Page 53 of Wine & Whiskey: Everything for You
Nick strides past him, jerking open the liquor cabinet door and grabbing a glass. “What?”
“Maybe we need to have a talk about what you’re supposed to be doing on your wedding night.”
“She had morning sickness.” He takes a long drink, welcoming the burn down his throat to match the fire torching his gut. “Now, she’s asleep.”
“And?”
“I thought I’d get her some juice for in the morning. It seemed to help earlier when she was nauseous.”
Max looks from the prismed bottle to him, his frowning smirk calling bullshit on his lie. “That’s not juice.”
Yeah, and he’s not the man she thinks he is. “I’m getting it.”
His friend shakes his head, lowering the plate to the counter, empty except for the almost demolished cake. “All right, what is it?”
“What is what?”
“You. This.” The clank of the utensil against the chocolate covered dish is the only sound in the quiet house. “Shae, your wife, the only woman you’ve ever loved, is in your bed alone, and you’re down here with me. Which I know is killing you. So, whatever it is, spit it out.”
“Do you know what she told me?” He drives his hand through his hair, trying to calm the doubt raging through him. The fear engulfing him that he won’t be able to stop the downward spiral when the reality of their life sets in for her. “That I’ve given her the perfect life. How fucked up is that?”
“Why is it fucked up? I would hope that’s what a woman thinks when she gets married. She loves you. You make her happy.”
“How happy is she going to be when her son, who she probably thinks is going to be a teacher or an accountant, gets pulled into the business? Shot through the head when the next bastard guns against him for the top. Or when her daughter can’t leave the house without security? Can’t go to preschool or fucking dance class without an entourage of bodyguards. Yeah, that’s the fucking perfect life.”
He downs another long drink. The sharp liquid unable to quell the battle raging in his head. All that he wants with her may be what drives her away from him. Their happiness creating their sorrow.
His friend’s low voice pulls him from his thoughts. “Then I guess there's only one thing you can do."
"What?"
"Divorce her."
An inferno blazes through his taut body, the first time he's ever been truly pissed at his best friend. Max's fucking lost it if he thinks that would ever fucking happen. "Fuck you. I will never leave her."
“Then stop fucking doubting her. We both know she's not stupid. She understands who you are and what you do. I mean, she survived fucking everything Juan and Spencer put her through, and she still wants you after that. She knew what she was getting herself into when she said yes.”
“Today, maybe. But, what about a year from now? Or twenty years? Will she still think I’m a wonderful husband and father?”
The bodyguard nods, meeting his hard gaze without waver. “Yes.”
“What if I disappoint her? What if she regrets this? I can’t hurt her any more than I already have.”
"She’ll put up with all the other bullshit too, because, as hard as it is to fucking believe, she loves you.”
A smile he can’t hold back crosses his lips. She really does. “It is unbelievable, isn’t it?”
“Yeah, because you are one stupid fuck. This is it, Nick. You’re either all in or you’re not.”
He meets Max’s eye and nods. His friend is once again the genius. “I’m in. Completely.”
“Good. Then get the hell out of here. Go to your wife, and leave me alone, so I can enjoy my cake in peace.”
Taking the steps two at a time, Nick sprints to her, needing to reassure both of them of his commitment. Darkness engulfs him as he pushes the bedroom door shut behind him. Her body still cuddles under the blankets, her hands tucked under her chin. At peace. Content. Safe. Beautiful.
He climbs in behind her, tossing the pillow pressed against her back to the end of the bed. Her fingers entwine with his at his hand curling around her waist. Holding the two people who make him complete.
“I must have been dreaming.” Sleep wobbles in her scratchy voice. “I thought you were gone.”
He kisses her neck and pulls her tighter. “Never. I’m always here.”
Silky hair tickles his cheek as she nods, her body relaxing, snuggling in closer. “Me too.”
