Come What May Read Free Page A

It was depressing just to think about. I wouldn’t have the wonderful life I had now. Scarlet wouldn’t be mine. She probably would have ended up with Cortland.
    The thought made me sick.
    I never felt so blessed than I did in that moment. Everything worked out for the best. I had everything I didn’t deserve to have. My beautiful wife was carrying my child, and she was my lover and my best friend. Even a lifetime with her wouldn’t be long enough. I was so damn lucky.
    When I got to work, I smiled and greeted everyone. Since all our friends new about the upcoming baby, I didn’t see the point in hiding it from the staff. I passed Nina in the hall, a human resources secretary.
    “Congratulations on the baby,” she said while she smiled.
    ‘Thank you.” I felt warm inside. “My wife and I are very excited.”
    She nodded then walked away.
    I headed to my office. As soon as I put my stuff down, Mike barged in.
    “Dude, is Scarlet pissed about the servant?”
    “She’s not a servant,” I snapped. “She’s a maid.”
    “Ooh. Someone’s ticked. I guess that means Scarlet was pissed. And kept her legs closed.”
    I glared at him. “Stop talking about my wife’s legs.”
    “Yep. She was livid.”
    Mike always tried to get a rise out of me. I was annoyed when he was successful. “She was upset but we worked through it—and I still got laid.”
    “I hope you didn’t poke the baby in the eye,” he said with a laugh.
    “You’re a pig.” I turned on my computer and scanned through the hundreds of emails I had.
    “Yep.” He walked out and finally left me in peace. When the door opened again, I sighed in irritation. How was I supposed to get any work done around here?
    Ryan walked inside, his hands in his pockets.
    I wasn’t expecting to see him. He and I hadn’t talked since he punched me in the nose. When he came over for Christmas, he didn’t acknowledge me. I assumed he was still angry with me for sleeping with Janice. I was just thankful he was talking to Scarlet again.
    “Hey.” He approached my desk then looked at the pictures. Scarlet’s face was displayed everywhere.
    “Hey.”
    Silence. And more silence.
    I decided to go first. “I’m sorry about everything, man. For what it’s worth, it really meant nothing with Janice. I hope we can work this out.”
    He sighed then moved to the couch. I followed him. “I’m not mad.” He rested his hands on his knees and looked at them. “It bothered me for a while. The idea of Janice being with anyone but me makes me sick. It really doesn’t matter who it is. But I’ll admit it’s awkward since you’re my brother-in-law…but I won’t hold it against you. I didn’t even know Janice at the time.”
    That was a relief. I wasn’t sure what was going to happen to our relationship.
    “And if Scarlet doesn’t act weird around Janice, and she’s still her best friend, I shouldn’t let it affect my relationship with you. And I’ve never noticed anything between you.”
    I nodded. “As soon as we were done, we never spoke of it and moved on. I just see Janice as a friend. I don’t look at her in that way, and she doesn’t look at me in that way. And Janice apologized to Scarlet and said how sorry she was. Everything worked out.”
    “Then I’m not going to be the one person to make it awkward.”
    Ryan was a second brother to me. I was thankful I wouldn’t lose him. And I knew my wife wouldn’t want that either.
    “So, we’re cool?”
    He nodded. “I need someone to pick on Scarlet with.” His usual grin was back.
    I smiled. “I’m your man.”
    “Good.”
    We sat together for a while. It was still a little awkward but camaraderie would return eventually.
    “How’s that brat anyway?” Ryan asked.
    “She’s throwing a hissy fit because of the maid.”
    He rolled his eyes. “Just ignore her. That’s what I do.”
    “It’s a little difficult when she’s my wife—and she’s pregnant.”
    “It’s called ear plugs.”
    I