Page 54 of Saving You

“So I’m guessing you’re familiar with the book?” Zoey asks.

“Yeah, I’ve read the whole series. I loved them. I’m a Dean stan,” I say.

“What about Garrett?” Liv asks.

“Don’t get me wrong, I love Garrett, but there’s just something about Dean. He became a total simp for Allie, and you see it even more inThe Legacy. Plus, you gotta love the whole Winston thing,” I say with a laugh.

The girls all stare at me mouths agape, and then they look at each other and every one of them bursts into laughter.

“You have to name it Winston now, Bailey,” Hannah wheezes out.

“It’s baby blue and small, though,” Liv says between her fits of laughter.

“What is baby blue?” Matt asks, confused by the sudden uproarious laughter.

“What about Winnie, then?” Zoey asks.

“How about we don’t name it,” I say, shaking my head, completely embarrassed they have decided to name my vibrator at the dinner table.

“What in the world are you trying to name?” Grayson asks.

“Nothing,” I say, reaching for my wine.

Josh, either being super intuitive and not nosy, or knowing he may get information out of his wife later, helps move the conversation along. “So, Bailey, how’s work going now that it’s flu season?”

“It’s good. We’ve done a lot of flu shots, but other than a couple of people, most people stay home when they’re sick. I’ve had a few helicopter parents bring their kids in, but that’s about it.”

“What do you do?” Matt asks.

“I manage a medical practice office. It’s mainly paperwork and some face-to-face with patients at reception, but I alsodeal with the doctors and nursing staff.”

“Grayson and Hannah both work at Vancouver Memorial in the ER. You enjoy working in a smaller place?” Matt asks.

“Yeah, I like the predictable schedule and flexibility. Being a single parent, I often need the time to take Charlie to her appointments or grab her after school on days she gets out early. I enjoy working for the doctors there.”

Caleb reaches out and grabs my leg under the table, squeezing it, and I smile at him. Despite the group of people here, I wish I could crawl into Caleb’s lap. His reaction to Grayson’s comments earlier has me wanting to tell him he’s the only one I want. That he’s the only man I think about when I touch myself. I want to stake my claim on him. I want to show him how much I want him.

We finish eating, and Caleb and I clear the table. While we’re in the kitchen, I quickly check my phone and see another missed text from Derek.

Derek: Bailey, stop ignoring my texts. I have a right to see my daughter.

Fuck. He has a point; he does have a court-ordered right to visitation. But I don’t want to see him and I don’t want to subject Charlie to his toxicity.

Caleb comes up behind me. I lock my phone and leave it on the counter while he grabs the chocolate cake and I grab the vanilla ice cream out of the freezer.

With the exception of the text from Derek, the night is relaxing. Everyone chats and laughs, and Charlie is included in conversations. This group has completely accepted the two of us, and it fills me with gratitude.

After dessert, we move into the living room and queue up some music and chat. After a while, I notice the time and tell Charlie it’s time to get ready for bed.

Olivia pats her legs and stands. “Guess that’s our cue,” she says to Josh.

He just smiles at her with an expression full of love and affection.

“We’re going to take Charlie with us,” she announces as she makes her way to the entryway where I see Charlie’s bag is already waiting. “We packed that earlier when we were playing,” Olivia informs me, noticing my gaze.

“Um, what’s going on?”

“I decided Charlie needed a sleepover with Aunty Liv and Uncle Josh, so we are going to take her home with us and then you can grab her from the game tomorrow afternoon. We will feed her breakfast and lunch. It’s going to be a blast,” Liv rambles on.

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