Dad: Thanks for coming this weekend. We all really loved Jada.
The smile that lifted my lips lasted only until the elevator doors dinged open. Maya was waiting for me with two cups of coffee, as usual. She passed me one and then got out her phone, reading off my schedule for the day. But when I passed by the turn for our office, she said, “You missed our turn.”
“I’m going to see Jude.”
She blanched, stalling for a second before taking a few quick steps to keep up. “Bryce, shouldn’t you just let sleeping dogs lie?” she hissed.
I stopped in the hallway, staring incredulously at her. “You’re kidding me. He violated Jada’s privacy and involved himself in family affairs without my permission.” Keeping my voice low to avoid being overheard was a challenge, but somehow, I managed.
“Or maybe he’s just worried about you like Grandpa was,” Maya whispered. “Maybe he’s just not as good at expressing it.”
“He’s a grown-ass man. He doesn’t need to play games withmy familyto get his point across.”
Maya opened her mouth to argue, but I shook my head. “Don’t you have work to do?” I asked her.
Her gaze narrowed, and she lifted a middle finger at me. “First step, figure out why my finger is stuck this way.” She spun on her heel and marched down the hallway, dropping her coffee cup in a nearby trash can.
I rolled my eyes at her and turned back toward Jude’s office. At the end of the hallway, Owen’s desk stood as the sentry. As I approached, he said, “Jude’s on a phone call?—”
I brushed past Owen, going to Jude’s office, and pressed the button on the receiver.
Jude stared up at me, incredulous. “That was the Canadian prime minister you just hung up on.”
“I don’t give a shit.” I leaned over his desk, putting both palms on the edge until it bit into my skin, keeping my anger from flaming so hard I floated away in a spire of ashes. “How dare you send that report to my father.”
Jude glared at me. “If you’re not thinking clearly, someone has to.” There wasn’t a hint of regret to his tone, only that of determined confidence.
“You don’t know what’s best for me!” I roared. “And you sure as hell don’t have the right to be throwing around my wife’s private medical information!”
Jude only smirked. “Your wife?”
My jaw felt so tight it could crack. “I’m going to marry this woman, whether you like it or not, whether you think it’s a good idea or not. Because if anyone here knows about a healthy family dynamic it’s not you.”
It was just a millisecond, but the hurt flickered across his face, plain as day, before morphing into a look of cold, hard steel. “You do not want to cross me, Bryce,” he warned.
“What the fuck does that mean?” I demanded. “You seem to be forgetting that we’re on the same damn team. You, me, Aaric, Q, Cruz, we all want to keep this company we worked so hard for. Why are you fighting so hard against me?”
Jude softened, his voice turning pleading. “Bryce, please, don’t marry her. We’re under enough scrutiny as it is. A shotgun wedding to a daycare employee slash bartender will not reflect well onanyof us.”
The way he said her profession, like she was somehow beneath us because of her job, it made me even more angry. “You know what? I thought money hadn’t changed you, but it has. You’re not the guy I knew. Not anymore.”
“You’re not either. You’re so fucking repressed you’re ignoring therealworld.”
“If this is your version of real—lying, scheming, keeping secrets—I don’t want any fucking part of it.”
I turned to walk away, and Jude followed me, putting his hand on my arm. “Bryce... you’re my best friend. And as my friend, I’m asking you, please don’t do this.”
All of this over a baby; it didn’t make sense. The press would go nuts for a week or two and then move on to the next scandal, and we’d be forgotten. “Tell me what this is really about.”
His jaw clenched. “Just trust me. Please.”
I shook my head. “If you can’t trust me with your reason, then I can’t trust you with my future. Because Jada is my future.”
“But we’ve been friends for years,” Jude argued. “You’ve only known her for months.”
“And somehow, I feel like I know her better than I know you right now.” It was a sad statement, but we both knew it was true. Jude was hiding something from me, keeping secrets. Bestfriends didn’t do that, which made me think maybe we weren’t friends after all.
55.Jada
