Katherine Garbera - Summer in Manhattan

“It’s okay,” she said. “I think it was just Hayley finding someone to share her life with and I don’t know. Just sometimes I get distracted by a pair of blue-gray eyes.”

“I don’t do relationships well,” he said. “I…I grew up in the foster system so I hesitate when things feel…well, like they could be real. I’m always afraid to believe it. And Garrett is like a brother to me. I didn’t want…”

She put her hand on his. “It’s okay. Really.”

She didn’t want to make Hoop feel bad about that night. If she hadn’t gone to the wedding maybe she would have gotten herself out of her funk. But she had and she’d slept with Rich. That was that.

“Is he definitely out of the picture? Or did he just need time to process everything?” Hoop asked.

“He’s out. He was, like ‘get an abortion, keep the baby, I don’t care what you do. I have a fiancée and don’t need this’.”

“That was pretty harsh,” Hoop said. “I wasn’t expecting that.”

“Me either,” she said. “But to be fair we don’t know each other at all. And we both had said it was a drunken mistake. I just wanted him to know there was a baby in case it mattered.”

“I’m sorry,” he said.

“Don’t be. I like the idea of raising bean here on my own.”

“Bean?”

“Yeah, that’s what I’ve been calling the baby.”

“Cute.”

“Yes, d non-gender specific.”

“Are you going to find out if it’s a boy or girl?” Hoop asked.

She rubbed her hand over her stomach. She sort of assumed she’d have a girl. Frankly, she was way better with her own sex than with the opposite one and it seemed like God might want her to succeed at this parenting thing. “Maybe.”

The desserts arrived and she looked down at the decadent chocolate lava cake, taking a bite and closing her eyes as she did so. Hayley always said the first bite of chocolate on the tongue was the best. She could tell that they used the same chocolate they did. She let the rich creaminess fill her mouth and then opened her eyes to find Hoop staring at her with an odd expression on his face.

“You okay?”

He nodded and then cleared his throat, stretching his legs out under the table, his foot brushing against hers.

“Um…did you talk to a lawyer about the situation?” he asked, slightly distracted by her touch.

“No. Should I?” she asked. Right now she was busy dealing with morning sickness and trying to figure out herself as a mother. Rich had said he wanted no role in the baby’s life and she hadn’t thought beyond that fact.

“Yes. I’m not advising you to do so just because family law is what I do, but also from experience. If the Candied Apple & Cafe continues to grow and you become a millionaire he might suddenly show up in your life again. Also, you want to have some safe guards in place for the child if they ask about the father later,” Hoop said. He took a sip of his coffee thoughtfully.

“I hadn’t thought of any of that. Actually, I’m still sort of coming to terms with everything,” she admitted. “Do you know a good lawyer who does that sort of thing?”

“I do.”

“Do I have to guess who it is?” she asked when he didn’t elaborate.

He winked at her. “Me. That’s what I do. But since we are friends, I will give you the name of one of my colleagues.”

“Really? I knew you were a lawyer but you seem more like a criminal defense one.”

“Why did you think that?”

“You seem tough and I know you were a cop. What made you want to do family law?”

“Growing up the way I did made me very aware of how complicated family legal matters can be.”

She reached across the table and put her hand over his, squeezing it gently. He made that statement so nonchalantly that she almost believed that he didn’t really feel anything about it, but there was a note in his voice that gave him away. That made her realize that his past wasn’t perfect.

Just like hers.

Both of them had come from families that were less than perfect.

They were closer now than she’d have thought at the beginning of the meal and a part of her didn’t regret it at all. Another part of her did. She wasn’t too fond of discovering more ways to bond with Hoop.

Hoop hadn’t meant to bring up the other guy but frankly he was pissed at himself and Rich for the situation. He should have followed his gut the night they’d met but instead he’d done what he thought was right.

Made the adult decision.

So now he was sitting across from the woman he wanted, listening to her talk baseball stats and getting turned on. And she’d friend zoned him. Probably the smartest choice. He was a man known for his logic, but with Cici that had never been the case.

And that would have to be enough because pressuring a woman into a deeper relationship went totally against the grain. He wasn’t about to do it now with Cici.

“I know some people say Derek Jeter is the all-time greatest but if you look at the stats, he’s no Babe Ruth or Ty Cobb. It’s almost like he’s not even playing in the same league. You can’t beat those guys who made the sport great. They set standards using equipment that was rougher, heavier, not machined to make the game easier, you know?”

He did know. He also knew that nothing excited him as much as hearing her talk about baseball. There was that passion again that he’d first noticed at the Olympus in February.

Regret didn’t taste good with port, he thought.

“Which is why I invited you to the baseball game together,” he said. “We could have a really good time.”

She smiled and then sighed.

She leaned forward, putting her elbows on the table and resting her head on her left hand. She looked at him from under those heavy brows and thick lashes and he suddenly couldn’t really pay attention to anything but the fall of her dark hair against her cheek. Why had he never noticed how pink her lips were before this? Or how kissable her mouth was?

She sat up, leaning forward toward him. “I’m trying to be smart for my baby. I never expected to be a Mom…not like this and I need to focus on that. And I’m going to be totally honest here, you distract me.”

“Well, let’s fix that. We need to figure this out,” he said. “The more we try to deny it, the more it will grow and then how awkward will getting together with Garrett and Hayley be?”

She shook her head and took another sip of the green tea she’d ordered after dinner. “Nope, it’s not going to work. I see where you are going. But we had a shot and now I have this little bean. I can’t…”

“You can. It’s not like I’m not a decent guy. You liked me enough to kiss me in Olympus and once again in the cab when I took you home.”

She put her mug down on the saucer and gave him a hard look. “But you didn’t like me enough. I’m sorry. I’m not trying to be difficult. But you hurt me, Hoop. You made me feel like I wasn’t enough. I don’t like that. I act stupid when I’m hurt like that.”

Her words wounded him but only because he hadn’t thought of things from her point-of-view. He had pushed her away. She’d been willing to give him a chance; a real chance, but he’d been a guy.

“I’m an ass.”

“Agreed,” she said, with a smile. “Just kidding…you’re not an ass. I think you are actually a really nice guy. The kind of man who is responsible and a good friend.”

He hadn’t thought that he’d hurt her but now it consumed him. Made him realize how arrogant he’d been in thinking he could come back to her. He owed her. He needed to show her she wasn’t the problem. That they could, at the very least, be friends. “Let me be a friend to you, Cici. Let me prove I can be a good friend to you.”