3 Seconds (Time for Love Book 6) (11 page)

I leaned my
head against the back of the couch and closed my eyes, wishing with
all my might that there
was
a way, then I sighed deeply and
looked sadly at my friend.

“I don’t think
so … If I talked him into having a kid, I’m afraid he’d feel
trapped, and if I gave up kids to be with him, I’m worried that I’d
end up resenting him.”

“Why don’t you
give it some time,” Ming said, always the levelheaded one of our
trio. “If in a few weeks you’re okay, then you’ll move on. No harm,
no foul. But, if you still feel like you do now, then maybe you
need to re-evaluate what you want.”

“That makes
sense,” I replied. “But do you really think it’ll take
weeks
? I don’t want to feel this way any longer.”

“Sorry, babe,
it comes with the territory. But, I think I know what will make you
feel better…”

“What?”

“A hot shower,
your favorite jeans, and a comfy T-shirt. We’ll pick up some sushi,
a bottle of wine, and a couple Melissa McCarthy movies. How does
that sound?”

“Make that
three bottles of wine,” Cass added with a grin, “One for each of us
… and a sleepover. Girl’s night!”

I smiled
gratefully at my best friends and said, “That sounds perfect.
Thanks, you guys.”

“Anytime, you
know that,” Cass said, crossing over to give me a hug, then pulling
back with a curl of her lip. “Make that a
long
, hot
shower.”

“
Shut
up
,” I laughed. “If I remember correctly, you smelled pretty
ripe after Tommy broke up with you senior year.”

Cass cocked her
head and put her hands on her hips.

“He broke up
with me on
my
birthday
, because he wanted to go out
with ‘All-the-way Ally.’ I was devastated.”

“You didn’t
shower, or change out of those hot-pink sweat pants for a whole
week,” Ming added, getting in on the fun. “You needed more than a
girl’s night, you needed an intervention.”

“Whatever, it
was high school, everything that happened when we were teenagers
was amplified a hundred percent.”

“Ain’t that the
truth?” I rose from the couch, roused from my funk and ready to
wash the despair off of me. “See you guys in a bit?”

Ming looked at
her watch and said, “Give us thirty minutes.”

“Perfect,” I
said, then gave them both a hug and said, “I love you guys.”

“We love you
too, Bronagh, and we’ve always got your back. No matter what.”

Chapter
Nineteen ~ Brendan

I was so intent
on the words I was writing that I barely registered the sound of my
door opening and footsteps coming toward me. My fingers were
stained various shades of blue and black from the numerous pens and
pencils I’d used over the last couple of days.

“Jesus.” I
jumped at the word muttered from behind me, and turned to see Brady
surveying the room with dueling expressions of disgust and
admiration.

There were
mostly empty pizza boxes, take-out cartons, and crumpled-up pieces
of paper strewn across every available surface, and taking up a
good chunk of the floor.

After I’d left
Bronagh’s, I’d come straight home, grabbed my guitar, and started
writing. I’d eaten when I’d gotten hungry, and hydrated when it was
necessary, but I hadn’t slept. I’d been too consumed with creative
energy and I didn’t want to lose it.

“How long have
you been at it?” Brady asked, clearing off a chair and sitting
across from me.

“Since the
barbecue.” I rubbed my face, conscious of the fact that I had four
days worth of growth.

“Seriously?”
Brady asked, running his hand over his short, dark hair. “That was
days ago … What happened?”

I finished my
thought, picked the guitar up off of my lap and placed it on the
floor, leaning it up against the chair, then looked at my
brother.

“Bronagh ended
it.”

“Why?” Brady
asked seriously. “Did something happen? Something at Brock’s?”

I pulled my
beanie off of my head, took a rubber band off of my wrist, and
secured my hair back, before putting the knit cap back on. I was
overdue for a haircut.

“Nothing that
anyone there did exactly,” I began, not really anxious to talk
about it, but realizing that if I didn’t tell Brady what he wanted
to know, he’d go all pit bull on me and get the information
himself. “Being around Dec, and everyone else’s kids, brought up a
conversation that we hadn’t had yet. I told her I don’t want kids,
and that was a deal breaker for her.”

Hoping that was
enough information to hold him off, I picked my guitar back up and
started strumming. I’d come up with about five decent songs, but
was stuck on this last one. I needed to work through it.

“Since when do
you not want to have kids?”

I bit back my
frustrated sigh. I’d been hoping he’d get the hint and leave me to
finish what I was doing, but apparently, he was feeling chatty.

Great
timing.

“Since …
ever
.”

“Why?”

I put the
guitar back down and looked at my brother, exasperated.

“Do we have to
do this now?”

“Oh, I’m sorry,
do you want me to leave so you can wallow in your own filth?” Brady
said sardonically. “When’s the last time you sprayed yourself with
water, Bren? You obviously haven’t been cleaning up after yourself,
but at least you’ve been eating and drinking plenty of water … I
mean, shit, did this woman really have her claws in you
that
good? You’ve only been seeing her for a few weeks.”

“You’re fucking
hilarious, bro…” I replied, angered at his lack of sympathy. “What
the hell would you know about it anyway? You aren’t exactly a pro
when it comes to relationships … And you didn’t even give Bronagh a
chance. Barely said five words to her at Brock’s place, so don’t
pretend to know her, or what happened between us.”

Brady looked
surprised at my outburst, but didn’t say anything further. He sat
there, watching me, waiting patiently for me to fill him in on what
was going on.

I hated that
about him.

Already feeling
guilty for talking to my brother that way, I sighed heavily and sat
back in my chair.

“I don’t want
kids and she does. She said that she’s running out of time to have
as many kids as she wanted, and is getting a late start because of
some stuff that happened in her past. She can’t continue a
relationship with me, knowing that I don’t want the same things she
does … It’s a waste of her time.”

Brady’s eyes
narrowed and he leaned forward.

“Did she say
that?”

“Yup, in so
many words.”

I closed my
eyes and braced myself on my hands.

“I fell hard
and fast, man. Things were going great and the sudden way it ended
hit me hard. I didn’t expect it. I get where she’s coming from
though, I just wished things weren’t the way they are.” I brought
my eyes to his. “I love her.”

“Why?” he
asked, causing me to scowl.

“What the fuck
kind of question is that?”

“A valid one,”
he replied, sounding like an ass. “
Why
do you love her?
What’s so special about her?”

“You’re pissing
me off…”

“Just answer
the question.”

“Shit, Brady,
she’s amazing. She’s a fabulous chef, business owner, teacher … She
had an asshole for a husband and when she realized it, was strong
enough to leave him. She’s funny, beautiful, and doesn’t take any
shit from me.” I thought about everything I’d been feeling over the
last few days, and the lyrics I’d been laying down. “She makes me
feel like a man. I want to take care of her, feed her,
worship
her … She makes me into someone I’ve always wanted
to be, but didn’t think I had in me.”

Brady nodded,
taking a few moments to process what he wanted to say before
speaking.

“That’s a great
answer, and, brother, I want that for you … Are you sure you’re
making the right decision? I’ve always thought you’d be a
great
dad. Watching you with everyone’s kids, starting with
Cal’s, and now with Dec. You’re a natural. Kids love you and you
seem to get a kick out of them. You have an ease with them that
I’ll never have. I have to say, I’m shocked to hear you say you
don’t want them … Are you sure?”

“Look,” I
started, tired of this conversation already. “What happened with
Mom and Dad, then Brock … I don’t want to do that to a kid. I like
kids, don’t get me wrong, it just feels selfish to bring them into
this world, and it’s never something I wanted.”

“Maybe it’s
time for you to re-evaluate that.”

I stared at him
briefly, then turned back to the pages before me and began playing
the song that was bugging me. When I got to the part about her
walking away without a trace, Brady interrupted.

“Sounds great,
man, maybe you should write about how you had the ability to keep
her, but chose to let her walk.”

I looked over
my shoulder as Brady walked out as quietly as he’d entered, then
turned back, the wheels in my head spinning with his new take on
the song.

He’d just
unlocked the piece I was looking for.

Chapter Twenty
~ Bronagh

Whenever I felt
down, or out of sorts, being in the kitchen always helped to
relieve my funk. I love the sounds, smells, and tastes that come
from working with food, and it’s the one thing that was always sure
to bring me peace when I was upset.

That’s why I’d
been spending as much time in Callaghan’s as possible since I’d
broken things off with Brendan. My girls had been a great diversion
for a bit, but after seeing Brendan in class during the day, and
getting the cold shoulder, I’d needed to fill my hours doing
something meaningful.

“Cornish Pasty,
Bangers and Mash, and two orders of hot wings for table seven,” one
of my servers called out as he pushed the ticket up into the metal
holder.

I was busy
completing the order, working side by side with two of my
long-employed chefs, when the hostess came back and made a beeline
for me, stopping when she was close enough to whisper in my
ear.

“There’s a man
here to see you.”

I pulled back
and turned my head so I could see her when I asked, “What man? Did
he ask for me specifically?”

“Yes,” she
whispered. I wasn’t sure why it was such a big secret, but my
stomach dropped when she said, “He’s tall, with dark skin and dark
hair … really dreamy eyes, and a old Whiskey Heat T-shirt.”

I took a gulp
and tried to steady my suddenly racing heart.

“Can you finish
this up?” I asked my sous chef, then gave the hostess a small
smile. “Thanks, Heather, I’ll be right out.”

What is he
doing here?

Did he change
his mind?

Did he come
here to win me back, or is he here for something else entirely?

Maybe he was
here to tell me that he was leaving for France after
graduation
, I worried, then chided myself,
Stop speculating
and go out there and ask him why he came…

I smoothed my
hair and checked my chef coat for stains, and hoped I didn’t smell
too terribly like fried food.

I walked out
into the front of the house, scanning the room looking for Brendan,
which was why it took a couple seconds for me to realize that his
brother, Brady, was the one waiting for me at the end of the
bar.

Hope fled me
when I realized Brendan wasn’t there, and a mix of curiosity and
dread took its place as I took in the hard look on Brady’s
face.

I mentally
pulled up my big girl pants and walked over to where he was
standing.

“Hey, Brady,” I
began with a pleasant, if not cheerful, smile. “My hostess said
that you were looking for me?”

Brady looked
around the room, but I couldn’t tell if it was because he was
nervous, or unsure of how he’d ended up here.

“Yeah, look, I
won’t take up much of your time … I know you have work to do.”

When he didn’t
say anything for a few moments, I prompted, “It’s fine. What did
you need?”

He let out a
long breath, then brought his steely eyes to mine. “You broke my
brother’s heart,” he stated, causing my heart to stutter in my
chest.

“I’m sorry that
he’s upset, but I doubt he’s heartbroken. We were only together a
short while … He’ll be fine,” I replied, suddenly feeling the need
to flee. “But it’s really sweet that you’re so concerned for
him.”

Brady winced,
then scowled, before saying, “I know my brother, and I know that he
opened himself up to you in a way that he never has before, and it
crushed him when you said he was a
waste of time
.”

“Jeez, that’s
gonna keep coming back to bite me in the ass, isn’t it,” I
muttered, then threw my hands up. “I didn’t mean it the way it came
out … I don’t think our time together was a waste. I was just as
crushed as he was when I ended things, but I’m sure he told you why
I did. Having kids is important to me, Brady, and he doesn’t want
any. That’s just the way it is…”

Brady watched
me quietly through my rant, then responded softly and evenly, “Are
you sure that’s what this is about? Or were you falling too hard
and too fast, and looked for any excuse to end it before you took a
chance.”

“What are you
talking about? I wasn’t looking for a way out…”

“Bren said you
had a problem with the age difference, and I’m sure you had doubts
about him, since he’d never been in a relationship before … Maybe
you were just scared.”

“Look,” I
began, starting to get annoyed with his assumptions. “I want to
have kids and he doesn’t. Plain and simple. Yes, I’m older, which
just makes the fact that I broke it off quickly more reasonable …
Any longer and we both could have been seriously hurt.”