Page 365 of Seasons of Love
Everyone takes their place while I bring all the food to the table.
Before we start filling our plates, Riley looks at me and smiles as he clears his throat.
“Mom, Dad, Juju,” Riley says. “We have some news. If you look under your plates, there’s a small envelope we want you to open.”
They all lift their plates and look at what we left for them.
Riley puts his arm around my shoulders. We watch as the most important people in our lives find out that our family is about to become a little bigger, thanks to our amazing surrogate.
When we had a chance to talk about everything a year ago, Riley told me more about his attempts at having a family with his ex-wife. I know this is a big moment not just for him but for his parents too.
His mom comes around and gives me a tight hug. “My sweet child. Thank you for being everything our Riley needs.”
“Mom, you know I’m not actually pregnant, right?”
They all laugh, and as everyone fills their plates with food, we talk about baby names, nursery decorations, and where the baby will go to school.
Mom and Dad announce they have no excuse not to move to Connecticut now. They visit us often enough, and the subject has come up in conversation. I guess all it took was one grandchild to make up their minds.
I think about my grandmother and smile to myself. I would love to have her with us, but I know she’s around us. After all, she managed to push me toward my coach.
“I wish I’d met her,” Riley says in my ear as if he can read my thoughts.
“Me too.”
So here we are.
A year ago, I was single and pining for a man I thought was straight. Little did I know that all I needed to do was invite him to my Christmas bubble, and he’d be mine forever.
Dear reader, I hope you’ve enjoyed Bubble and Coach’s story. I had so much fun writing them, especially Bubble. He’s one of the most delightfully funny characters I’ve written.
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1
JAKE
"Shit," I said between gritted teeth.
I ran my hands through my hair, making another mental note to have it cut soon.
This was the third time in a week I'd accidentally left cleaning supplies in one of the rooms. And not just any room. The room.
The double shift, just like the summer, had been too long, and I was feeling hot, bothered, and horny.
Most of the time, I saw the no-fraternization policy as a godsend. I wanted to finish my MBA and come back to the resort for a job that matched my skill set.
Hooking up with other staff was a bad idea, especially for me. I’d seen good people lose their jobs and their hearts because they hooked up with a colleague. Let’s not even go there with guests. Not worth it.
That’s why, with only a week to go before I was back to college on the other side of the country, I was sporting the biggest case of blue-balls-slash-guest-crush combo ever and counting down the days to the end of the season.
My phone buzzed in my pocket. I took it out discreetly and saw a message from my college roommate.
