Page 84 of Better Daddy

She tips her head back and huffs. “Cal and Will are on opposite ends of the creep spectrum, trust me. Cal’s comments are wanted. Are Will’s?” Nose scrunched, she gives me a questioning look.

I shake my head. Though I’m at a loss for how to handle this situation, I can say with certainty that never in my life would I have welcomed the comments Will made that night. “I just want Sully.” I wring my hands, nerves skittering through me. “More than I’ve ever wanted him, if I’m honest. And I want my job. And our family. Is that too much to ask? Why do I have to choose?”

Lo stands and pulls me into a hug, sighing. “You shouldn’t have to, babe. You absolutely shouldn’t have to.”

“I just want the chance to explore what Sully and I could have. Is that so wrong?”

“No. But eventually…” she hedges.

I nod. She doesn’t have to finish the statement. Eventually, I’ll have to make a change. Because no matter how unfair it is, it’s obvious I can’t havethatjob and my husband too.

Chapter 29

Sully

“You honestly think I don’t know your son by now?” Brian looks down at the list I gave him.

Maybe I’m being over-the-top, but I can’t risk ruining Sloane’s night, and a surprise from my unpredictable son could very easily do that.

“I know you do, but even I wouldn’t have expected him to try to eat the leaves of Cal’s fern to see if they tasted like lettuce.” I sigh. “Plus, lately, he’s taken to climbing the counters and jumping off.”

Brian chuckles. “That kid definitely takes after his uncle. The only other person I know who’s eaten a leafjust becauseis Cal.”

I run a hand over my face. “We’re screwed. My brother has been a bloody pain in the arse most of his life. Is that what I’m in for?” And we’re about to add another one to the mix.

He drops his hand to my shoulder with a heavy thud. “I couldn’t think of two people more equipped for the challenge.”

The smile he gives me could be described as encouraging, I suppose, but it’s foreign on my typically salty friend’s face. That can’t be a good thing. Brian doesn’t bullshit me, ever.

“Wow, I didn’t realize I was that utterly fucked.” I shake my head.

“Nah.” He backs away, propping himself up against the ugly Formica countertop. “I’m just happy to see you and Sloane working things out. Together, you can handle anything life throws at you.”

“You think?” I’ve been clinging to that hope. With Sloane, I can do anything. Raise a hellion, have another little one, be happy. All of it.

He nods and tosses the list I gave him onto the counter. “I hated watching you two fall apart. I wish I could have stopped it somehow. I may be an outsider looking in, but…” He shrugs.

“It was always the three of us,” I correct, my chest pinching. “You brought her into my life, and half of our memories include you.”

His smile builds slowly. “I’m forever the third wheel.”

The statement hits too close to one he made a couple of weeks ago.

“Never seemed like it to us.” I take a breath and gear myself up for what I need to say. I hate this kind ofnone of my businessstatement.

Historically, Sloane has taken on the heart-to-heart conversations with Brian when they were needed. But I’m here, and if he wants to talk, then I want him to know I’ll listen. Fuck. I rough a hand through my hair. I wish I was better at this shit.

“Do you ever think about giving a relationship a shot?”

For the almost twenty years I’ve known Brian, he’s never been involved in a situation that even remotely looked like a relationship. He’s not a monk. I know that. But bringing a woman home for the night isn’t the same as opening up his heart.

For a few beats, he gives me a blank look, like his mind has checked out. I consider backtracking. Telling him to forget that I asked. I really should leave this shit to Sloane.

Finally, he sighs and blinks back to the moment. “If you lost Sloane, would you try again?”

I don’t even need to think about that. “Nope.”

My whole adult life, there’s only ever been one woman for me.Losing her for good is my worst nightmare. But if that happened, I’d still love her with my whole heart.