It was the day of the engagement. Rachel Phillips, one of my closest and most special friends, was getting engaged, and I could barely believe it. I guess that's usually what happened, regardless of how old you get. I remembered her telling me the same words when I was pregnant with Max and she couldn't believe that her friend was going to have a baby. Seeing her happy made me happy, and of course, also a bit sad because I wished to be in that calm space that she was in. For those few hours, however, I seemed to forget about everything and lived in the moment.

Dani and I had spent all morning with Rachel in a hotel room where she was scheduled to get dressed and dolled up for the evening. We hadn't been doing much but talking. That's what she'd wanted to do that morning, for us to be around her in case she felt overwhelmed. But really, she couldn't be farther from it.

"And then his mom would go on and on about how clumsy he used to be when he was four," she said, speaking of her soon-to-be mother-in-law whom she wasn't quite fond of. I laughed and ruffled her hair with one hand on Max's belly. It was funny that he giggled every time we would, imitating us in the most adorable way.

"He's such a cutie," Rachel said looking down at him. "I want one of these too."

"Take mine," Dani laughed. "I bet you'll want to return him back to me within a week."

"Less than a week rather," I said.

Rachel waved her hand. "Please. I'm going to be popping babies like it's no one's business as soon as I get married."

She might have been joking, but I somehow believed her. If anyone was capable of doing the most unthinkable things and taking them at a lightning-fast pace, it was Rachel.

Dani and I ignored her comment, and I secretly hoped that Rachel would grow up and act like a mature person sooner rather than later.

I rolled my eyes at myself when I found myself judging her. I could very well be pregnant with Brad's child because I'd let him come into me without a condom. That thought alone sent a shiver down my spine, and I bit my lip thinking about what that moment felt like. Maybe I wasn't too mature and ‘grown-up’ myself because I did feel like a horned-up teenager every time I heard Brad’s name.

It was no surprise that my friends started questioning me about him. They wanted to know how I was doing after I moved out of his place a few days ago.

I told them that he came by the next morning and that we decided to be friends again.

Rachel's brows rose. "I think you meant to say 'you' instead of 'we'."

Dani silently agreed with Rachel.

"Fine. Yes, it was my suggestion, but he agreed to it."

"I doubt you gave him much of a choice," Dani blurted out. "The poor guy was probably choosing between being friends with you or losing you for good."

I groaned. "Poor guy? And what about me? You make me sound like some kind of a bitch."

I'd lowered my voice before I said the word bitch in front of my son, who was still too young to understand these things, but there was no harm in trying to portray myself as a decent person to him already.

Dani rose from the edge of the bed and crossed her arms. "Oh, honey. Don't make such statements unless you want genuine reactions from us."

Rachel laughed, and I stood to smack Dani's arm, then continued to tickle her till she fell on the bed and asked for forgiveness.

"You're so wild," she said once I stopped.

"So what else did he say?" Rachel pressed, likely trying to get to the meat of the conversation.

"About he who shall not be named?" I chuckled, though it really wasn't funny. No part of me wanted to say Wayne's name so I wasn't joking about it.

Dani wrapped one arm around my waist and looked at me like something was bothering her.

"It's okay," I assured her. "I'm fine."

She shook her head and looked away apologetically.

"Dani? What is it?"

She turned around with a frown, a real one that you’d see on the faces of little kids.

"Don't get mad, but . . ." She paused to see what my expression looked like and I told her that she needed to spill already unless she wanted another round of tickling. That seemed to get her going.

"He called me before he called you."

My mouth opened and so did Rachel's. She covered it with her hands in disbelief.

"Dani," she said with tight lips. I, on the other hand, couldn't even get myself to look at my friend without wanting to shake her and demand instant answers.

"Okay, okay let me explain."

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" I wanted to know.

"Because he called and asked me for your number, and I told the guy to take a hike. I didn't want you to get all hot and bothered over it. I didn't think he would call you or be able to get to you."

I'd changed my number shortly after breaking up with him. It was just one of those things that I could change in order to feel good. In a way, it was therapeutic for me, a little like changing hairstyles is for some women.

"Well, that was stupid of you," Rachel told her, and I didn't argue.

"I'm sorry," Dani said, looking me in the eye. "I should have told you, and I wanted to, especially at the restaurant when he called you, but you just left."

I twisted my lips into a grimace, then touched the back of her hand with mine. "It's fine. It doesn't change anything. But you totally broke our pinky promise."

She covered her face with both her hands and kept them there for a while. Back in the day, when I used to work as an assistant to Zander Smallwood, who Dani was now married to, she and I promised we would never keep secrets from each other.

We would still slip every now and then, but the playful and silly pact had strengthened our friendship. Soon after, Kelly and Rachel had joined in too, and neither of us kept things from one another unless it was absolutely necessary.

In this case, I felt that it was. Dani was trying to spare me the unnecessary heartache, and I knew the girl loved me enough to move the earth if it meant that it would bring me happiness.

"It's okay," I said. "I forgive you."

Her face brightened.

"But you've totally earned another round of tickling." Rachel grinned and approached her with wriggling fingers.

* * *

When I met Brad in the lobby at the hotel where the event was, my heart skipped a beat because he looked more handsome in that black tuxedo than ever before. His clothing fit him like a glove, accentuating his muscles and making him look that much more buff.

Max leaned in his direction and extended his arms toward Brad. It made me smile when Brad laid him over his shoulder and patted his back, then placed a kiss on his cheek.

"You look beautiful, Heather," he said, and I tried to keep a straight face through my secret swooning. Though, I was certain the blood that had rushed to my cheeks made it quite clear that I was blushing.

"Thanks," I said, wanting to put my arm through his, but that would make us look like a legit couple, even a family, with Brad holding onto Max. I walked behind them both, my eyes wandering in all the wrong places that a friend should steer clear from.

"Oh, boy," I murmured under my breath when the door opened and we darted straight toward Neil's parents to congratulate them. They seemed humble, yet fancier than most people I'd met. Rachel's funny stories about her mother-in-law's insane obsession with jewelry came to mind when I glanced at the woman's multiple pearl necklaces that fell over her elegant black dress.

"Mr. and Mrs. Rowdell." I smiled broadly and appreciated the kind words they said about Max. Of course, they assumed that Brad and I were a couple when Max would refuse to leave his shoulder and let Mr. Rowdell entertain him for a second.

"Oh," Brad said, shaking one hand and jerking his head.

"We are not a couple," I finished for him and grinned.

Mrs. Rowdell's hand found her chest and she apologized. "Oh, my! I’m sorry.”

Thankfully, we were interrupted by a few other people who wanted to congratulate Neil's parents on the big occasion, so we moved away from the spot.

"That wasn't awkward at all." Brad grinned, having Max sit on the high table and letting him fiddle with his black bowtie.

"I've missed watching him make a face while chewing on a banana," he said, then turned toward me. "How have you been?"

"You mean since you saw me three days ago?" I waved my hand. "Oh, I've been fine. You know, the usual."

We hadn't talked since that morning. Many times, I'd wanted to pick up my phone and give him a call, but then it would hit me that I would be disturbing him. Besides, friends didn't just call each other in the middle of the day every single day. It was strange that we'd been friends for so long, for much longer than we'd been lovers, and yet it was hard to remember what it used to be like then. We had no clue about how we were supposed to behave with one another now that we were back to that place.

"Brad, my man," I heard Arthur Bridge's voice from the back, then watched the two hug and pat each other on the back.

Drama galore, I thought.

There was a time when Rachel used to sleep with him before she started sleeping with Neil and happened to fall hard for him. Somehow, Arthur and Neil had managed to remain friends through it all and now he'd shown up at his engagement party all suited up and with a face that said he couldn't give a shit about the past. I wondered how people were able to do that, even if it didn't bother them emotionally.

Arthur, too, thought that Brad and I were dating because last he heard, I was moving into his condo. We corrected him and I hoped that he would have to be the last person we had to explain to that evening.

"I just moved out, actually," I continued.

"Oh," he replied, nodding with lips turned downward. "So you two really aren't a thing then?”

"Well, then you wouldn't mind if I asked her for a dance, would you?" He looked at Brad and I did too. I didn't know what I wanted his answer to be, and those few seconds felt like a couple of hours.

Brad shook his head slightly and his eyes wouldn't leave mine.

"You know," I said, turning to Arthur, "I should really check in on Rachel and see what's going on. They should have been here by now."

Just when I said that, the doors opened and a Sci-Fi tune played, welcoming the special couple. Rachel wasn't kidding when she said that Neil was obsessed with everything Sci-Fi. I waved at her and grinned. She waved back and I clapped my hands to cheer them on as they got to the dance floor. They were hilarious, and I could now tell how perfect they were for each other. A few minutes later, Dani and Kelly walked through the door with their husbands and I greeted all four of them with hugs.

It'd been a while since I'd quit Mr. Smallwood's firm, but it still felt weird to think that he was now a friend and no longer my boss.

"Zander," Dani said to me. "Call him Zander. Not Mr. Smallwood."

This was the millionth time that she was saying this to me, but I seemed to let awkwardness get the better of me every single time I met the guy. They were holding hands and Zander was carrying their son Jeff over his shoulder, just how Brad was carrying Max twenty minutes ago.

"We missed their entrance." Kelly frowned, watching the couple dance before asking for a glass of wine at the small bar close to us.

"You guys want anything?" she asked, pointing her finger at us. I felt Arthur grab my hand and pull me toward the dance floor before I'd had a chance to respond to her.

I continued to look toward Brad for several seconds until we stopped and Arthur slid his arm around my waist.

I awkwardly placed a hand on his shoulder and swallowed, thinking hard about whether this was appropriate.

I figured that there was no harm in dancing as long as I was keeping my distance from him. If he thought for a single second that he was going to be able to get into my pants, he was highly mistaken. The music got louder and faster, prompting a lot more people to join in. Dani and Zander shook their legs just inches away from us while holding their son, who also seemed to be having a fun time. Scott and Kelly were still standing at the bar next to Brad and Max. They were all chatting away, and I noticed how Kelly's eyes would land on me every now and then.

I looked over at Rachel and pulled away from Arthur to go give her a hug. She didn't seem to care that I’d been dancing with her former fuck buddy and wrapped her arms around my shoulders like she hadn't seen me in years.

"Don't forget you still love Brad," she whispered in my ear, and I smiled through tight lips.

"Fool," I said, though I didn’t think she heard it through the music. I turned around, avoiding eye contact with Arthur and walking straight to our table.

Max was busy shaking his arm while holding onto an annoying little squeaky toy that I shouldn't have brought to the party in the first place. I held him on my hip and Kelly squeezed his cheeks together.

"What a bubbly little bubble," she rambled, doting over my son, and I laughed.

"You're hilarious."

What wasn't hilarious, though, was the fact that Arthur had followed me to the table. Or rather, he’d returned to his original place where we’d first met him. I assumed that like most of us, he didn't know a whole lot of people at the party.

"You literally just ran away," he said, sipping on his drink. I looked at Brad, who just clenched his jaw and refused to make eye contact. He was mad, and I didn't have the slightest clue on what to do about it.

It wasn't until Arthur tried to take Max from me that he reacted.

"Keep your hands off her, man," he blurted out.