Page 93 of Christmas with Brother's Best Friends
The nurse walks over to my bedside and checks my vitals before patting my hand. “I’m going to give you a few minutes alone, okay? Just hit that button if you need anything.”
“Thank you,” I manage to whisper as my teary eyes meet hers.
The nurse gives me a sympathetic look before stepping out of the room and shutting the door behind her.
As soon as I’m alone, the floodgates open, and a broken sob leaves me. Tears stream down my cheeks as I stare up at the ceiling, feeling as if I’ve been run over by a truck.
I had this fantasy in my head that we would have a tense but calm conversation about everything and that things would somehow turn out fine. Sure, things might be awkward for a little while, but we would fall into a new kind of normal, and things would be okay.
Everyone would be happy.
Instead, today became a complete disaster, and I don’t know if we can bounce back from this. My brothers looked like they were ready to admit the guys as new patients, and there would’ve been nothing that I could do to stop them.
With a weak sniffle, I slowly move my hand over to rest on my stomach. I’m so happy that my baby is okay, but the thought of them growing up in a fragmented family breaks my heart. It’s not what I want.
But we don’t always get what we want.
Not every fantasy becomes reality, and not everything works out as planned.
Now that the truth has been revealed, there’s no going back. There’s only dealing with the damage that has been done and fixing what’s broken, but I don’t even know if that’ll be possible.
Some things can’t ever be fixed. No matter how badly I want them to be.
Chapter forty-two
Chapter Forty-Two: Max
Arguing with Ethan and Andrew out in the hallway doesn’t make any progress in the slightest.
Eventually, we’re asked to go to the waiting room, while Emma’s parents are allowed back to check on her. I don’t typically get jealous, but I was jealous of them at that moment. All I want to do is make sure that Emma and the baby are okay.
Meanwhile, my own friends of multiple years think that me, Josh, and Ryan manipulated their sister into a situation that she didn’t even want. It makesmewant to punchthemin the face for even thinking that we would do something so awful toanyone.
“I’m leaving. Mom and Dad have her,” Ethan says as he checks his phone.
“She was discharged already?” I question Andrew as the five of us crowd a corner in the waiting room.
“There’s no reason to hold her here. Herfamilywill take care of her from here on out,” Andrew says, bitterness seeping into his voice as his narrowed eyes sweep over the three of us.
I blink in shock, unable to believe our friends are being so damn cruel to us. I knew that they wouldn’t be happy, but I didn’t expect them to try to keep us away from her and the baby like this. That’sourbaby!Ourgirl!
“You can’t do this,” Ryan grits out before storming after Ethan as he leaves the waiting room.
Josh follows Ryan with a curse under his breath, leaving Andrew and me to glare at each other.
“I know that you think you’re protecting her, but this will just hurt her,” I assure him, trying to talk some sense into that thick head of his. He’s a good guy, but he can have severe tunnel vision when it comes to him getting what he wants. That’s how he got through medical school.
Andrew waves his hand dismissively before turning to put his back to me, an agitated huff leaving him.
He doesn’t even want to look at me. Much less talk to me.
He’ll just have to get over himself.
“Andrew, wait!” I snap as I hurry after him down the hallway. I grab his arm to stop him, only for him to whip around and shove me. My back collides with the wall, knocking the air out of my lungs.
“Stop it, Max!” Andrew barks at me. “You and the other two have pissed me off so much that I can’t even think straight! You could’ve knocked up any woman in the world, and you chose my sister?”
“It’s not like we chose her!” I argue, making him take a threatening step toward me as I remain pressed against the wall. I lift my hands innocently, hoping to calm him down enough to avoid a broken nose. “It just happened. Being around each other so much… getting to know each other… our feelings just happened. And one thing led to another. It wasn’t some manipulative plot that we came up with.”
