two. What have we missed?” Mom asks.
“Kendall has a boyfriend,” Dawn sing-songs.
I smack her arm. “What the hell?”
Mom and Dad laugh. “Oh, really? And who is this guy? Is he worthy of my little girl?” Dad asks, amused.
“He’s not my boyfriend.”
“He wants to be.” Dawn laughs.
“What do you want?” Mom asks.
Have I mentioned that my parents’ are amazing? Not one day growing up did I not ever feel loved and wanted. I owe them everything.
“I-I don’t know.”
“Liar,” Dawn taunts.
I seriously need to look for a new best friend.
“Fine, I . . . like him. Okay, there, I like him.”
“And . . . ?” Dad urges with a smile.
“And, he says he likes me. He’s a single father.”
“What’s wrong with that?” Mom asks.
I sigh. “Nothing. His baby is adorable, but his mother, she didn’t make it. He’s only a month old and I just . . . I don’t think he’s ready, and I don’t want to be the rebound girl.”
“How do you know you will be?” Dad asks.
I just stare at him, waiting for him to say more.
“How do you know what the relationship was? I can tell you that if he loved her, he wouldn’t be ready to move on, telling you that he likes you,” he says.
“Thank you!” Dawn exclaims. “That’s what I’ve been trying to tell her for days now. She needs to get his story.”
“We’ve talked about it, but he said he wants it to be face to face. We just haven’t had the time. We both work, and he has his baby to take care of.”
“Bring the baby to us, and you two can have a night out,” Mom suggests. “It’s been years since I’ve had a little one to cuddle.”
“Speak of the devil, that’s his sister calling now,” Dawn says, holding up her phone.
“Do we know them?” Dad asks.
“Do you remember Reagan Beckett? I graduated with her?”
“Yeah. Nice girl, that one,” he says.
“It’s her older brother, Ridge.”
“Beckett Construction?” Dad laughs. “I take it having you check in on him worked out for both of you?”
“It didn’t hurt.” I cross my arms over my chest. I really want to laugh too, but I’m biting my tongue.
“Sure, thanks for the invite. I’ll talk to Kendall and one of us will get back with you,” Dawn says, ending the call. “Reagan invited us over to Ridge’s house tomorrow night.”
“Yeah, they’re all watching the fight.”
“Did he invite you?” she asks.
I nod. “He invited both of us, but I told him I wanted to catch up with Mom and Dad.”
“Nope, not happening, sweetheart. Do not hide behind your mother and me,” Dad mock-scolds me.
“I already turned him down,” I whine.
“Yeah, but you didn’t turn Reagan down.” Dawn smirks.
“That will make me look desperate.”
“No, it will make you look interested, which you are,” my mother corrects me.
“What is this, ‘gang up on Kendall day?”
“No, it’s helping Kendall see what’s right under her nose. Help her see that risking getting her heart broken is worth it. It’s trying to get you to see that there is that one person out there who will love you like your father loves me,” Mom says defiantly.
“Hey, Reagan, it’s Dawn. Hey, listen. I talked to Kendall, and we’re in. We’re with her parents now, so we are suddenly free tomorrow night.” I hold my breath, waiting for what she’ll say next. “Okay, great, see you then.” She ends the call. “We’re supposed to meet Reagan at her place at seven. I guess the preliminary fights start at eight.”
Taking a deep breath, I slowly release it. “What do we need to bring?”
The three of them cheer at my acceptance of the situation.
I love my crazy family.
The next day, Dawn and I tag-team cleaning the house then just kick back and relax in the afternoon. She keeps grinning at me, more excited about this than I am. That’s when it hits me—there must be more.
“What are you so happy about?”
“I want you happy,” she says.
I watch her as she bites her bottom lip before quickly releasing it. If I didn’t know her so well, I wouldn’t know it’s a tell.
“Which one?” I ask her.
“What do you mean?”
“Which one of the guys do you have your eye on?”
She blushes, which is not something that I see my best friend do often. Hell, ever.
“Mark.”
“Nice.” I grin at her. “You didn’t have to drag me along just to hang out with them. You and Reagan have hung out a few times.”
“Yeah, I know, but it’ll be easier if you’re there. Besides, you need to stop hiding and jump in the deep end. Let life take you on the journey, Kendall.”
I think about what she’s saying and realize I kind of have, in a way. At least I thought I had. I haven’t heard from Ridge since early yesterday. I started to text him goodnight last night, but I don’t want to be that girl, the clingy ‘have to see you and talk to you all the time’ kind. Not to mention that we aren’t in a relationship. He told me he wants me, but that doesn’t mean that whatever this is will be going anywhere.
“Yeah,” I finally answer her. “We’ll see how tonight goes.”
A few hours later, we’re pulling into Reagan’s driveway. For some reason, I’m nervous knowing she and Dawn talked about me and Ridge.
“Hey hey,” she says, greeting us on the front porch. “I’m all set.” She’s carrying a huge Crock-Pot.
“What you got there?” Dawn asks.
“Meatballs. Tyler loves them and begged me to make them for tonight.”
“Tyler, huh?” Dawn grins.
“Wait a minute. What did I miss?” I question.
“I kind of sort of have a thing for one of my brother’s best friends.”
“Nice.”
“Oh, hush, you. You want my brother.”
Dawn laughs, and we both turn to face her.
“And you, you have your eyes on Mark,” Reagan points out.
Complete silence, until the three of us break out in laughter at the same time. After we compose ourselves and keep the meatballs from eminent disaster, we load up and head to Ridge’s place.
“So, I have a confession,” Reagan starts. “I didn’t tell him you were coming.” She looks at me briefly in the rearview mirror.
“Is that going to be an issue? I don’t have to go.”
“No, he wants you there. He said he was going to invite you, but you already had plans. I decided to intervene.”
“Great,” I mumble.
“Trust me on this, Kendall. He’s not going to be anything but thrilled to see you walk through his front door.”
“So, Tyler?” I ask, changing the subject, and we spend the rest of the drive listening to Reagan tell us how she’s crushed on him for years. We both encourage her to tell him how she feels, but she’s still resistant.
Maybe I need to intervene as well.
Chapter 27
Last night and today have been . . . an adventure. Knox was up and down all night, and he’s been fussy all day. I’m struggling right now and scared as hell. I should have called Mom, but she has him every day. Reagan was working at the shop, and the guys . . . well, they’re like me and know nothing about babies. I started to call Kendall, but I don’t want her to think I only want her because she’s willing to he
lp me with my kid.
So here I am, a half hour before everyone is supposed to show up, and the house is a wreck. Knox and I are both tired and cranky, and I don’t know how I’m going to get through the night. The guys don’t want to hang out with me being in a pissy mood, with a baby who’s unhappy as well. Not exactly what they would call fun times.
I’m just about to call and cancel when I hear a car pull up in the drive. Of course, today of all days someone would be early. Knox cries, and I gently bounce him and pat his little butt. “Shhh, Daddy’s got you, bud. I don’t know what’s wrong. I’m sorry. I wish you could tell me what you needed. I’m failing you, and I’m so fucking sorry.” Instead of soothing him, he cries harder. I begin pacing the floor again, surprised I have carpet left as many trips as we’ve made today.
“Anyone home?” Reagan calls out.
“Hey, bud. Aunt Reagan’s here. You want to say hi?”
He continues to cry.
“Hey,” she says, coming to stand next to me. She places her hand on his little back. “What’s up, sweet boy?” she coos, and he quiets a little. She looks up at me. “How long has he been like this?”
“He barely slept last night, and he’s been fussy all day. I was just getting ready to call and cancel.”
“Why the hell didn’t you call me or Mom? You know we would have come over to give you a hand.”
“Because he’s mine!” I yell at her, which causes Knox to cry harder. “Shhh, Daddy’s sorry, bud. Shhh,” I try to soothe him. “He’s my responsibility. I have to learn how to do this, Reagan. What will I do if you or Mom aren’t there to bail my ass out, huh? Then what do I do? This is my fucking life now. I have to learn how to do this, to deal with my son when he’s fussy.”
“Let me have him.” She holds her hands out.
I would love the break, just a minute to rest my arms, but I’m stubborn as hell. “No, I got this.”
“Ridge, let me have him.” She’s pissed off now.
“No, I got him. Just call the guys and tell them tonight is off.” I turn away from her and that’s when I see them. Kendall and Dawn are standing in the doorway, watching me unravel.
