Page 89 of The Burdens We Share
SELENE SHIFTS HER WEIGHTawkwardly and I take the opportunity to really assess the state she’s in. For starters, she’s wearing a knit sweater with leggings. Selene wouldnevercasually wear leggings. She’s always a designer suit and heels kind of woman. I also note the disheveled state of her hair which is down and very frizzy.
Something is seriously wrong. She’s looked unkempt for a couple of weeks now and I chalked it up to stress, but what’s there to really stress about now? The three of us are fine. And when Aria was in the hospital after her Rogan incident, Selene still looked pristine. I scrunch my nose at her, “I hate your outfit.”
Everyone laughs and Dallas grins, “Someone’s feeling better.”
I smirk as I focus my attention on Selene who anxiously crosses her arms. “Thank you, asshole.”
Brody raises a brow, “What’s up with you? You’ve been acting so strange lately.”
Aria mock frowns, “You didn’t find new rockstars to manage, did you?”
I place a hand on my chest, “I’ll be so offended if you did.We’re irreplaceable.”
Selene chews her lower lip and nervously looks around the room. “There’s something I’ve been keeping to myself and I was hesitant to share it with you because it means things are going to change.”
My stomach sinks, “Aria was joking, but please say it isn’t true!”
Brody’s face goes pale, “You’re not quitting, right? Please say you aren’t quitting.”
Aria joins in, “I promise we’ll be on our best behavior. Don’t leave us.”
Selene gives us a sad smile before she breathes a low laugh, “I’m not quitting and I did not find new clients even though more often than not you three make me want to repeatedly bang my head into brick walls.”
I sigh in relief, “Thank God.”
Brody asks, “So what is it then?”
Selene licks her lip and takes a deep breath before she blurts out, “I’m pregnant.”
The room goes silent.
“You’rewhat?” Brody asks, totally neutral.
Selene looks at me and I just blink at her. It sounded a lot like she said she was pregnant, but I’m not sure I was hearing correctly because I’m sure I’m on painkillers right now. She rolls her eyes, “I’m pregnant.” Nope. I heard correctly. Selene is having a fucking baby!
Aria’s jaw drops, “Holy shit.”
Brody squeals and wraps Selene in a bear hug, “Congrats, Selene!”
A smile spreads across my face and I reach for her hand, “Congratulations.”
Aria laughs and joins the hug, “Oh my God! I am going to be an auntie!”
Selene looks like she’s seen a ghost. “I swear to God if you three corrupt my baby and teach it curse words and how to be a menace to society, I will kill you all.”
I laugh, “The only thing I’m teaching that baby is how to dress.” I wink at her, “And maybe how to get under your skin for sport.”
Aria claps her hands together, “I’m going to teach it how to play guitar!”
Brody’s brows pull together, “No, little Stone is gonna be a drummer.”
“What about a bass player?” I add.
Selene waves her hand in the air to silence us. “My child will not be a rockstar. I’ve had enough of it dealing with you three all these years. I don’t need any more rockstars around me.”
Brody crosses her arms over her chest, “Whatever. We’ll see about that. But wait, how far along are you?”
Dallas interrupts, “I’ll leave you girls to your baby conversations. Congratulations, Selene.” He leans down and kisses my forehead before he whispers in my ear, “I’ll be right outside the door.”
