Something Real (Whiskey Men, #2)(40)

He shakes his head and looks at her almost bashfully. “No, my birthday party at school tomorrow. The other kids have their moms come and hand out cupcakes and sing happy birthday to them.”

I wait for Lily to freak out. This is exactly what she was wanting to avoid, but there’s no escaping it now. My son is already attached to her. I’m sure it happened all those times when Granny was sick and I needed to be with her. Lily took him to school, picked him up, and came to his games—she’s done everything for him, and obviously it’s meant a lot to him.

She puts her hand to her chest. “Yes, of course I’ll be there. What time is it?”

He shrugs and rolls his eyes. “Right after lunch. They make us eat our food first.”

She laughs at that. “I’ll talk to my boss, but I think I can work it out.”

Ollie laughs and looks at me. “Isn’t Daddy your boss?”

She nods and looks up at me. “Yes.”

Ollie pleads with me. “Please, Daddy, can Lily bring cupcakes with you? Please?”

I see Lily nod her head at me, and I tell Ollie, “Yes. Of course. Now time to get ready for bed. I’ll be up in a little while to tuck you in.”

Ollie is pounding his fist into the air with excitement and then comes to hug me and then Lily before running out of the room. “Thanks for making cupcakes with me, Lily.”

She calls after him, “You’re welcome!”

Instantly, I turn to Lily, and the smile has dropped off her face. She’s going to get her stuff together and finish cleaning up, and I follow behind her. “Don’t freak out on me, Lily.”

She’s wiping down the already clean counter. “This is what we needed to avoid, Ford. I don’t want to let him down. I can’t let him down.”

“It’s just tomorrow you promised him. You can go tomorrow. It’s going to be okay, just breathe.”

She takes to heart what I said and takes a deep breath. “I’m honored, I really am, Ford. I love that kid, but I don’t want to hurt him. How is he going to handle it if I have to leave? What then?”

I freeze up at her words. “What are you not telling me, Lily? Is Carrie…”

My voice trails off when she shakes her head. “No, I mean, nothing has been decided. Philip is putting off his company, and they are weighing their decision. Carrie did say that if they go, she wants me there, but I’m not going to worry about it until the time comes.”

She’s lying to me. I can tell by the way her forehead is creased and the look in her eye that she’s worried about it. I pull her into my arms, and thankfully she doesn’t resist me. “One day at a time, Lily. We’re going to take it one day at a time.”

She wraps her arms around me and rests her chin on my chest to look up at me. “That camera is too much.”

I brush a strand of hair off her face and kiss her forehead. “Nothing is too much for you. I wanted you to have it. I believe in you and your dreams, Lily.”

She sighs and rests her cheek against me. “Oh Ford, what are we going to do?”

I rest my cheek on the top of her head. “We’re going to make this work, Lily. I told you once and I’ll say it again. I’m not letting you go.”

She doesn’t say it, but I know what she’s thinking. I may not have a choice but to let her go.





Lilian





I’m pulling into the parking lot at school the next day, and my phone dings, alerting me to a new message. I turn off the car and grab it, opening the messaging app as I walk around to grab the boxes of cupcakes. I can’t be late for this, but seeing my sister’s name, I know I need to at least read it. I tense as I read her message.

Come over tonight. We’re celebrating Philip’s new job.





My heart literally drops in my chest, and I suck in a horrified breath. It’s happening.

Emotion hits me hard. I thought I was successful in keeping my wall up and my heart guarded, but obviously not because right now I feel like curling into the fetal position and crying my eyes out. I don’t respond to her texts. I can’t right now because I have to go in and make a little boy’s birthday party the best he’s ever had.

I toss my phone onto the floorboard, put my new camera over my shoulder, grab the bags of things I picked up from the store, and then juggle the boxes of cupcakes in my hand. It would be nice to have another set of hands, but Ford had an emergency meeting all morning, and we had to drive here separately. Luckily, I spot his car a few aisles down and I know he’s at least inside.

I get to the office, and they buzz me through.

I walk down the hall and into Ollie’s homeroom and force a smile to my face, acting as if I don’t have a care in the world except this little boy's birthday party. As soon as Ollie sees me, he’s up out of his seat, sprinting to me. “Lily, you made it!”

I throw my head back with a big laugh. “Of course I made it, but I had to stop and get a few things too. Mrs. Jackson, is it okay if Ollie helps me pass everything out?”

She nods and waves her approval, not paying me or the kids a bit of attention. It seems that she has Ford cornered. He really does catch the eye of all women. Mrs. Jackson is at least sixty years old, but the way she’s flirting with him while patting her hair says she’s interested.