Page 121 of Chasing You

May just smiles widely at him before bringing her attention back to me. “The baby is the size of a banana now,” she says, and a smile pulls at my mouth.

“I swear it feels like only yesterday that you were telling us that you were pregnant.”

At the same time, it feels like it was so long ago that I had those feelings of jealousy because my friend was living a life I had envisioned for myself for so long. Because now I can’t imagine my life any other way.

Every setback, every moment of hurt, led me to where I am today, and even though my journey of getting here didn’t go the way I’d always planned, I’m grateful for the journey I did have, because it’s mine.

“seventeen weeks, the day after tomorrow,” Rafael says.

“And now I’m actually starting to look pregnant,” May says, standing up to show me her tummy. She wasn’t really showing for a while, and she was just waiting to pop.

“Look at that!” I say.

May does a little dance before tucking herself back up on thecouch. I can’t help the grin that blooms on my face. She looks so happy, and I couldn’t want anything more for her.

“How are things going for you?” she asks. “How is Miles settling into the new job?”

“He’s doing well.” My grin is stuck on my face. “His boss is obsessed with him, and I think he’s loving the work. He’s enjoying teaching more than he thought he would.”

“Who isn’t obsessed with him?” She rolls her eyes.

I just laugh. She’s not wrong. Emilio offered Miles the job on the spot at his first interview. He said he was perfect for the position and that he wanted Miles to start as soon as possible. He did exactly as I said and charmed the pants off him.

I can’t say I wasn’t surprised when Miles called his boss at Everglades to resign that same day. I know he said he was ready for the change, but I still had to get him to repeat himself when he told me about it.

“I’m yet to find someone,” I laugh.

“He’s still not talking to his parents?” she asks, her tone cautious.

I shake my head. “He’s still struggling with the guilt, but after his last conversation with them, he decided he needs the space.”

I sat with Miles as he called his parents right after he called to resign, wanting to knock out all of the hard conversations at once.

He hung up when his dad, Graham, started telling him what a disappointment he was, and what a mistake his decision to move and start this new job would be. My stomach churned as he spoke with such malice. You’ll come to regret this, son.

I shake my head just thinking about it.

“I don’t blame him,” Rafael chimes in. “Graham is a dick.”

“Raf,” May scolds.

“What? We all know it.” He shrugs. I can’t exactly disagree with him.

“I think it’s been good for him,” I say. “I’m actually supposed to be meeting him soon,” I pull out my phone to check the time.I’ve got thirty minutes until I’m supposed to meet him at the airstrip, “but I wanted to bring you something first.”

“Ooh!” May claps her hands together. “A present? For me?”

“Something I should’ve done a long time ago.” I reach into my bag and pull out the papers, handing them over to a confused May.

She flicks through the pages, her eyes narrowing. “What is this?”

“The deed to the cottage.” Her gaze jumps to mine. “It’s yours.”

She looks down at the papers, then back to me, then back to the papers before Rafael walks over to us, taking them from her so he can look for himself.

“But…we can’t own it, we didn’t buy it.”

“This place has been yours since the moment you stepped foot in it,” I say. I’ve owned the cottage for years now, renting it out to vacationers. But when May moved in, I knew I wasn’t going to let anyone else in here again. “Consider it a baby shower gift or an early birthday present. Whatever you want,” I say, “but it’s yours.”

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