Page 163
Bree shakes her head. “I don’t want to talk about it.” She drinks some wine. “You know what pisses me off the most?”
Everyone waits.
“That he’s been pushing me away…like pushing me away…like pushing me away when I’ve been half naked, and he’s all but inside me saying it’s not the right thing.”
Joy raises a hand. “You told me you haven’t had sex yet.”
“We haven’t,” Bree laments, “Because he won’t let us.” She drinks some more. “He shows up, fixes the pump. When I tell him I’m thinking of dating, he loses his shit and then goes all cold and says that I should tell him who, so he can…you know, make sure the guy is safe.”
Sarah picks up a fry. “He’s been gaslighting you.”
Bree points a finger at Sarah and shakes it vigorously. “Exactly! He didn’t want us to date because of this stupid secret job, and instead of just saying that, he’s been making me feel like I’m some crazy lunatic chasing my uncle’s friend—like we’re in an age-gap forbidden romance, and he’s playing the noble martyr.”
“And now?” Aria prompts.
“Now?” Bree waves a dismissive hand. “He can take his dick and fuck himself.”
Elena screws up her nose. “Not sure how he’d do that…physically, I mean.” She puts a hand on Bree’s cheek. “Hon, the man fixed your pump in the middle of the night ’cause it needed fixin’, and someone had to do it. A man like that is not runnin’ an operation.”
“I know,” Bree admits miserably. “That’s the problem. If it were simple, I could just be angry and be done with him.”
“You can love him and still be angry.” Aria waves a chicken wing. “Both things can be true at the same time.”
“I am angry,” Bree mutters. “I’m furious. I’m also—” she stops. Makes a sound. “He called me Honey Bee in front of half of Main Street.”
“He did,” Joy confirms. “I was there.”
“In front of Pete Rikowski.”
“And Birdie Lorraine.”
“God.” Bree puts her face in her hands. “I’m so angry at him.”
“You kinda decided to poke the bear on Main Street so….” Sarah trails off.
“And Honey Bee is kinda cute,” I point out.
Bree makes a sound, which is not quite a laugh and not quite a sob.
Joy turns to Elena. “Hey, how did Duke take the pregnancy news?”
Elena blinks. “I have to tell him?”
We all give her a sideways look.
Elena puts her hand flat on her stomach, almost unconsciously, the way I’ve seen women do when they’re still getting used to the fact that there’s life inside of them.
“I told him this morning after I took the test, he looked like he couldn’t believe it.” She smiles softly. “All day he’s been expecting me to say it’s not true, and he—” She stops. “He put his hand on my stomach right before I left and just stood there for a full minute and told the baby he’s their father, and he already loves them.”
The room holds this.
Bree wipes her face with the back of her hand to wipe tears.
“I’m going to stop being sad about Kaz now,” she announces. “For the next five minutes. In honor of the baby.”
“That’s very generous of you,” Elena retorts dryly.
“I know. I’m a giver.”
