Chapter 27

Sunday

"Looks like you two had fun last night," I said as I sat down at the table where Jen and Ian were seated.

Jen put her hand on her forehead. "Ugh. It feels like a dump truck ran over my face."

Ian laughed.

"Don't laugh at me," she said and put her head on his shoulder. "You're not allowed to laugh at your fiancée. It's like...a rule."

He kissed her forehead. "Noted. Do you want me to get you some water or something?"

She sighed and lifted her head. "No, I've got it. If I don't move I'm going to fall asleep." She slowly stood up. "Be right back. Don't talk about me when I'm gone," she said and pointed back and forth between Ian and me.

"We won't," I said and started to pick at my eggs. I wasn't planning on talking about her. But I was planning on bringing up something she didn't want me to. As soon as she was out of earshot, I set down my fork. "Are you really moving back to New York?"

Ian smiled. "That's the plan."

"It'll be nice to have you back."

"It'll be nice to be back."

I glanced over at the buffet table where Jen was chatting with someone. The time to ask Ian was now or never. "I know Jen said you wouldn't want to, but I have to ask...because I miss you and our new driver is so formal and I feel like he doesn't like me..." I let my voice trail off.

"Are you asking if I want my old job back?" He took a sip of his orange juice. It looked like he was studying me.

"Yes. God, Ian, we'd love to have you back. But obviously if you and Jen..."

"I've been waiting for the offer ever since we landed." He set down his cup and his familiar smile spread over his face. "Maybe Jen doesn't want me to work for you and James, but I've been on a few terrible interviews this week, and honestly, I couldn't imagine working for anyone else. I'd love to come back."

I tried not to squeal. "You have no idea how excited I am. Although, breaking the news to William won't be very fun." I bit the inside of my lip. I had never fired someone before.

"Hell, I'll break the news to him," Ian said with a laugh.

I smiled. "Let's just let James do it when he gets back."

"Let James do what?" Jen asked as she sat back down.

"I'm going to let you two talk," I said and picked up my plate. I had a feeling Jen was going to be mad at me for offering Ian his old job back. They needed to talk it out between themselves without me butting in.

I glanced around the restaurant to find another seat. Most of the people at the brunch looked as hungover as Jen. My eyes landed on Scarlett. She hadn't left Rob's side since last night. She was currently sitting on his lap, making it almost impossible for him to eat. Geez, Scar. I started to make my way toward them.

"Hey, Penny!" Matt said, before I reached Rob's table. "I saved a seat for you." He patted the chair beside his.

I turned my head toward my daughter. Now she was grabbing food out of Rob's hand. "I think I need to go save Rob from Scarlett."

Matt laughed. "It doesn't look like he minds. Sit."

I watched Rob laugh and try to steal his food back from Scarlett. Maybe Matt was right. "Okay." I hadn't really had a chance to eat anything. But that wasn't why I sat down. "When do you want to set up your online dating profile? We could do it today."

He rolled his eyes. "I didn't mean right this second. Just like...soon."

"You have no idea how excited I am about this."

"Don't you have any other hobbies besides being a pain in my ass?"

I laughed and lightly shoved his shoulder.

"Are you going to eat those?" he asked and pointed his fork at my eggs.

I slid my plate toward him. "They're all yours."

"Aren't pregnant women supposed to eat tons?"

"Yes. But we're not hungry this morning." I put my hand on my stomach. "No, that's a lie. We're hungry, but we want ice cream, not breakfast food."

He laughed and shook his head. "Are you feeling better this morning?"

"You know, I actually feel really good. I didn't sleep very well last night, but I still feel full of energy. It's weird. For the past several weeks I've actually felt kind of awful. But I'm good today. I feel like I could run around Central Park. And you know how much I hate to run."

"You probably just needed a break from that," he said and pointed at Scarlett.

I laughed. "No. Even when she's being a terror, I don't want a break from her."

"Do you want me to come over today? I can entertain Scar while you get some rest."

"No, that's okay. I want to have a girls day with her. I'm trying to trick her into liking me again."

"She likes you," Matt said with a laugh. "She's just going through a phase."

"You're just saying that because she prefers you over me. When she's a moody teenager and wants nothing to do with either of us, you'll see how I feel. I'm going to get going."

"Call me if you want some company later." He leaned over and gave me a hug.

"I will." I left him with my plate of food and made my way over to Scarlett. "Hey, Scar. You ready to get going? We have a fun day planned."

 "No, Mommy." She animatedly shook her head. "We're going to Uncle Rob's for a slumber party!"

"We can take her if you want," he said.

"That's okay, Rob. Scar, come with me. It's time to go." I put my hand out for her.

"No," she said and stuck out her lower lip.

I folded my arms across my chest and tried to give her a stern look. "Scarlett, you have to the count of five to come here." It was something James did with her when she was being stubborn.

"No, Mommy, we have to go with Uncle Rob."

I sighed. It worked when James did it. Clearly I didn't have the same air of authority.

"We really don't mind taking her," Daphne said. "When was the last time you had a night all to yourself?"

I hated nights all to myself.

"I'll bring her by in the morning before work," Rob said. "It's fine."

"Well, okay then. Are you sure, Scar? I had a fun day planned for us."

"I'm sure. Mommy, you should come with us. It's safer."

Rob raised both his eyebrows at me.

I decided it was best to not acknowledge her comment. I leaned down and kissed her forehead. "Have a fun day, baby girl."

"I will."

And that was it. She turned away from me and started playing with the food on Rob's plate. "Thanks," I said to Rob and Daphne.

Daphne was giving me that look. The one that meant she was concerned about me. But like I had said to Matt, there was nothing to be concerned about. I felt better than I had in days. Yes, my daughter didn't want to spend time with just me. But I was okay. I swallowed down the lump in my throat.

I wandered over to Mason and Bee's table. "I'm going to get going," I said and leaned down to hug Bee.

"So soon?" she asked. "We'll be here for at least another hour. Our flight isn't until noon."

"Yeah, I need to get going." I didn't need to. But being here alone made me realize just how much weddings sucked when you were single. I didn't want to hang out anymore. I missed James. I just wanted to call him. "Have fun on your honeymoon, you two." I reached over and patted Mason's shoulder.

"Oh, we will," Mason said.

"Thanks for everything, Penny," Bee said. "Are you still going to grab my dress..."

"I've got it all taken care of. Don't worry about a thing. See you guys when you get back. I can't wait to hear all about it." They were finally taking that trip to Italy. Originally Mason had planned to propose there. They were going to meet us on our honeymoon so that we'd all be able to celebrate together. But Isabella had foiled those plans. They had been sitting in a hospital on the day that Mason had planned out for months, waiting to see if James would come back to us. I was happy that they were finally taking the trip. Maybe one day James and I would finally get to go. We had never talked about recreating our honeymoon itinerary. Instead, we had gone to the Bahamas for a late honeymoon once he recovered. Italy was still highest on my list of places I wanted to see. But there was plenty of time. I truly did feel good. Healthy. My chest didn't hurt at all.

I stepped outside of the restaurant and took a deep breath.

"Penny!"

I turned around to see the Caldwell brothers' father pushing through the doors. "Hi, Mr. Caldwell. Did I forget something? Bee's dress is already in the car. I was going to take it to get it preserved."

"No, dear. You didn't forget anything." He reached into his pants pocket and pulled out his wallet. "I didn't know when the best time to bring this up would be, but I wanted to catch you before you left. Mason told me about your heart condition."

That explained the look of pity he had given James at the rehearsal dinner. It had still been bothering me in the back of my head. Now it made sense. I thought maybe some business deal had gone south. I hated that people knew about my heart. But at least James hadn't told him. He promised he wouldn't tell anyone else.

"I wouldn't call it a condition. I'm fine. I was actually just thinking about how great I feel."

"Good. But either way, I wanted to give you this." He pulled out a business card from his wallet and handed it to me. "I'm sure you're seeing a great doctor. But this is the number for my cardiologist. I can't recommend him enough. The man saved my life. I wouldn't be standing here today if it wasn't for him."

I looked down at the card. "Thanks, Mr. Caldwell. But I really am good. There's nothing to worry about."

"It never hurts to get a second opinion. Just think about it." He gave me the signature Caldwell wink that Mason and Matt did so often.

I smiled. "Thanks. I will."

"I should get back to the festivities. Take care, Penny." He gave me a quick hug and then disappeared back into the building.

I looked down at the card again. Normally, thinking about my heart would make it hurt. But it didn't ache at all today. I stuffed the card into my purse and started walking home.