One Simple Step (Journey #3)

“So, what are you gonna do, sweetie? He seems like he’s really trying but—”

I cut her off with my hand. “It’s too late for that, Rem.” She nodded her head in agreement, as I stood back up and began shuffling through my closet again. “What’s done is done. I’ve moved on, and now he needs to. He’ll figure that out soon enough if I just keep ignoring him.”

“Well, sounds like you have it all figured out, then. You’re a smart girl, Al. What you have with Nick is good—perfect, in fact. Some girls would be confused by all of this, but you have your head on straight. Let’s just keep it that way.” She gave me a quick hug. “I’m gonna go take a shower and head into work. I’ll see ya Thursday for sure, right?”

“Oh yeah, your first official ‘Throw-down Thursday’. Aren’t you so excited?”

Throw-down Thursdays were epic, well, according to Danny at least. We always seemed to end up at Clammy’s on Thursday nights, so they became sort of a tradition, and Danny officially named it. He tried to outdrink everyone, and somehow that made it a throw-down, except for no one really could, or tried to outdrink him. Whatever it was, it was always fun and interesting. I knew Remy needed a night out, so I invited her, hoping she would have a good time, and so I could have a little girl reinforcement.

“So excited,” she answered with a roll of her eyes before giving me a wave and shutting my door.

I finished picking out my outfit for the night, and placed everything in the bathroom so I could take a bath and work on my hair before Nick arrived. I saw the letter again as I was grabbing clothes to put back in my closet.

I could tell Teddy was trying, anyone could see that. Maybe he had finally figured out how a relationship was supposed to work, but it was too little too late for us. I hoped that he would be able to find someone that he could be happy with, like I was with Nick.





Chapter 21


Nick



“Hey, Aaron, I’m gonna head out a little early. You need anything before I leave?” I pulled off my tie as I walked out and stood behind the front desk, where he was training a new clerk. I still hadn’t been able to find someone that was decent enough to fill the spot Ally had left behind. Hopefully this new girl, Kim, would be the one. Aaron definitely seemed fond of her.

“No, I think we’re good,” he replied, distracted by Kim who, at the moment, was bent over retrieving a dropped pen. I really needed to have a discussion with him about appropriate behavior in the workplace. “You going out with Ally tonight?”

“Yeah.” I rubbed a hand across the stubble on my face, wishing I had time to stop back at home before picking her up. “I have a few errands to run though, so if you need me, just give me a call.” I patted him on the back, leaning close to his ear so only he could hear me. “And try to keep your eyes on Kim’s face.” He turned a bright shade of red as I smirked at him and exited through the front entrance.

I couldn’t blame the guy. It was hard to control yourself sometimes, especially if he was really interested in Kim. Ally and I only let things get out of hand at work one time, that night in my office, and it had been one of the best nights of my life. Every time I was sitting behind my desk, I could picture her laid out over it. It was hard to get any work done sometimes if I let my mind drift too far.

I thought about Ally and the night I had planned for her. I wanted to do something extra special to show her how much I loved her, and I figured this would be exactly the type of thing she would love. On the outside, everything was going good, but on the inside, I was having a little bit of inner turmoil.

I had come to the conclusion that Ally didn’t want kids, now and maybe ever, just by little things she would say once in a while, and the comment that I overheard when we were visiting her parents. What was I supposed to do about that? Should I come clean to her about my situation, or should I just end things now?

That thought made me sick to my stomach. I couldn’t imagine my life without her. I loved Ally more than anything, but at the same time, I had to think about my daughter. I couldn’t see Ally as some evil stepmother, but could she really ever love a child that I shared with another woman? Just because my life was going to be changed forever, didn’t mean she wanted hers to.

And then there was Kara. What in the hell was I going to do about her?

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