“I’m going to quit. I’m not loving it anymore, and we don’t need the money. Our savings account is healthy, and your business is successful and growing fast. I thought I could stay home for a while. Look after the house and the kids and alleviate some of the pressure on you.”
“Would you be happy doing that? You have worked so hard for your career.”
“I have, and I wouldn’t be giving it up. Just putting it on hold for a few years. You have sacrificed a lot for my career. Now it’s my turn to put your needs and your career first. The kids won’t stay kids forever. Spending more time with them won’t be a chore, and if it eliminates some stress, meaning we have more quality time together as family and a couple, it’s a no-brainer for me.”
“Are you sure? I don’t want you to do something that will make you unhappy.”
“Supporting your dream makes me happy. Seeing you and the kids happy makes me happy.”
“I love that, Brad, truly I do, but your needs matter too. Your happiness has to factor into it as well. I don’t want you doing something you might end up regretting. I want you to be happy too.”
“I’m unhappy now, Rach. Things need to change. I—” A shuddering sigh leaves his lips as he drags his free hand through his dark-blond hair.
“Say it, babe. No more hiding shit. Tell me what you were going to say.”
“I miss the US. I miss my family and our friends. I want to move back home.”
“Oh, thank God.” I cup his shocked face. “We’re on the same page, babe. I want to move back too.”
“What about Jill and your dad and the office here?”
“I will appoint a director to run the office with Majella. Dad and Maggie are abroad on their adventures more than they are here, and he still has his apartment in New York. As for Jill, honestly, that friendship causes me additional stress. We’re not close anymore, and I think I need to distance myself from her, at least for a while. There is nothing here stopping us from leaving.”
I don’t say that Jill found me at a weak moment and I confessed my fears to her. Or how she fed me a steady dose of hatred aimed in my husband’s direction. If I’d told Faye, she would’ve immediately urged me to talk to Brad instead of supporting the view all men are cheating bastards and it must be true. I wanted to talk to Faye so badly, but it wouldn’t have been right to involve her. I couldn’t have asked her to keep it from Kyler. I didn’t want our friends embroiled in our woes, and maybe that was partly due to the past too.
To be fair to Jill, I don’t blame her for having that opinion after what Sam did. He cheated on her with one of their neighbors and knocked her up. Jill had been friends with the woman, pouring her heart out about the strain her failure to get pregnant was having on her marriage. That stupid bitch continued the friendship, providing a friendly ear while she was sleeping with her husband. How could any woman do that to another?
I understand Jill’s devastation, and I hate what she has endured. I have tried to be a good friend to her, but she doesn’t make it easy. Faye thinks she’s jealous of me and her sly digs are deep-seated envy. Faye has little to do with her anymore, and maybe I need to take a leaf out of her book.
Jill projected her bitterness onto me, and I think there’s a part of her hoping my marriage ends and my family breaks up so she’s not the only one going through what she’s going through. I don’t need that toxicity in my life, which is why I need some space. I won’t permanently abandon her though. She’s going through a really tough time, and I’m hopeful once she gets through this we can resume our usual friendship.
I don’t blame Jill for what transpired between Brad and me, even if she gave me shitty advice. No, that’s on me for not talking to my husband and choosing to believe the worst without giving him an opportunity to explain.
“You’re not just saying that to appease me?” Brad asks, yanking me from my inner monologue.
I shake my head. “No. Not at all. We moved here for your job, and I thought we could make it work, but it’s not. It nearly ended us. It’s too stressful trying to run my business from here. I’m sick of traveling back and forth so much. I’m having issues with the management team in New York, and I need to be there more regularly. I miss Faye and the girls so much. I love Ireland, but the US is my home now.”
“The kids are settled though.”
“Kids adapt. They’ll be fine. Maybe we could buy a place close to the Kennedys. The kids will be delighted to have all their friends close by. I can buy a helicopter and split my time between New York and working from home.”
“We could buy a place with an Olympic-sized pool for Elodie, and Ky is talking about Cathal potentially starting motocross. Roan would love that too, and he’s at the right age to start.”
Excitement sparkles in his eyes as we stare at one another. “Sounds like a plan.” He kisses me quickly, just before the waiter arrives with our food. He places heaped plates of pasta in front of us and tops up our drinks before departing.
“How soon do you want to move?” he asks, picking up his fork.
“As soon as we can make it happen. Preferably before the kids return to school. Faye could vouch for us at the school her kids attend, and I know they’d let us stay with them until we find a place.” Their house is massive with plenty of spare bedrooms, so it’s not like we’d be living in each other’s pockets either.
“I’ll talk to Kade in the morning and contact the moving company.”
A heady warmth pervades every part of my body. “This already feels so right,” I admit, twirling a forkful of spaghetti against my spoon.
“It does.” He nuzzles my nose and whispers in my ear. “Now all that’s left to do is finish up here so I can take my beautiful wife home and make love to her all afternoon.”
9
KADEN
