The Bromance Book Club (Bromance Book Club, #1)(3)

“Is this supposed to be making me feel b-b-better?”

“You guys dated, what, four months before she got pregnant?”

“Three.”

Mack coughed into his hand. It sounded like the word shotgun.

“Right,” Del continued. “And the next thing you knew, you were getting married on a whim in a courthouse, and before the twins were even born you got called up to the bigs? Hell, Gavin, you’ve been on the road most of your marriage while she’s been raising those girls practically on her own in a strange city. You think she’s going to be the same person after all that?”

No, but dammit, that wasn’t the problem with him and Thea. Sure, she had changed. So had he. But they were good parents, and they were happy. At least, he thought they were happy.

Del shrugged casually and sat up straight. “Look, all I’m saying is that our careers are hard enough on couples who date for years and know exactly what they’re in for before getting married. But you two jumped into the deep end of the pool with no life jackets. No marriage can survive that, even in the best circumstances. Not without some help.”

“It’s a little late for counsheling.”

“No, it’s not. But that’s not what I’m talking about, anyway.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

Del ignored him and instead eyed Yan and Mack again. “Well?”

“I say yes,” Yan said. “He’ll be useless to us next season if we don’t get them back together.”

Mack shrugged. “I’m good, if only to get him out of here. Because goddamn, dude.” He gestured widely at the room.

Gavin slumped toward Yan. “How do I say fuck off in Spanish?”

Mack took a final bite of the apple and tossed the core over his shoulder. It landed perfectly in the sink. Gavin hated him more than anyone else in the entire world. “My daughters gave me that apple.”

“Oops,” Mack said.

“Listen up,” Del said. “Sleep this off tonight. Tomorrow night, you’ll meet us for your first official meeting.”

“First official meeting of what?”

“The solution to all your problems.”

They stared at him as if that explained everything. “That’s it?”

“One more thing,” Del said. “Under no circumstances are you to go see your wife.”





CHAPTER TWO




Nothing on Earth is as strong as a woman who’s good and fed up.

Of all the bits of folksy wisdom her Gran Gran had imparted over the years, Thea Scott hoped at least that one was true because, holy crap, this sledgehammer weighed a ton. Four attempts to hit her mark had only resulted in a minor dent in the wall and a major pulled muscle in her back. But dammit, Thea was not giving up. Three years they’d lived in this house, and for three years she’d been fantasizing about knocking down this wall.

Seeing how her marriage had officially come crumbling down yesterday, it only seemed fair that today it should be the wall’s turn.

Besides, Thea really, really needed to hit something.

She swung the sledgehammer one more time with a grunt. Finally, the heavy end connected with a satisfying thud and left a gaping hole. With a whoop of victory, Thea yanked the hammer free and poked her face into her handiwork. She could almost feel the light from the other side just waiting to burst free from its sensibly beige prison. Who the hell would put a wall there, anyway? What architect in their right mind would separate the living room from the dining room and block all that glorious light from flowing through the downstairs?

Thea swung again, and a second hole joined the first. A chunk of drywall dropped to her feet as dust swirled into the air and coated her arms. Holy crap, that felt good.

Panting from exertion, Thea let the hammer fall to the plastic tarp she’d bought to protect the hardwood floor. Massaging her shoulder with one hand, she turned and surveyed the living room. Yes. Right there. Right by the French doors to the backyard. This was the perfect spot for her easel and paints. Someday, after finishing her degree, maybe she’d have her own art studio. But for now, she’d be satisfied just to paint again. She hadn’t touched a blank canvas since the girls were born. Her greatest creative accomplishment these days was dyeing her white T-shirts to make the stains seem intentional.

She’d tried to make it work, the wall. She’d hung family photos in quirky patterns. Framed the girls’ handprints and artwork. Displayed Gavin’s favorite bat from high school. All with the idea that someday she’d fix it. Someday she would paint it a more vibrant color. Or maybe add built-ins. Or someday just knock down the entire damn thing and start over.

Thea knew someday had arrived the instant she woke up this morning, her eyes still swollen from a weak moment in the middle of the night when she’d cried in the bathroom with a fist pressed against her mouth to smother the sound.

Tears were pointless. Regrets wouldn’t help her start over. There was only one way to move forward, and that was to come out swinging.

Literally.

So after breakfast, Thea sent the girls off to dance class with her sister, Liv, who’d been living with her since Gavin left. And then Thea dug out her old paint overalls, drove to the local hardware, and bought the sledgehammer.

“You know how to use this?” the man at the counter asked. His arched eyebrow screamed “mansplainer.”