“So I’m here to offer the scary advice while you get to be the motivational one?” Sam asked.

“Pretty much.” Patience’s voice was cheerful.

“I’m not even surprised.” But Sam was smiling as he spoke.

“I really appreciate this,” Shelby told them. “Not just your time, but your words. A lot of people have been telling me to just go for it, but you two offered me practical steps. That means a lot. There’s so much to think about.”

“You’ll get there,” Patience assured her. “Just listen to your heart. We can all give advice, but you’re the one who has to decide what’s right for you. No one else.” She grinned. “I’m so glad Aidan called. This has been fun.”

“I agree.” Sam winked at her. “We could take our act on the road.”

Shelby blinked. “Aidan phoned you and asked you to talk to me?”

“Uh-huh.” Patience sighed. “You two are such a great couple. He’s worried about you. I love that in a man. I never thought I’d see that player brought to his knees, but here he is, acting like a man in love.”

Shelby didn’t know what to deal with first. “We’re just friends.”

“Is that what we’re calling it?” Sam asked, as he rose. “Let me know if you have any more questions.” He handed her his card. “You can stop by the office or set up a meeting. Whatever works for you. In the meantime, I’ll get you those names.”

“Thank you.”

He left. Shelby hugged Patience and thanked her, then walked out onto the street.

She was no longer fighting tears, but did still have a spinning head. Aidan had taken the time to get his friends to help her. Talk about supportive. And unexpected. Not that he wasn’t a great guy, but still. This was above and beyond.

Patience was wrong. They weren’t in love. They were friends and today that seemed so much more important.

* * *

HAVING SURVIVED DESTINY’S DELIVERY—albeit from a distance—Aidan considered himself an old hand at the giving-birth thing. So when he heard that Isabel Hendrix had gone into premature labor, he knew supplies would be required. Which was why he swung by the bakery instead of Shelby’s house. She’d said that Isabel would want pretzel bread and he knew better than to ask why.

He barely had time to stop his truck before she raced out of the bakery. She had two tote bags with her. One was filled with loaves of bread, the other had boxes of cookies.

“Thanks for coming to get me,” she said with a smile. “You didn’t have to. I could have done this myself.”

“And miss out on all the fun? No way. Plus this probably gets me out of a girl thing later.”

Shelby put the bags in the backseat, then climbed up beside him and fastened her seat belt. “You can pretend all you want. I know you like the girl things.”

Aidan knew what she meant. But at the mention of “girl things” all he could think about were the differences between men and women. More physical than emotional. How much he liked those differences...and missed them.

For the greater good, he reminded himself as he drove to the hospital.

“Like them or not, it’s always good to have a rain check in my back pocket.”

“I’ll give you as many as you want,” she said. She shifted in her seat until she was angled toward him. “I can’t believe what you did for me. No, I take that back. I totally believe it.”

Her voice was earnest, her body language intense. As if she wanted to make sure he understood what she was saying.

“What are we talking about?” he asked cautiously.