Now there was a union that never should’ve happened. And probably wouldn’t have if there hadn’t been a need for a hasty wedding.
He didn’t regret his marriage entirely because of Abby, Luke and Logan, but fatherhood was a far better fit than being a husband.
“So, three and out?” Devlin asked.
“That’s right. Messy diapers and 3:00 a.m. feedings are in my rearview mirror.” Nolan grinned. “I’m busy enough with work, and while I’m not happy with the arguing, at least my kids can feed themselves. I’ll leave the happily-ever-afters and babies to you guys.”
* * *
Katie bit hard on her bottom lip and hurried back to the party on tiptoes.
She’d slipped out to her office to hunt up a couple of notepads and pens to keep track of who gave what gift to the mommies-to-be.
Overhearing Devlin sharing with his brothers his plans to propose to Tanya stopped her in her tracks.
She was genuinely happy for the two of them. If anyone deserved to find true love and happiness, it was Devlin. He’d gone through a tough time recently. A helicopter he’d been piloting had crashed, stranding him and Adam in the forest with Devlin badly hurt. It’d taken him a long time to get better, and Tanya had been a big part of his recovery.
And hearing Nolan’s familiar I’m-happy-the-way-I-am mantra wasn’t surprising.
Not really.
Listening to him say aloud what he’d often said in the past, in one way or another, reaffirmed what she’d always known.
He considered his life complete.
Lead architect in his family’s successful business. With five brothers he loved and who were his best friends. Single dad to three great kids.
A happy bachelor.
Her long-held, silent crush on the guy wasn’t heading anywhere. No matter how attracted she might be to him—and had been from the moment they met—there would never be anything between them.
Well, nothing more than one stolen night of passion.
Girl, get over it!
Another familiar refrain, one she’d repeated daily to herself over the last few weeks. Getting back to normal—whatever that might be—was harder than she’d thought it’d be.
That morning after Nolan left, she’d cleaned up the room and hurried home, determined to live up to the agreement they made. To make sure everything stayed the same. Between her and Nolan. Her and the Murphys. Her and the job she loved so much.
Easier said than done.
Yes, her actions had been dumb that night. Not just dumb, but careless, too.
Hey, it wasn’t the first time she’d been stupid in her never-ending search for—
Nope, don’t use the L word.
What happened that night had been a combination of lust, booze and foolishness. She’d been lucky the man she’d fallen into bed with had been someone like Nolan.
To think one night of amazing sex would lead to something was crazy. He’d made his feelings clear. They should go on with their lives as if nothing happened.
So being in the same room with him today—even with fifty-plus other people—should be easy. Easy to continue with her pleasant but business-is-business demeanor. It’d worked at the office. Mainly because he’d holed up in his place next door, working from there most of the time, instead of at the main house.
Like that wasn’t a big enough hint he meant what he’d said.
Katie handed off the writing implements and took a load of opened gifts to display on the dining room table. Peggy joined her, holding up an infant’s one-piece pajama covered with puppies in green and yellow.
“Boy, it’s getting hard to remember Curtis ever being this small.”
Katie smiled. “I thought you said Curtis was never that small.”
“True.” Peggy refolded the outfit. “That boy arrived at almost eleven pounds and went straight into the three-to-six-month size. He’s been a handful ever since.”
“And you love it.”
“I do. Even if it meant us sharing a nasty flu bug for the last couple of weeks. Thank goodness that’s over. This is the first time either of us has been out of the house since Halloween.”
“I’m glad you’re feeling better.”
“Me, too. I appreciate the Crock-Pot meals you left for us on the front porch.” Peggy moved closer. “We haven’t had the chance to chat lately, and this isn’t the time or place for any girl talk, but are you okay?”
Katie tightened her grip on the fluffy teddy bears she’d saved from toppling to the floor. “I’m fine.” She returned the animals to the table. “Why do you ask?”
“You seem a bit—”
“Frazzled? Well, work’s been crazy, despite the upcoming holidays.” She hoped her smile didn’t appear forced. “Poor Elise, breaking her arm. I was glad to step in and help pull today together for the...for everyone.”
“I know they appreciate your efforts. Fay gushed about you when she stopped in the flower shop last week to go over some business stuff.” Peggy laid a hand on her arm. “No, what I was going to say is you seem a bit sad.”
“Sad?” Katie kept her gaze lowered. “Really?”
“You said all the right things at the Halloween party about starting over, finding someone new.”
“But?” Katie heard the question in her friend’s voice.
“You’ve been through a lot in the last couple of months.” Her friend gave a quick squeeze and let go. “Maybe you’re not as done with Jake as you think.”
Oh, she was done. Over and out with an ease that didn’t surprise her.
No, it was another man who was haunting her every waking hour now.
Keeping her feelings for Nolan under control used to be easy. Dating often and a variety of men helped. When things got serious with Jake, she’d believed her infatuation with a certain Murphy brother was in the past.
Then...yeah, and then.
This time around, it was going to take her a bit longer to bury her desire for someone she could never have, but she would do it.
She had to.
Goodness knows she had enough practice at it.
She needed to think about the future. Her future. It was time to look ahead, not behind.
“I’m okay.”
