“No, I told her we’d play more later.” Dylan grinned.
“You love kids, huh?” Olivia asked, hoping she kept the sadness from her voice.
He nodded.
“I can tell.” Too bad there was a part of her that was petrified to think of having a family.
Getting pregnant, trying to carry beyond the first trimester, coming to love the unborn fetus inside her body, only to lose what she loved … and she always seemed to lose. She’d lost her father, if she’d ever had him, and she’d lost the other man she’d trusted after him.
And Dylan? She wondered if he she’d lose him too. Eventually.
She pushed those thoughts out of her head. She was enjoying Dylan and his family and Callie’s neighbors and friends. Olivia helped her hostess pick up stray plates and cups and brought them into the kitchen.
She held a large plastic bag open wide so Callie could pack it full, and together, they finished tossing the last of this round of garbage.
“I’m so sorry I’m late,” a woman said, rushing into the kitchen, sounding out of breath.
Olivia turned her head to see a pretty woman with light brown hair and a warm smile place a wrapped gift on the kitchen counter.
“Meg! I’m so glad you could make it. And I’m sure Ava will be really happy to see you too.”
Meg? Olivia’s stomach churned in reaction to the name. Coincidence? Probably not, since Dylan me
ntioned Meg was like family. Olivia hadn’t realized exactly what that meant before now.
Callie hugged the petite woman before turning to Olivia. “Olivia, meet Meg Thompson. Meg, this is Olivia Dare. Dylan’s…” Callie’s voice trailed off as the awkwardness of the situation obviously hit her.
“Girlfriend,” Olivia said, finishing Callie’s sentence. The word slipped quickly and easily off her tongue, surprising Olivia with how right it felt.
“I’m so happy to meet you,” Meg said. “I’ve heard so much about you.” She smiled, and Olivia didn’t catch a hint of insincerity from her.
“It’s nice to meet you too,” Olivia said, trying not to let old insecurities infringe on her now. Dylan, unlike her college boyfriend, had given her no reason to be jealous of or suspect something was going on with his ex. It was only her own doubts that intruded.
“I’m going to run out and say hi to Ava and give her her present. I’ll catch up with you in a bit,” Meg said and, with a wave, headed out the sliding glass doors to the backyard.
Callie turned to face Olivia. “I’m sorry.”
“Why? You have a right to invite whoever you want to your daughter’s party. Besides, if Dylan and Meg are friends, I was bound to meet her eventually.”
Callie lowered herself into a kitchen chair. “I have to rest my feet for a minute. Join me,” she said with a tone like Dylan’s that said she expected Olivia to listen.
Olivia dutifully settled into a chair. “You don’t owe me an explanation,” she told his sister.
“I know but … I had an ex-girlfriend situation with Matthew, and I should have been more sensitive. It’s just that Meg and I remained friendly. And since Dylan never brings girlfriends to meet us, when he mentioned you were coming, I got so excited I forgot all about telling him Meg would be here too.” She bit her lip. “It’s just that I know if I were in your position, I would have appreciated a heads up.”
Olivia really liked Dylan’s sister, and she was grateful that she cared enough to explain. “I appreciate you telling me all that.” Especially the part about Dylan not bringing other women around his family before her. That little revelation caused a distinct warmth in her heart.
Callie nodded. “Look, I love Meg, but she can be needy when it comes to Dylan, and he’s never given her a reason not to be. There’s nothing between them but friendship, but she turns to him whenever she has a problem.”
“I noticed that,” Olivia said wryly.
“I’ve been there with Matthew, except his ex wasn’t as nice and unthreatening as Meg. I had to let him know, in no uncertain terms, it was her or me.”
“I’ve been there too,” Olivia said, finding it easy to talk to Dylan’s sister. “Except my ex lied about them being just friends, and I was too young and blind to let myself see it. Until I walked in on them.”
Callie winced. “That sucks.”
More than the other woman knew. “I’m trying to understand Meg and Dylan’s relationship, but it’s been really hard,” she found herself admitting.