Chocolate for Two (15 page)

Sitting across from Paige now, I knew I shouldn’t complain.

Or meddle.

Or try to guilt her into changing her mind.

But I couldn’t help myself.

“But what am I going to do without you?” I blurted a bit too loudly. An elderly couple at the adjacent table looked at me askance, then returned to their quiet conversation.

I stared at Paige, who wouldn’t look me in the eye.

The fact was, we both knew I couldn’t run Waverly’s Honey Shop by myself. Sure, I’d started it, but Paige had helped me turn it into a
real company.
She’d practically single-handedly turned it from a tiny online store operating out of my apartment into a growing brick-and-mortar business with several national accounts. My products were now available in boutiques and department stores across the country. While I’d been along for the ride, we both knew that Paige had been the one steering the ship. The business was now operating at a whole new level, far beyond my management abilities—and availability. Though we were equal partners on paper, she kept things running like a Swiss watch. Because of the incessant demands of
Love, Wendy
, I only made it to the Waverly’s Honey Shop office two or three times a week—on a good week.

And after the news I’d just heard from Justin, my time was soon going to become even more stretched.

I stared across the table at her, pregnant, happy, and about to start a brand-new life with her fiancé. I knew I should be supportive of her decision, but I couldn’t get past one thought.

I’m so screwed.

We sat in silence for a few moments before she finally looked at me and spoke.

“I’m really sorry, Waverly. I’ll do my best to help find my replacement before the baby comes.”

I smiled weakly but said nothing.

She did her best to fill the silence. “Now, instead of finding someone to cover my maternity leave, we’ll just make it a permanent position.”

I nodded.

“And it’s not like it’s happening tomorrow. We still have a few weeks,” she added. “I’ve already put some feelers out.”

I was still at a loss for words.

“It will work out,” she practically whispered.

She was clearly doing her best to reassure me, but it wasn’t working. I could already feel the stress bearing down on my shoulders like a vise. I’d already been worried about how we’d manage while she was out for a few weeks on maternity leave.

But leaving for good?

Good…God.

Finally I answered her. “What about working remotely from Nashville?” I could practically see my hands grasping for the straws.

She frowned. “I thought about that, I really did, but I just don’t see how we could do it. With the office here and all the face-to-face meetings we have to keep you in the loop on everything, it would just be too hard. Plus Beth and Tasha are great, but they still need someone
here
to tell them what to do, you know what I mean?”

My face fell.

I knew.

I pointed nostalgically out the window toward our office across the street. “None of that would have happened without you. You know that, right?”

She reached over the table and put her hands over mine. “We can find someone to fill my shoes, I know we can.”

“You really think so?”

“I know so. Remember, this company was
your
idea, Waverly. It was a great idea when I met you, and it’s still great now. I just helped you take it to the next level, that’s all.”

I frowned. I knew I’d figure things out, but I wished I didn’t have to. “Damn that Gary Davenport. He certainly took
you
to the next level.” I jutted my chin toward her stomach.

She laughed. “True, but he’s more than just a sperm donor, you know.”

I finally took a sip of my latte, which was now lukewarm. “I’ll give you that,” I said with a shrug. “Even though he’s taking you away from me, I do like him.”

She smiled. “I like him too.”

We sat in silence for a minute, and then she held her cup up to mine. “Talk about a year of life-changing news for both of us, huh?”

I tapped my cup against hers in a bittersweet toast. “You got that right. So, are you going to name the baby Waverly to make up for the fact that you’re abandoning me?”

“I’d love to, but it’s a boy.”

“No way! I didn’t know that.”

“Actually, we haven’t told anyone. But I figure I owe you, so consider yourself the first to know.”

“Wow, a boy. You have a
penis
growing inside of you.”

She laughed. “I hadn’t thought of it that way, but I guess you’re right. So while I
am
extremely fond of you, my friend, I can’t name my son Waverly. I’m sorry.”

I shrugged again. “I understand. Believe me, it’s unusual enough for a girl.”

“I’m really going to miss you, Waverly—inside
and
outside of the office.” She reached across the table and squeezed my arm.

I set my cup down and put my hand over hers.

“I’m going to miss you too.”

The next afternoon I’d just finished up interviewing some tourists in Times Square for
Honey on Your Mind
and was walking back to NBC when my phone rang. I didn’t recognize the number but answered anyway.

“Hello?”

“Waverly? Is that you?” The voice was familiar.

“Yes?”

“It’s Ava McIntyre.”

I stopped walking.

Jake’s mom had never called me before. Ever.

“Oh, Mrs. McIntyre, hi.”

“How are you, dear?”

“I’m good.”
Why is she calling me?
“Um, how are things?” I slowly started walking again.

“I was wondering if you’re around this weekend. I’d love to fly up to do some dress shopping.”

“Dress shopping?” She would fly all the way to New York to go shopping? Don’t they have enough stores in Florida?

“Not for
me
, dear. For
you
.”

Oh lordy. She means
wedding dress
shopping.

“Oh,” I said. “I’m sorry, that didn’t compute right away.”

“Should I book a flight? I haven’t been able to reach Jake today, so I don’t even know if you’ll be in town.”

I didn’t know how to respond.

Before this call, I’d never even spoken to her on my own.

Now she wanted to spend an entire day shopping with me?

I wasn’t sure my nerves could handle an entire day of Ava McIntyre.

“Waverly, are you still there?”

I suddenly realized that I hadn’t said anything.

Tell her you’re busy with work.

Tell her you’ll be out of town.

Just say something,
anything,
Waverly!

“Um…sure,” I heard myself say.

No!

“Wonderful. I’ll book a room at the Plaza and will arrive Friday night. I’ll make some appointments for us, so plan to meet me Saturday at eight for breakfast at the hotel. And please tell Jake I’ll get us tickets to a show that night and will make dinner reservations. It will be lovely.”

“Jake? I, um, I don’t think he’ll be in town this weekend,” I squeaked out the words, praying to the NBA heavens that I had his schedule wrong. Breakfast at eight on a Saturday? Who in New York is even
awake
at eight on a Saturday?

“Well, if it’s just the two of us, then it’s just the two of us. I’ll be in touch.”

“Okay. Bye, Mrs. McIntyre.”

I hung up the phone and stared at it.

This is going to be brutal.

That night I went over to Andie’s palace for some ice cream.

“So you’ll come with me? I don’t think I can do this alone.”

She shrugged as she scooped us each a bowl of reduced-fat chocolate chip. “Sure. Although I’m
not
meeting you at eight in the morning, that’s for sure. I’m going out with some work people on Friday night, and I have a feeling it could get ugly.”

“That’s okay, you can catch up with us if you have to. I’ll take you for every minute you can spare. I’ll need the moral support.”

She handed me a black ceramic bowl. “I wonder why his mom wants to go dress shopping with you anyway. I mean, she’s not
your
mother. Isn’t that the sort of thing you do with your own mother?”

I shook my head and slogged my way toward the couch. “I have no idea. Maybe it’s because she knows I never really had a mother of my own. That would make it a really kind gesture, actually. Right?”

“Maybe…or maybe she just wants to make sure you pick a dress that meets her standards.”

I stopped midstride and turned around. “No way. You really think so?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know, I’ve never met her. I’m just saying it’s possible, given how particular you say she is.”

I plopped onto the couch. “But that would be so…
awful
.”

She put the carton in the freezer and joined me in the living room. “Some women don’t see it that way. I can totally picture my mom doing something like that and not having a clue that it could possibly offend anyone.”

“But you hate your mom. I don’t want to hate Jake’s mom.”

She lifted a spoon to her mouth. “Well…maybe that’s not her intention at all. Maybe it’s exactly what you said, that she just wants to get to know you better, be a mother figure, that sort of thing.”

I stared at my ice cream, which I’d noticed blended perfectly with the checkerboard décor of her apartment. “Shopping for a
wedding dress is a…huge thing.” I wanted to say
once-in-a-lifetime thing
, but for me, that just wasn’t true.

“For some people, yes, it is. Personally, I could take it or leave it.”

I looked up at her. “I should be excited about it, right?”

“Perhaps.”

“I
want
to be excited about it.”

“Then be excited about it.”

I sighed.

I just…wasn’t.

“You know you’re going to end up with something crazy-expensive,” Andie said. “Is she paying for it?”

“I would think so. Jake said they wanted to pay for the wedding. Does the wedding include the dress?”

She nodded. “I think it does. That would make sense, right?”

I sighed again. “This is all getting so complicated. I don’t want to be indebted to them.”

“Don’t worry so much. Sounds like they can easily afford it.”

“It’s not just that. It’s that I don’t want to be
indebted
to them. Financially, emotionally, in any way. I want to start this relationship off with a clean slate.”

She gave me a weird look. “You do realize this is a family you’re joining and not a company, right? This isn’t a bank merger, Waverly.”

I laughed and scooped up some more ice cream. “You’re right. I’m totally losing it. I think everything that’s going on with Waverly’s Honey Shop is clouding my judgment.”

“What do you mean?”

I felt my shoulders tense.

“Paige is leaving.”

“What?”

“She’s moving to Nashville after she has the baby. She just told me yesterday.”

“Who’s going to take over for her?”

I lifted the spoon and made an
I-have-no-idea
face. “You want a job?”

Just then, we heard a knock on the door.

“Are you expecting someone?” I asked. “Did someone slip by the Secret Service team downstairs?”

She shook her head and went to open the door. A young, sandy-haired guy with broad shoulders was standing there. He was wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt that said
USA HOCKEY
.

He was also holding a bottle of red wine.

He was also very cute.

“Hey, neighbor, thought you might be up for a drink.” He held up the bottle.

“Hi, Morgan, thanks, but I have company.” Andie looked over her shoulder at me. “Waverly, this is Morgan. He lives down the hall.”

I waved from the couch. “It’s nice to meet you.”
She has an amazing boyfriend!
I suddenly wanted to add.

“Waverly’s my best friend from home, but she lives here now,” Andie said.

“Cool.” Morgan nodded and stood there for a minute. When it became obvious that Andie wasn’t going to invite him in to join us, he looked disappointed. “Okay, well, then I guess I’ll see you Friday? We’re still on for drinks, right?”

Huh?
Hadn’t Andie just said she was going out with work people on Friday?

“Sounds good. Bye, Morgan.” She shut the door and walked back to the couch.

When she sat down next to me, I narrowed my eyes.

“What was that?”

She shrugged. “I met him the day after I moved in. He’s nice.”

“He also clearly has a crush on you. Stopping by with a bottle of wine? Who does that?”

She rolled her eyes. “Please. He’s twenty-three.”

“So?” Andie had always had a thing for younger guys, sort of like I’d always had a thing for eighties music. And stupid jokes.

She shook her head. “It’s nothing. He’s cute, but he’s basically a trust-fund baby. Not my type.”

“Did you tell him you have a boyfriend?”

“Can you give the third degree a rest,
Mom
?” She looked annoyed.

I held my hands up. “Okay, I’m sorry. I just didn’t like the way he was looking at you. And you know how much I love Nick.” Nick and I had been coworkers before I’d introduced him to Andie; he’d always watched out for me like a big brother, so I felt a bit protective of him in return.