Page 84 of Nanny for the Doctor

Moving to one of the chairs by Johnny’s desk, I slump down onto the edge.

“I know you just have your sister’s best interests at heart. I swear I do, too.”

“Ha.” Johnny scoffs. “I’ll believe that when I see it.”

He sighs, raking a hand through his hair. “Look, Reed, I care about you. You’re my best fucking friend, for Christ’s sake, but you’ve burned a hell of a lot of bridges in your quest to figure out relationships. I know you’ve taken Clara’s death hard, and I don’t blame you for that. You should. But I don’t want to see Mae be one of the people you leave behind in the ashes.”

Silence hangs over the room, and I can feel my heartbeat in my head. A migraine pulls at the corners, and I have a feeling aspirin and a Coke are going to be in my future later today.

The creak of Johnny’s office chair pulls my head up, and he comes around the desk to sit in the chair next to me.

“However,” he says as he meets my eyes, “Mae is a grown woman. I don’t get to make choices for her. No one does, including you. She can choose to date you or whomever she wants, and I won’t stop her because that’s not my place. If Mae decides to jump into this with you, that’s her call.”

“I appreciate that.”

“But I swear to God, if you hurt her, I will end you.”

I chuckle humorlessly. “Understandable.”

Johnny leans forward in the chair. “I know you don’t want this affecting our friendship. I don’t either. But it might. If you disrespect or hurt her in any way or wind up seeing someone behind her back, I will never forgive that.”

I hold my hands up between us. “I wouldn’t expect you to.”

“Good. Now, I’m not saying you can’t ever break it off with her. I understand shit happens. But if you do figure out it’s not going to work, you break up with Mae like a man. No texts or emails. You do it to her face. Anddon’tdrag it out. You can’t jerk her around and lead her on. You have to be honest with her. And with me.”

He levels me with an intense stare, his eyebrows raised, and I tip my head down in a submissive gesture. “I should have been honest. I know. I will from now on. I swear I’ve told you everything now.”

“I hope for your sake that’s true.”

I stand up, reaching to shake Johnny’s hand and holding his gaze. “Deal.”

Johnny shakes, and before he breaks it, I add, “It’s the least I can do.”

“It’s literally the bare minimum, dude.”

He smiles, shaking his head at me, but I take it. I’ve had it coming, so I’ll take whatever Johnny has to dish out.

I give him another nod. “Promise.”

“You fucking better.” He claps me on the shoulder a little harder than normal, then steps back, shaking his head again. “You really hooked up with my sister. You know how weird that is, right?”

“Nope. I’m not going to fall for that for one second.” A relieved laugh escapes. “The only thing you’ll hear me say is that Mae is incredible. If it weren't for her, I wouldn’t have realized all the shit I need to deal with.”

He pegs me with a sarcastic scowl. “Uh-huh.”

“I’m serious. You tried to get through to me about the work-life balance. Heather did, too. Mae’s been the only one who’s actually gotten through to me. Made me want to do better.”

“Huh. Who would have thought it would take my sister to get through that thick skull of yours.” Johnny nods, narrowing his gaze at me. “Well, all right, then. But no more surprises. Deal?”

We shake again. “Deal.”

“I’ve got to get back to work.” Johnny playfully glares at me. “I know, I know. But hey, how about we do something fun soon? I have a day off coming up, and I won’t pick up another double.”

“Ha! I’ll believethatwhen I see it, too. Message me.”

Johnny pats me on the back, and I wrap a hand around his shoulder, mimicking the gesture.

With a deep exhale, I grin at him as I head for the door. “Smooth sailing from here on out. I know it.”

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