Push

22. She Caused a Scene

She Caused a Scene

Gwen

I peeked through the doorway of the nursery. Toby’s head turned slightly at the sound of my footsteps, but his attention stayed focused on the baby squirming on the changing table.

I darted to the crib and grabbed the toy giraffe.

“Here.” I held out the toy and jiggled it. “Sometimes it’s easier if he’s busy.”

Silent, without even a glance, Toby took the giraffe and passed it to Noah. “Okay.” He nodded. “Got it.”

The irritated edge to Toby’s voice surprised me. I shrank back. This wasn’t like him. He usually laughed away all the bad times. His emotional meter was permanently dialed to “Chill.”

One of the few times I’d seen him lose his temper was when his mother had spilled a glass of Shiraz on my dress at one of her endless parties.

I’d barely blinked. Sarah Sullivan wouldn’t claim another victory over me.

It wasn’t the spilled wine that had upset Toby, either. It was his father’s reaction.

Theodore had waved it away as nothing but a nuisance. “You know how your mother is.”

“She disrespects my wife ,” Toby had retorted.

“Respectfully, Tobias, that hard-nosed little bitch wasn’t invited.”

The only reason Toby’s fist hadn’t connected with his father’s face was because I’d wrapped my hand around his clenched fingers and quietly begged him not to worry about it.

“Where I go, Gwen goes,” Toby had spat. “If she’s not good enough for you, neither am I.”

Toby had sworn we’d never see his parents again. He’d been a man of his word. The ten months of peace we’d enjoyed before his father’s heart attack were some of our happiest. That sadly said a lot, really.

An awkward silence hung over the nursery. Toby gently tugged off Noah’s stained clothes and tossed them in the hamper, but there were none of the usual tickles or jokes. No silly song filled the room. His jaw stayed firmly shut.

Something was bothering him.

Or someone .

I shuffled closer. My heart pounded in frantic beats. Feeling so uncomfortable around someone I’d known for so long was strange.

“I haven’t taken Noah to the sandpit yet,” I said. “Did he have fun?”

“Yeah.”

No stories. No details. Just yeah . I fidgeted with the top of my yoga pants, eyes darting everywhere, unsure where to look.

“I ran into Judy at the coffee shop,” I said.

“Cool.”

“She told me Kayleigh’s gone.”

“Yeah.”

“You fired her?”

“Yeah.”

“Are you sorry she’s gone?”

“No.” Toby reached for a clean diaper, as if we were discussing nothing important. “Why would I be?”

I shrugged. “The two of you spent a lot of time together.”

“We shouldn’t have. I should’ve fired Kayleigh a lot sooner. That’s the last time I listen to that cowboy lawyer.”

“It was the right advice.”

He grunted. “You would’ve given that advice?”

“As a lawyer, sure. You landed yourself in a situation where you didn’t have a lot of options. Their aim would’ve been to do enough damage control to protect you and Ian financially.”

Toby’s jaw clenched. “Would you have given that advice as my wife ?”

“No, but I wish you’d never hired Kayleigh in the first place.”

“I didn’t. I left that up to Ian. He thought it was good timing to get younger blood in, and we were dealing with what happened with your work.

” He balled up the soiled diaper and pitched it in the trash.

“Personally, I prefer ’em cranky like Judy.

You know where you stand with people like that.

No games. Just…” He dragged a hand down the tired lines of his face. “I don’t know.”

“Why didn’t you tell me you fired Kayleigh?”

Toby shrugged. “I didn’t want us to waste any more time on her.

You won’t believe me, but she was never important to me.

I know the way I acted made it seem like she was, and I was wrong to put her before you and Noah, but…

” He shook his head. “I didn’t want her taking up any more space in our lives. ”

“I’d rather know all the gory details and decide for myself how I feel. It’s the not knowing I can’t handle. That takes up space. I don’t want to worry that I’m missing something or that you’re keeping secrets.”

“Secrets?” The word came out almost as a laugh, but he controlled the spark of anger. “Okay.” His chin dropped in a nod. “Got it.”

He scooped Noah off the changing table, smooched a kiss on his head, and settled him in his crib. That conversation was officially over. We were at another stalemate.

I sighed.

What a disaster.

How had we lasted so many years together if we were so terrible at talking to each other about important issues? Was it truly just because we’d avoided all the difficult conversations and buried our problems with sex and Toby’s endless jokes?

Conflict was nearly impossible for me. My childhood had taught me to be on the defensive, waiting for my mother to implode and strike out at me, or worse, at Liam. She’d had no restraint when he’d pushed her buttons. None at all. Life had been easier when we’d stayed invisible.

I’d summoned so much courage not to be invisible and speak up about Kayleigh. When Toby had laughed away my worries like they were no big deal, I was right back in that apartment, avoiding the eventual implosion. Now, my courage was fueled by anger and betrayal, and he wasn’t laughing anymore.

“Toby, is everything okay?”

“Yeah, of course.” He turned to look at me for the first time.

His smile was tight. “Everything’s—” He exhaled sharply, and his hand curled tight around the edge of the crib.

“You know what? No. Everything’s not okay.

” His voice was quiet, but it was rough, almost broken. “What the hell is he doing here, Gwen?”

“Who? Liam?”

Toby glared at me. We both knew exactly who he was talking about.

“He needed me to look over his contract,” I said.

“Because he’s your new boss?”

“That’s right.”

“Did you choose to work for him just to teach me some screwed-up lesson because I messed up so badly with Kayleigh?”

“I’m not even dignifying that ridiculous question with a response.”

“So, your new boss, who just happens to be your rich, fuckboy brother—”

“Toby!”

“He abandoned you!” His grip tightened around the crib, but the pitch of his voice dropped even lower. “He walked out and left you to deal with your mother on your own for two whole years before you got out of that hellhole.”

“You don’t understand—”

“He forgot all your birthdays. He didn’t bother coming to our wedding. Or your graduation. Did he even know he had a nephew? Does he even care? No calls. No cards. Nothing! You won’t forgive me, but you can forgive him ?”

In my heart, there was nothing to forgive my brother for. I’d been devastated when he’d left, but I’d understood why he’d disappeared from my life. “You can’t know what it was like for us growing up.” No one should understand days that dark.

“Of course I can’t! You’ve barely told me anything! You lock me out of everything important, Gwen! The truth about your brother, your job—”

“Don’t you dare bring that up now.”

“When can I?” Why had Toby bothered asking? He knew the answer— never . “I hate that he’s here, Gwen. In our home. After everything he’s missed.” His grip on the crib relaxed, but the sharp edge to his voice was still there. “I hate it.”

All I spat back was, “Too bad.”

What a waste of time. I charged out the door into the hallway. Toby’s footsteps were quick behind me.

“That’s it? Too bad?” He almost laughed. “And then you just storm off?”

I spun around and jerked up my chin to face him.

“ You made your choice. You chose that girl over your family. You don’t get to pretend like you give a shit about anything that happens in this house when you didn’t care for months!

You spent more time covering your tracks with Ian than caring what happened to your son! ”

“Christ, not this shit again. I wasn’t covering my tracks. Ask him!”

“I don’t have to ask Ian anything. He told me himself.”

Toby went very still. “When did he talk to you?”

With my hand on my hip and zero time for more of the same crap, I simply glared at him.

He was even more insistent when he demanded, “When?”

I threw my hands up. This was ridiculous. “The night of the party. When he dropped by the next day.”

“Here?” Toby’s eyebrows rose as he pointed at the floor. “Ian came here the day after the party?”

“His conscience got the better of him. At least one of you has one, I suppose.”

Toby blinked. “You tell me everything he said. Right now .” I’d never heard his voice so cold.

“Why? So you can tell more lies? Or because you want to take your anger out on him for finally telling me the truth?”

“I told you the truth!”

“Your version of it.”

“You still believe I slept with Kayleigh?”

“I believe the facts . You never came home. Your car was parked outside her house all night. You skipped work the next day.”

“I was at Ian’s! I was drunk off my face.

I passed out in the car, and I couldn’t shake it.

I didn’t want you to see me like that, so I went to Ian’s.

He tried to sober me up, and he…he gave me…

a…” Toby barked a laugh of disbelief at the ceiling.

“This is fucking surreal. This isn’t happening.

” His chest heaved on gulped breaths, but silence stretched between us.

Worried, I touched his forearm. “Toby?”

“Ian’s a dead man.”

Then he was gone like lightning. He spun on his heel and charged down the hallway. His feet had already hit the stairs when I realized what was happening and called out to him.

“Toby!”

He ignored me.

I rushed after him. “Wait!” But I couldn’t keep up.

“No! Every single word out of that traitor’s mouth has been a lie! This whole thing was a setup!” Toby flew down the stairs two at a time. “He’s a fucking dead man!”

The crowd of familiar faces hovering at the bottom of the stairs barely had a chance to react.

Elias copped the worst of it. Toby barreled past him with a muttered apology on his way to the door. I came flying down the stairs a second later. Marnie’s hand darted to grab my arm, tugging me to safety before the front door slammed in my face.

My legs turned to jelly. I’d never seen Toby so angry. The only reason I didn’t collapse in a heap was because Marnie’s arms were tight around my waist.

Elias shot an uncomfortable glance down the hallway. Liam leaned against the wall near the kitchen, munching on a piece of celery and looking utterly bored by all the commotion.

“I would’ve bet a million dollars her husband was referring to you,” Elias said to him.

“Me too.” Liam’s sigh was heavy. “What a disappointment.”

“I suppose you played a part in what just happened?”

“Eli, you always think the worst of me. I’ve been a good boy.” Liam smirked when he heard Marnie’s giggle. “For once.”

I dropped my eyes to my feet. Talk about humiliating … “Sorry you had to see”—I winced—“all that.”

Liam snorted. “Please, that was nothing compared to the time Mama Serrano chased Eli with a frying pan for stealing nibbles of the Christmas ham.”

“She chased you with a frying pan,” Elias corrected him. “Lord Almighty, if you’re spilling Christmas anecdotes and interfering in Gwen’s life, it can only mean one thing.” He laughed. “Welcome back to the family!”

His hands landed on my shoulders, and he leaned forward as if he were going to peck a kiss on my burning cheeks. The clearing of Liam’s throat stopped him, and my childhood friend quickly stepped back with a mumbled apology.

“Isn’t this all so very touching?” Liam scoffed from down the hall. “Gwen’s best friend is here. My best friend is here. Her husband might murder someone. Welcome back to the family.” Another scoff. “Meanwhile, my contract—”

“Forget the contract.” Elias rolled his eyes.

“A few more hours for the sellers to sweat over our answer won’t hurt if they’re desperate.

” His smile at Marnie and me was bright.

“How do you feel about brunch? Gwen, if we’re sure your husband won’t actually murder someone and the baby’s up for a morning out, we could try the café down the road. Liam’s treat.”

My smile was uncertain, but it was still a smile.

I glanced at my brother. He dipped his chin in a nod.

Welcome back to the family.

And for the first time in a long time—and even though my world was probably about to explode—my mind was quiet.