April bounced into my office with a buoyancy that had the potential to brighten any room she entered.
“Oh wow! Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?” I asked, pulling her into a hug.
“Then it wouldn’t have been a surprise.” She grinned at pointing out the obvious.
“So what brings you to Boston?”
“You’ll never guess,” she said, a wide smile on her pretty face.
I motioned for her to have a seat. She was wearing a form-fitting dress that revealed her hour-glass shape. April worked out—a lot.
After years of coaxing, she’d finally taken my advice and was making plans to move to Boston, but her decision to move had little to do with me. Her boyfriend Blaine had been offered a promotion which required relocation and, given the seriousness of their relationship, she was moving with him. They were actually looking for a place together.
“This can only mean one thing,” I said.
“What?”
“You two have made plans for a future together.”
“Maybe,” she said. “I want to take my time … and get it right, you know?”
April had always been eager to connect with someone. Sometimes her desire overtook rational thinking. She threw caution to the wind when it came to guys. So to hear that she was playing it safe was further affirmation of the importance of her relationship with Blaine. She wanted a future with him.
“I’m so happy for you.”
“Thanks, Aria. I’m over the moon happy with him. He’s the one,” she beamed. “I just know it.”
Finally. The guy she’d been searching for had come along and stolen her heart. She looked amazing. Her long, brunette hair was full and flowing around her shoulders, and she was smiling so widely it was contagious.
“Let’s grab lunch,” I said. “I just may have some potential employment opportunities for you.”
“Okay, but not here. I know you’ve offered in the past, but now that you run the company, I don’t know if I would feel comfortable working for you.”
“Why?” I asked.
“Because you’re a tyrant when it comes to work. I don’t want anything to ever jeopardize our friendship again.”
“Neither do I,” I said. “And I’m quite sure I can remain professional regardless of a friendship.”
“Thanks, but I’ll pass,” she said.
April and I chatted about the companies she was interviewing with as we made our way to Grotto. After we were seated at a booth, we placed our orders and then she said, “I know I’ve said this a thousand times, but I’m glad we’re friends again.”
“So am I, April. I really missed you … even though I didn’t want to.”
April shook her head at me. “You and your stubbornness. My poor godson doesn’t stand a chance with parents like you and Aiden,” she said with a laugh.
“I know. I seriously wonder about that all the time.”
“So how’s he doing? Still chomping on his toes?” she asked.
I took a sip of water. “Every chance he gets.”
“And Aiden? How is he?”
I looked down at my silverware, not wanting to reveal the state of my marriage.
“Aria, what is it?”
“Where should I start? The part where he refuses to let me help him or the part where he moved out and served me with a visitation schedule for Lyric?”
“What? When did that happen? And why didn’t you tell me?”
“A week or so ago. I have a hard enough time thinking about it, let along talking about it.”
“Did you two have a big fight or something?” she asked. “I can’t picture him ever leaving you.”
“In his warped mind, he hasn’t.”
I explained the events that led up to Aiden’s decision to leave, April’s eyes dimming more with each detail.
“I have a few choice words for him,” she said once I’d finished.
“Good luck getting within hearing range. He has round-the-clock security who have a list of the select few who are allowed to visit, and if my name isn’t on that list, I doubt yours is.”
“Unbelievable,” she said, shaking her head. “I’m so sorry.”
“Thanks,” I replied.
The waiter placed our food on the table and then stepped away.
“This looks good,” April said, lifting her spoon.
“It’s delicious. My favorite,” I said, as I took a spoon of the zuppa.
“Looks like my move came just in time. I can keep you and Lyric in good spirits,” she said.
I looked up at April. There was so much more she wanted to say. I knew her well enough to know she wanted to rip Aiden a new one. Her only deterrent was the wounded look on my face. I’d lived every day of it. Hell, I was still living it, and I didn’t need a reminder from anyone of what I already knew. Aiden was wrong. He’d been hurtful and he’d been selfish.
“Thank you for not saying anything more than that,” I said.
“For now, I’ve said the only thing you need to hear. But when he’s better, he’s going to hear from me.”
“You and me both. I assure you.”
“Other than the stupid-man syndrome, how is he?” she asked.
“About the same. He can get up and down on his own now, and he’s experienced a few sensory indicators here and there, but for the most part, he’s still trying to get himself back to normal. He’s exhausting himself and it’s been so hard watching him like this.”
“I guess that’s why he doesn’t want you to see it,” she said. April looked at me, sympathy in her big doe eyes.
“I suppose,” I said as I tore a piece of bread. It was still too warm, so I let it cool before taking a bite.
“So after the three interviews I have lined up, I’m up for anything,” she said, switching gears.
“So you’re finally ready to leave your Pennsylvania life behind?”
“Yup, I haven’t really been happy there in years.”
“The family stuff?” I asked.
“Same as always.”
“Are things any better with them?” April’s dysfunctional family had been one of the many topics that initiated our friendship. She was the ever-hopeful thread that held them together, but playing mediator in the face of constant disarray took its toll on her, which is why she’d developed such a rigorous workout regimen. It was her stress reliever, and her body was the better for it. She looked amazing. She wanted a family, which was why she tried so hard to be the bandage on the many open wounds of the Jensen family. But now maybe she would have a chance at a family of her own.
“Not really.” She smiled wryly and shook her head.
“Guess it’s good you have us,” I said. “You’ll be a part of our family.”
“How is that any better than the weird-ass family I have?” she asked.
I laughed. “Well, it’s not much better, but we’ll have each other.”
“I’m so glad you feel that way.”
“I’m not going to lie. What you did hurt me so badly. I not only saw it as the worst possible betrayal of our friendship—I saw it as though you were taking away Lyric’s chance of a happy childhood. And I didn’t think I could ever forgive that.”
“But you have?” she asked.
“Yes. And not only because it all worked out, because it very well could not have, but because I know you would never do anything to hurt me. And you’d never remove my choices unless you knew something I didn’t know. You knew there was a hole inside me where Aiden had been. You saw it every time you looked at me.”
“I did,” she said. “And I see it now. Something inside you was missing then … and even now. The light—the energy that’s a natural part of you—was gone. And I knew Aiden was the only person who could flip that switch.”
“But you knew my reasons for not telling him,” I said.
“I did. But what you didn’t know is when I spoke with him and told him you’d had a child with someone else, something inside him dimmed also. I’d heard it in his voice. My heart broke for both of you. After my trip to Belize, I called Aiden and told him I needed to see him. I didn’t want to tell him anything over the phone. And plus, I wanted to get a better read on him before I said a word about Lyric’s true paternity. And when I told him, you should have seen him, Aria. His eyes lit up and he was smiling as if he’d just been given the grandest of all prizes. If he was as opposed to kids as you’d said, he wouldn’t have reacted like that. And if I’d had any indication that he was the anti-father you’d thought, I would have never risked Lyric’s happiness that way. I never would have said a word.”
“Why didn’t you call me and tell me what you thought before actually doing it?”
She swallowed a spoonful of soup and replied. “Because of the very reason we said a few minutes ago. You’re stubborn. You wouldn’t have seen anything but what you wanted to see. And I knew how much growing up without a father damaged you. You didn’t want that for your son.”
“Thank you, April. But don’t ever do that again.”
“I won’t. I promise.”
“Even if you feel it’s for my good?” I asked.
“Even then. I’ll just keep bugging you until you cave,” she added with a smile.
I’d once thought our relationship would never be the same again, but I had hopes that it would be. It was okay to need her and it was okay for her to need me. And yes, it was even okay for us to make mistakes.
“And one more thing. Stop looking at me like you feel sorry for me. It’s been horrible. Every bit of it, but the only thing that kept me sane is the knowledge that Aiden and I will get past this. It really is going to be okay.”
“I admire you,” she said.
“For what?”
“You’ve really come full circle. I mean, a couple of years ago, you would never have even let a guy call you on the phone, let alone have his child, marry him, and go through so much with him. But here you are, strong and confident in your future with Aiden despite the fact he’s being a total ass.”
“What can I say, April?” I shrugged. “I love him. And in his own backwards way, he’s trying to protect me. He doesn’t want me to see him like this. And he doesn’t want me to feel trapped. Which is crazy. I don’t care if he ever walks again, I’m not leaving. And when he finally accepts that truth, he and I will be fine. And then I’m gonna kick his ass for putting us through this.”