Final Score: Part One (Game On #5) (13 page)

Pride swelled inside me, and, since I’d finished priming, I set the tube on the side and gave her a hug.

“What was that for?” She laughed as she hugged me back. 

“I’m just so excited for you. You have so many good things happening for you.”

As I sat back in my seat, Bree stood and cast her eyes over the foundation shades on the table before looking back at me. “I can’t believe it, Leah.” She giggled and her eyes sparkled. “I’m so lucky to have all of this, and the chance to actually have my dreams come true.”

I shook my head. “It’s not all luck. At least, not the career stuff. You’ve worked hard and you’ve earned it.”

“I know. And that’s all I ever wanted. To do something. To make a contribution to the world. And sure, I know it’s just make-up and I’m not about to change anyone’s life or find a cure for some awful disease, but I’m doing
something
. And that’s what matters to me.”

“You just wait.” I chuckled. “Wait until the baby comes along, and going back to work will seem like the toughest thing ever.”

Just because I hadn’t leapt over that hurdle yet, didn’t mean I couldn’t imagine how tough it would be. I got a little taster every time I left Jessica with someone else. It’s never easy handing over such a large part of your heart.

“I know,” Bree said as she picked up a foundation brush and opened up the foundation she’d established was the correct shade for me. “I’m kinda dreading that part. I’d like the kind of job where I could take the baby with me, but if my goal is movie sets, I can’t see that happening. I’ll just have to get used to it, I guess.”

“Or… I’ll just open up a nursery at my place where I take care of the next generation of Westberg kids.”

Bree laughed. “That could work! And, if I have a boy, he could end up being Jessica’s first boyfriend!”

The image made me smile. If my daughter was anything like me, though, she’d be in to older guys, not younger. But… actually, I’d have preferred she wasn’t so much like me when it came to dating. She sure as hell wouldn’t encounter the same boredom issues I’d faced when growing up. No matter where life took us, I’d make sure she didn’t grow up isolated in a tiny village. I wanted her to have the kind of childhood that didn’t leave her feeling like she was missing out on anything.

“You never know,” I said. “All we need now is for Freya and Miguel to have a kid and we’ll all be sitting around talking about sleepless nights and the best way to handle tantrums!”

As Bree began applying my foundation, she said, “Oh. My. God. Their kids would be stunning. But…” she paused. “Do you think that’ll happen? You think they’re together forever?”

“You know, if you’d asked me a few months ago, I wouldn’t have been completely sure. But the more they’re together, the more I think they’ll make it. What do you think?”

“I think they’re great together. But there’s always a part of me that wonders if… is Miguel always going to be second best to Will? I mean, does she love Miguel the way she loved Will?”

“I don’t think she’ll ever love anyone the way she loved Will. What they had was so rare. Everything about them was right. They had the best friendship, and the most honest kind of love. I don’t think she’ll feel that way about anyone again because nobody else could be as perfect for her as Will was.”

Freya and I didn’t talk about Will as much as we used to. It wasn’t that she’d forgotten him, or that she loved him any less now he was gone… because that kind of love? It never stops. But she had learned how to move on, and that came with an acceptance that any relationship she had would be a lot different. Everyone knew she still missed him, and she would for the rest of her life, but it had gotten easier for her, and a large part of that was down to Miguel.

“They’re happy though, right?” Bree asked. “They seem happy.”

I nodded. “Yeah. They’re happy. I think if they weren’t in this for the long haul, they would have ended it by now.”

“That’s true. Now we just need to get Bryce fixed up with someone! Honestly, I thought Bethan might be the one.”

“They weren’t together long,” I pointed out. “She was sweet, though. Better than Sarah.”

Bree screwed her face up at the mention of his ex-wife. “Hated her. How she managed to find someone else so fast is beyond me. Bryce deserves to find someone new.”

“I’m not sure he’s even ready.”

Bree giggled. “You think he has some wild oats to sow?”

“Maybe.” I laughed. “But not really. He might act that way, but he’s a big softy. I think he wants what he had. Family life.”

I could relate to that. I wasn’t in the exact same position as him, but already life felt unsettled, and I wanted my stability back.

But I wasn’t allowing myself to think about that. I was at Bree’s for a little bit of make believe and imagining that nothing had changed.

It took over an hour, but Bree was finally happy with what she’d done, and she allowed me to look in the mirror at her handiwork. She smiled as she handed me the mirror, and my jaw dropped in to my lap.

“What do you think?” she asked.

I had to take a minute to stare at my reflection. It wasn’t that I didn’t know how to do my own make-up, or how to hide my flaws and enhance my good points, but Bree had somehow managed to take it to a whole new level. My skin looked smoother than it had ever looked before. My eyes had been dusted with a stunning smoky brown with a tiny hint of glitter, and a very subtle touch of eyeliner had made my eyes look slightly bigger. My cheeks had been contoured to highlight my cheekbones, and a very soft pink blush had been applied. My lips were also pink – a shade quite close to my natural shade, and enhanced with some pink lightly sparkled lip gloss.

“If you don’t like all the sparkly bits, I can change them. Or I can change any of the colours if you don’t like them. I just figured, since you don’t wear huge amounts of make-up, this would be pretty subtle but classy, and-”

“Bree, I love it.” I continued to stare at myself, and I couldn’t help it, I pictured myself in my wedding dress and veil and… with my hair styled… I’d look amazing. I pushed out the ever-constant thought that it might all be for nothing. I had to stay positive. I had to be as confident as Deanna and Mitch that Radleigh would come back to me.

“Really?”

The nervousness in her tone made me glance up at her. “It’s absolutely perfect. How can you sound so worried?”

“Because you’re my best friend, Leah. And this is for your wedding. I don’t want to get this wrong.”

“You haven’t.” I placed the mirror down and stood up. I took her hands in mine and grinned. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”

She let out a sigh of relief, as if she finally believed me. “You’re so welcome. Now… let’s do lunch and keep talking!”

That was exactly what we did. Bree removed my wedding make-up, and I let her re-apply every day make-up to my face. As it turned out, that was a wise move because after an incredible day with Bree, I got an unpleasant surprise when I got to Mitch and Deanna’s.

I spotted the unfamiliar car in the driveway as I entered and the sight of the overly flashy sports car caused my stomach to turn over. I wasn’t sure Radleigh’s parents knew anyone who would drive something so obnoxious and although I prayed with everything in me that they did, when Mitch opened the door and let me in, I could smell her perfume immediately.

“Oh God, really?” I muttered.

Mitch rested his hand on my shoulder. “I’m sorry, Leah. She knows Radleigh will be home soon and… at least if she’s here we can keep an eye on her.”

I knew Radleigh would be home soon too, and I was sort of hoping to catch him before I took Jessica home. I needed to see him. Needed a moment to be wrapped up in his strong arms and remind myself that everything would be okay. Now I just wanted to grab Jessica and run because the awkwardness of us all being in the same place at once didn’t bear thinking about.

“Did she bring the kids here?” I asked.

“No. She left them with a friend. She says she needs to talk to Radleigh about something.”

“She couldn’t have just called him?”

Mitch shook his head. “She’s trying to build some bridges here. She apologised to us for turning his life upside down, and… she’s trying.”

My heart sank. I should have known she’d want to try and get Mitch and Deanna on side but it never occurred to me. I figured she’d have just played the doting mother card and hoped they warmed to her. If she’d gone over partially to try and talk them round… either she was taking her game playing up a notch or… she was actually being genuine. Maybe she had changed as much as Radleigh had. She’d been a bitch to me, but what if she really wanted him back? What if she’d grown up now and wanted to make up for the crappy things she’d done in the past?

“Can I please just get Jessica and get out of here?”

“Sure.” Mitch nodded. “Deanna’s taken her in the kitchen. She didn’t think you’d want Jen trying to play mom to your daughter.”

True story.
My stomach knotted at the idea of her being anywhere near Jessica. Jen was trying to cast herself in my role in so many ways already. I wouldn’t have her swooping in and trying to show off how great she was with my child.

“Thanks, Mitch. I’ll go and get her and try to be out of here before Radleigh gets in.”

I didn’t give him a chance to say anything more, I just wandered through to the kitchen where Deanna was reading a colourful-looking book to Jessica at the kitchen table.

“Hi,” I said, smiling as I approached them. Just like always, Jessica’s face beamed when she saw me and she wriggled on Deanna’s lap in excitement.

“Hey,” Deanna said. “Did you have a good day?”

I nodded, taking Jessica from her and holding her close to me.
There it is. Everything is right with the world again.
“It was exactly what I needed. The make-up trial went brilliantly, and spending the day with Bree always cheers me up.”

“Good.” Deanna nodded in the direction of the living room. “I’m guessing you want to make a quick getaway?”

“Yes please. Thank you for keeping Jessica away from her. I know it sounds petty but…”

“It doesn’t at all. Mitch is a little kinder than me. He doesn’t want her here, but he also knows she won’t disappear easily. I have no interest in anything she has to say, and I don’t want her trying to make it look as though she can breeze in here and take everything from you. Maybe a time will come when Jen and Jessica will have to meet, but not now. Not so fast. I’m wise to her. She wants to be here when Radleigh gets home so it looks like we’re all having a cosy chat. Having Jessica here is a bonus I won’t let her take advantage of.”

I smiled. “What would I do without you?”

“You’d survive.” Deanna laughed. “But I’m glad I can be here for you.”

“Me too.”

After saying a quick goodbye to Deanna and Mitch, I grabbed Jessica’s stuff and quickly left the house, only to run into Radleigh as he got out of his car.

Seeing him when I was trying to get away wasn’t what I wanted, but the second my eyes fell on him, my resolve to escape vanished. God, I loved his
just got out of work
look. His hair was still wet from the shower he’d taken before he left, and he wore blue jeans and his Westberg Warriors t-shirt which clung to his chest in a way that made me want to drag him home immediately.

Except I couldn’t.

“Hey,” he said as he locked his car door and walked towards us. Jessica reached out for him and he took her from me and hugged her tight. “God, I missed you, Jessi.” As she wound her arms around his neck, he reached out for me and put his arm around my waist. “I missed you both.”

“I missed you too.” As much as I wanted to resist, I couldn’t help it, I put my arms around him and breathed him in.

“I know why you’re leaving so quickly,” he said, nodding towards Jen’s car. “But I didn’t invite her here. I wasn’t expecting her.”

“I know. But apparently she wants to talk to you about something, so… I guess we should let you go.”

I said the words as if it was okay with me, but inside, my heart began to crumble because I was letting him go to her instead of asking him to come back. To tell him I’d made a mistake and I needed him back with me and Jessica where he belonged.

Except I couldn’t do that. It wouldn’t solve anything. Wouldn’t stop whatever questions he had about her he needed to find the answers to.

Radleigh looked down at me, his eyes searching mine. “Can I see you both soon? Tomorrow maybe, after work?”

I nodded. “Of course. I told you, you can come over any time.”

He gave me a sad smile before turning his attention to Jessica, who had her head rested against his shoulder, a look of bliss on her face that made my heart ache again. “Daddy has to go now, Jessi,” he said softly. “But tomorrow I’ll come see you and Mommy.”

I reached for her, but instead of coming to me, she clung tighter to Radleigh, as if she understood that he wouldn’t be home tonight. The ache in my heart spread to my gut, then slowly outwards through my body until I thought the weight of it might crush me. Jessica might have only been nine months old, but she was aware of more than I would have believed possible.

“Come on, sweetheart,” I said gently, reaching for her again. “Time to go home.”