Page 95 of Better Daddy
Lo’s face softens as she reaches for my laptop. “Let me see.” She tips her head to the side and pulls her hair over her shoulder as she studies the options I have pulled up. “Ooh. I love this one. The white would be so cute with pink bedding.”
“White lace itches.”
At the sound of Madame E’s voice, we all straighten.
“Amy!” Brian calls. “You’re supposed to let us know when guests come in.” He fiddles with the walkie-talkie beside him, ensuring it’s turned on, and grumbles, “We’re in the middle of a partner meeting.”
The walkie-talkie crackles before Amy’s voice comes on the other end. “Meeting? What meeting? I just transferred a call from the court to Sully. He’s not in his office?”
Bloody hell. I rub a hand over my face.
“No, Amy.” Brian grits out. “We told you we’re having a partner’s meeting and you were to hold our calls.”
“Huh. Don’t remember that. That’s so weird.” I can picture the shoulder shrug that came with the words.
Lo growls.
Madame E waves her hands. “You’re missing a partner, and if you don’t act quickly, someone else will make her theirs.”
“Oh, is that a riddle?” Cal drops his feet and straightens. Then he nails me in the head with the ball again.
“Bollocks.” I heave forward to snatch it and give him a taste of his own medicine, but the bugger is faster and scoops it up before I can.
“Pay attention,” he tells me. “Madame E, is that a riddle?”
She sighs wearily. “They aren’t riddles, Callahan. They’re my visions.”
“Yup, visions of the future,” Lo tilts her head. “So this is about Sloane, I’m guessing.”
Unease hits me as I turn to Madame E again. “Say it again. Who is going to make Sloane theirs?”
Brian shakes his head. “She means we need to make her a partner, right?”
With a smile, Madame E spins and strides out. “I only see what I see.”
Lo squints at the now-empty doorway. “Did she come in here just to say that?”
My brother, who’s already leaned back in his chair with his feet on the table again, tosses the ball back into the air over his head. “Bet it was about Sloane and Will.”
My spine snaps straight. My arch nemesis’s name and my wife’s should never be uttered in the same sentence.
“No,” Lo says evenly. “I don’t think that’s a thing. Sloaney was pissed after their date last week.”
My heart lurches, and I lunge forward; the chair beneath me catches on the hideous carpet as it scoots back. “Their what?”
All the color drains from Lo’s face. “She never told you.”
I push myself out of my chair, and on shaky legs, head for the door. No, my wife did not tell me that she went on a date with Will Fucking Higgins. And last week? Last week I was fucking her in a barroom closet. I’ve held her every night this week. We took our son out to celebrate when we found out our baby is a girl. We picked a name for our child. And my wife never bothered to mention that she was dating someone else.
My brother grabs me by the arm before I can reach the conference room door and yanks me back. “Don’t do it.”
“Don’t do what?” I grit out.
“Don’t go storming into her office and boss her around. If you go in there demanding she can’t date anyone but you, it will only end badly.” He holds my gaze, his expression full of compassion and understanding.
Fuck. I blow out a breath and pull at my hair. “What do I do, then?”
“Exactly what you were doing. Continue showing her that you’re the better option. Go to the store. Get the flat ready for the baby. Be there for her. Don’t dictate her life.”
