“Perfect. See you then.” I hung up when Atlas finished the transaction, the ring in his hand. “Why can’t I tell my mom? I tell her everything.”
He slipped the ring onto my left hand, where it fit snugly. “Because I didn’t ask your dad.”
“So…?”
“I need to talk to him.”
“News flash, you already asked me.” I waved the ring in front of his face.
“I know,” he said with a sigh. “It was in the moment and it just felt right, but I feel guilty not talking to him about it. After we talk, we can tell everyone.”
“So, you’re going to pretend you haven’t asked me?”
“No. I’ll tell him the truth. But…you guys are so close that I feel like he should know first. And I want him to know that his blessing means a lot to me.”
“He already gave you his blessing—”
“I’ll talk to him tomorrow, okay?”
I rolled my eyes. “Fine. But I’m not taking this off.”
“You better not take it off ever.”
I should be working right now.
But I was staring at my fat diamond ring.
I held out my hand and examined the diamond as it sparkled, the way it glittered with the slightest movement. It was beautiful. His proposal wasn’t on a beach or in a crowded restaurant, wasn’t even a surprise, but it was perfect. We were so right together that we should have gotten married a long time ago.
“Girl, what’s that on your hand?”
“Oh, you noticed?” I feigned innocence by touching my fingertips to my lips, showing off the ring again.
Shelly chuckled and took a seat. “I’ve seen you staring at it from my office for the last five minutes, so I had to figure out exactly what you were looking at.”
“Well, now you know. This bitch is off the market.”
“That’s so exciting. I’m glad you and Atlas worked it out. Is he coming back?”
I shook my head. “No. He says he needs to focus on his position at the lab.”
“With your dad?”
“Yep.”
She looked at my desk, seeing the pizza that was only missing a slice. “You going to eat that?”
“No.” I immediately rubbed my stomach. “I’m having this weird aversion to pizza. Every time I try to eat it, I feel like shit and throw up.”
“That’s what that smell is in the bathroom…”
I rolled my eyes. “I had the janitor clean it up.”
“Well, still smells.”
“Thanks, girl.”
She chuckled and looked at the pizza again. “Wait…so this has happened a couple times?”
“Last week when I moved in, it happened, and then there was this other morning. But I think I’m just getting older. And then today…” I finally ignored my ring and grabbed the folder that needed my attention.
“Uh…Daisy?”
“Hmm?”
“Have…you taken a pregnancy test?”
I looked up at her again because the suggestion was preposterous. “No. But I’m on the pill.”
“Were you on the pill when you guys got back together?”
“Yes, I—” My thoughts went back to the casino, when I hadn’t expected Atlas to show up. I’d stopped taking my pills because I was too depressed to remember, but then I got back on it again the next day.
Shelly’s eyes widened.
I grabbed my purse and ran out of there. “Shit, I’ve got to go.”
I stepped into the office at the back of the building. The desks were empty because everyone was busy doing errands and whatever else. Matt emerged from the back, in a collared shirt and slacks.
Without saying hello, I just blurted out what I needed. “Where’s my mom?”
He stilled for a second. “Hey, Daisy. Everything okay?”
“Yeah. Totally. Never better. Never worse, actually. I mean, I need to see my mom. You know where she is?”
“I think she’s prepping a client’s vacation home right now. Working with the designer to get everything ready for the place in the Hamptons.”
She was two hours outside the city? “Fuck…”
Matt studied me for a second before he moved to his desk and grabbed his keys. “Come on, I’ll give you a ride.”
“What?” I asked incredulously. “Matt, that’s very sweet, but you don’t need to—”
“If my kids needed me, she would drop everything in a heartbeat.” He nodded to the door. “Let’s get going.”
We made small talk on the drive. He didn’t ask any intrusive questions about my dilemma and tried to keep it lighthearted and easy. Since it was in the middle of the day in the fall, there wasn’t much traffic, so we arrived fairly quickly.
We pulled up to the beach house, an estate with a perfect view of the water and sand.
There were cars in the roundabout, so we parked behind them and got out.
When we went inside, voices were audible.
“This wall needs a large painting. Not a collage of images, not some abstract artwork.” Mom’s voice was easily recognizable. “He’s very old-fashioned…and old.”
Another voice laughed.
Matt announced himself. “Hey, Cleo. It’s me.”
“Matt?” Her heels clicked as she came around the corner. “What are you doing here?” Her eyes abandoned his and went straight to me. “Honey? What are you…?”