24. Wren
24
WREN
Pulling away from the curb, I head out of the hospital parking lot and I stare at Stefan in the rearview mirror. He stands there, watching me drive away, and just before I pull out onto the street, he turns and heads into the building to meet up with Alicia and his child.
On autopilot, I drive home. Parking the rental in the driveway, I grab my handbag and walk down the boardwalk to Fern’s place. I don’t want to be alone right now. I don’t know why.
“Wren, what are you doing here?” Bradford asks when he answers the door.
“Hi, umm, is Fern here?”
“Yeah, come on in.” He closes the door and calls out, “Fern, Wren’s here … I think you need wine … or tequila.”
Normally I’d laugh at that, but not tonight, Fern steps into view and as soon as I see my friend, I burst into tears. She walks over to me and wraps her arms tightly around me as I fall apart.
“Wren, babe, what’s going on?” she asks when I finally stop crying.
“Alicia went into labor,” I tell her.
“Is everything okay with the baby?”
“I don’t know. I dropped Stefan off and I left. I … I just couldn’t be there.”
“Because you like him more than you want to admit?”
“Yes. No. Maybe.” She looks at me. “Okay, fine, yes I like the douche more than I should but…”
“But what?”
“He’s my client.”
“Don't give me that shit.” Fern scoffs. “Bradford was my boss when we first got together.”
“That’s different,” I throw back at her just as Bradford arrives with two glasses of wine.
“I’m going to head over to Carlton’s. I’ll, ummm, leave you two girls alone to, ummm, chat.” He looks to me. “For what it’s worth, Wren, I say fuck the rules. Rules are meant to be broken and, sometimes, breaking the rules leads you to the best thing to ever happen to you.” With those words of wisdom imparted, he kisses Fern and leaves. Leaving me to process his words.
“He’s right you know,” Fern agrees.
“I know he is but?—”
“Do not finish that sentence unless you’re going to tell me that you’re going to give it a go.”
“I was going to say it’s not that simple when my livelihood is on the line.”
“Hello, I fucked my boss. The man who signed my paycheck. The man who held the power to fire me.”
“But you two are different. You two are meant to be. Stefan and I … we’d be a mess.”
“A pucking hot mess,” she unhelpfully adds. “That man is H O double T hot, and with the number of bunnies he’s had, he clearly knows how to use what God gifted him.”
“Oh. My. God. Fern, don’t let Bradford hear you say that.”
“He’s happy for me to window-shop but, umm, have you seen my man? I know where I’m supposed to be … just like you do, too.”
Shaking my head, I take a sip of my wine and sigh, what the puck am I going to do?