Eli shook his head and stared down at the floor, tracing something with his fingers. But I knew he was listening.

Reese continued. “It means that you have two people who care for you, Eli. Two parents who love you and will always be there for you. Who will do anything for you.”

That made my heart explode in my chest. All the warm and fuzzy feelings came rushing to the surface as I wiped away tears of joy from my eyes. All these years, I'd raised Eli alone. Sure, he had his grandma and grandpa, but he didn't have a mom and a dad. It was hard trying to be both for him. And whether I liked to admit it or not, that bothered me. To know my child would grow up without a father bothered me a lot more than I realized until that moment. Knowing that he had us both thought, there with him, no matter what happened between Reese and myself – well, that meant a lot. More than I could possibly express.

“And,” Reese continued, reaching out and taking my hand in his, “it means your momma doesn't have to do all this alone, because I love her too.”

Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined something so perfect. My life may not have turned out the way I had planned, but that was okay. Because it was starting to turn into something that was pretty damn amazing anyway. Unexpected, of course. But amazing all the same.

ooo000ooo

Family dinner, a few weeks later. This time it was me asking if someone could join us.

“Seriously, Maya,” my mom said, shaking her head at me, “You've always been on my side on this. It's family dinner, not a time for friends or anyone not part of this family –”

“Just this once, mom,” I said, trying to maintain my composure. “You always let Luke have his friends over. This one is a special friend. It's important to me.”

I'd never pushed the issue before, not like my brother, and I knew my m

om knew that. Maybe it was the determined look in my eye or perhaps my old mom wasn't as stubborn as she liked to appear, but her face softened slightly.

“Okay. Just this once,” she said. “I suppose it couldn't hurt.”

I hugged her, held her tight. “Thank you,” I said.

She had no idea about the announcement I'd be making. She had no idea that in a way, the person I was bringing over for dinner was family – but that was all about to change. And the knot in my stomach, as well as the feeling of nausea that was sweeping over me only reinforced that fact.

I let Reese know it was okay, and he said he'd be there, right before dinner. He had some errands to run first, and honestly, I was relieved for the extra time to mentally prepare myself for the revelation. I had a feeling it was going to be a rough, emotional night.

As the clock ticked closer and closer to dinner time, I began to worry when Reese hadn't arrived. Was he chickening out? Was he not coming? Had he ditched us? No, Reese wouldn't do that. He wouldn't go back to his old ways. I saw in his eyes that he'd meant what he'd been telling me about changing and being part of our lives. I'd believed him when he'd told me that he loved me. He wouldn't do this to me – would he?

“Who's the friend?” Luke asked, leaning against the kitchen counter where I was standing, staring out the back window and praying for Reese's car to pull into the driveway. “Finally get yourself a boyfriend. Or maybe a girlfriend?”

I rolled my eyes. Luke had no idea what was happening, and he was probably going to be the most surprised of all to see his former best friend walk through that door. Especially when he found out that Reese wasn't there for him – but for me.

“You'll meet him soon enough,” I said.

Inwardly, I smiled. Luke was going to flip out when he found out the truth. He was going to lose his mind to learn that I was the mother of his much cooler friend's child. That yes, his friend actually liked me, even though Luke liked to tease me about how Reese would never, ever be with someone like me.

But where was he? I bit my lip and continued staring out the window. No sign of his car and my mom was already setting the table.

“Should I set a place for your friend, Maya? You know I don't appreciate late-comers...”

“He'll be here,” I said. I know he will be.

But my heart was heavy. Reese said he'd be here right before dinner, and dinner was about to be served.

“Come to the table, dear, I don't want the meatloaf getting cold.”

One last look out the window. No sign of Reese. With a heavy heart, I sat down at the table – between my son and an empty seat where his father should be sitting – but wasn't.

We lowered our heads in prayer, and I tried to hold back the tears. Maybe he was just running late, I thought. It could happen. Of course, this was a big deal for us, a stepping stone toward coming together as a family at last. And if he was going to be late to this, what else would he be late for in the future? Birthday parties? School plays? Soccer games?

Stop it, I told myself. Don't cry. You've been alone up to this point, you'll be just fine if he doesn't show and yes, maybe he was just running late. Really late.

I had wiped away the tears as we said “Amen,” and that's when there was a gentle knock at the back door. My parents looked at one another and shrugged as Luke got up to answer it since he was the closest one to it. I stood up, hopeful and happy that he'd finally made it.

“Hey man, what are you doing here?” Luke said, shaking his friend's hand. “Wasn't expecting you to stop by.”

Tags: Mia Ford Billionaire Romance
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