Page 77 of I Loved You First

“Yup.” Brady absently pulled off his splint—part of the new evening routine. “Fiona’s coming back at Thanksgiving and Christmas and for my party when I turn six,” he continued without missing much of a beat. “But she can’t come home every time I’m not at big kid school.”

Cam settled himself next to Brady, pulling up the covers. Clearly, Brady and Fi had talked about their upcoming reality—that Fi would soon be far away. “It’ll be nice to see her when she comes back.”

“Yeah.” Brady opened the book, and a card fell out. “This is Fiona’s card with her name on it.” He handed it to Cam. “You call her and tell her if you want to have a party.”

He didn’t want to talk about Seattle anymore. “Like the one you’re having in two more sleeps.”

Brady nodded. “Tomorrow me and Fi blow up the balloons. We have to make them look like a rainbow. And we have to cook the brownies, even though the ice cream sundae is yummy without them.”

He smiled because Brady had talked about being the official sundae taste tester after he and Fiona had eaten their lunch. “It sounds like you have a busy day ahead tomorrow.”

Brady yawned as he nodded. “Making a party is hard work.”

“It seems like it.” He got comfortable against the headboard and pillows. “Let’s dive into this story so you can get some sleep.”

Brady snuggled against him, making it halfway through Stanley the Seal’s tour before he fell asleep.

Smiling as he slowly sat up, Cam settled his son against the pillows. His smile faded as he glanced at Fiona’s business card on the side table. Picking it up, he stared at the sleek, simple design on the glossy piece of paper.

Fiona Willis, Senior Events Planner

According to the card, The Laurier Group had offices in Miami, London, Los Angeles, and Seattle. He remembered Fi’s excitement all those years ago when she’d snagged the internship with the world-renowned company. She’d gone on to make a hell of a name for herself.

His gaze moved to Brady’s new map—to the picture of Fi grinning with the Space Needle in the background.

“Fuck,” he muttered, getting up and pulling the covers more snuggly around Brady before he wandered to the window as the sun sank deeper in the sky.

Typically, Fi pulled up in the driveway right about now, but she wouldn’t be coming over tonight due to her plans with Melody.

Maybe that was a good thing. An evening alone was a solid reminder of the cold, hard facts. Because the days were passing quickly. Soon, Fi wouldn’t be pulling into his driveway at all.

Fiona bopped her head to the beat of Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy” as she stood on her tiptoes, setting the level on Melody’s new floating shelf. “We nailed it.”

Melody grinned as she did a happy dance in her kitchen, wearing gray yoga shorts and a blue crop tank. She’d piled her hair on top of her head in a messy bun. “This is going to look so great!”

Fiona stepped back from the smaller corner in Mel’s sweet little one-story house, copying her best friend’s moves. “I can’t wait to see it all put together.”

“Me either.” They continued their dance, both of them raising their hands over their heads to the rhythm. “I’ve been trying to figure out what to do with this empty space for almost two years now. The second I saw the coffee bar on Pinterest, I knew I wanted to do something similar.”

“I think we’re going to come pretty close to your vision,” Fi said as she bopped Melody’s hip with her own.

Laughing, Melody grabbed Fiona up in a hug. “Thanks for coming with me to pick out the cabinet and accents. You have such good taste.”

Grinning, Fiona hugged her back. “You’re welcome. It’s always fun to spend time together. And you know I love doing this type of stuff.”

“I do.” Melody let her go. “So, we should probably put the cabinet where we want it. I need to see what’s what.”

“Definitely.” Fiona helped Melody slide the small but heavy two-door farmhouse-vibe piece in its place. Stepping back, she narrowed her eyes, studying the overall effect. The metal accents on the cabinet and shelf matched nearly perfectly. “It’s awesome.”

Melody let loose a tiny squeal as she clasped her hands. “Ezra’s going to love this. I’m sort of making it for him. That man loves his coffee in the morning.”

Fi smiled. “I’m happy you guys are so happy.”

Melody nodded as she snagged her bottom lip with her teeth. “We’ve been talking about him moving in.”

Fi’s smile turned into a grin as her heart melted. “Mel, yes.” She hugged her best friend again. “Yay for you guys.”

Melody sighed as she returned her embrace. “He’s my lobster, Fi. He’s the one.”