Page 78 of You, Me, and Forever

Why was this suddenly a surprise?

We’d talked about this, and she’d said she understood my perspective. And now she appeared appalled by me.

How was that possible?

She knew I wasn’t a man who bought into the whole happily ever after fairy-tale bullshit. She knew how fucked up my family was.

So why was I the bad guy now?

My phone rang, and I saw my brother’s name flash across the screen.

“Hey. You’re not in surgery this morning?”

“No. Everyone’s brains are intact today, apparently. I’m sipping a latte in the hospital cafeteria.”

“Such a glamorous life,” I said with a laugh. “What’s up?”

“Well, Mom has been trying to reach you, and you’re too busy playing house in small-town Alaska to return her call. Although, it’s fair that you’re ignoring everyone while you’re distracted with Montana. I don’t know how you convinced her to hang out with you. She’s far too cool for you.”

I rolled my eyes. He’d already told me she was out of my league several times since he’d met her. “Yeah, I think she figured it out too. She’s not speaking to me at the moment. Shocker, right? So what’s up with Mom? Everything okay?”

“Mom is filing for divorce.”

My eyes widened. “They just had an anniversary party.”

“Yep. Well, she said she felt like Dad was disrespectful to Gino, and she’s done.”

“You’re fucking with me.”

“I’m a brain surgeon, Myles. We don’t really fuck with people.”

“Let me get this straight. He has an affair with our housekeeper, and they have a love child that we all know about, and he’s a complete asshole every single day of his life—but he asked Gino to get him a cocktail, and that’s her breaking point?”

“I can’t make this shit up, brother.”

“Damn. That’s a call I wish I’d taken. I’ll get back to her after we hang up. Does Dad know?” I asked.

“Yes. She said he’s moved out of the house. He’s staying at a hotel.”

“Damn. It took her long enough, but I’m happy she finally got there.”

“Yeah. Me too. I wanted to talk to you about something else,” he said, and I didn’t miss the change in tone. It sounded serious.

Obviously, our parents’ pending divorce should have been serious, but considering it came about two decades later than it should have, it only felt like a relief. For my mother at least.

“What’s going on?”

“I’ve been thinking a lot about what we’ve been talking about.” He cleared his throat. “About changing professions. And I’m thinking of doing it sooner rather than later.”

Being a brain surgeon was a whole different level of stress. My brother was the best guy I knew. He wanted to make a difference in the world, but he also wanted a life. And right now, his entire life was his work. It was costing him his relationship, one that I knew was very important to him.

“You want to come play with LEGOs, Samuel?” My voice was laced with humor.

“I think about it. I look at my attending, and he’s on his third marriage; he has no relationship with his kids. I look at Dad, and I certainly don’t want to follow those footsteps. I don’t know, man. I’m starting to wonder if there’s more to life. Brianna wants to start our life together, and I can’t even find a weekend to sneak off to the courthouse to marry her. She deserves better. We have trust funds that we’ll never be able to spend, so it’s not like I’m in this for the money. I do like helping people, but I just don’t know at what cost.”

My brother deserved the fucking moon. He was nice as hell and had a heart of gold.

“Listen to me, Samuel. You are the smartest dude I know. If you’re ready to jump, I’m ready for you to land at St. James Corp. We’re growing, and having two of us at the helm just means that the sky is the limit. But I know it’s a tough decision, and I admire that you aren’t quite as impulsive as I am.” I chuckled.

---