Merrick slammed his beer down on the table. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
“It means you spend more time at that office than you do with her. You work nearly twenty-four hours a day and you never take weekends off. That wears on a woman, Merrick.”
“I’ve been trying to make things better for her. I’d like to have kids someday and I think Chloe would like to be a stay-at-home mom. She’s talked about it more than once. But, that won’t happen if I can’t get the business where it needs to be.”
“Bullshit.”
Merrick rolled his eyes. “Why not tell me how you really feel, Blade?”
“That business of yours isn’t exactly paltry, and you know it. What’s really holding you back?”
Merrick clenched his fist around the bottle. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Are you afraid?”
“Damn it, Blade!”
Blade held up a hand. “Just hear me out.” He paused, and Merrick nodded. “If you ask me, I think you’re afraid of not measuring up. Not being the husband Chloe needs, not being the father you imagine. I think it scares the shit out of you every time you think about the future.”
Merrick didn’t know what to say. He’d never let himself think too hard about his insecurities. Men just weren’t wired that way. Having Blade throw it in his face made it real. He had been afraid. Terrified, actually. “Chloe is my whole world. I keep thinking she’s going to wake up and wonder why she married my dumb ass.”
Blade smiled. “Yeah, we all think that way. But burying your head in the sand isn’t the answer.”
“Gee, you think?”
“Smartass,” Blade grumbled.
“Dickhead,” Merrick shot right back.
They both took a swig of their beers. Blade stood and tossed the bottle in the trash. He crossed his arms over his chest and said, “So, what are you going to do about it? Sit on your ass and bitch like a little girl, or get your woman back?”
Merrick stood and pinned Blade with a hard glare. “Get my woman back.”
“Good answer. Now, it seems to me you need to get her away. Take her some place where it’s just the two of you. No job, no interruptions.”
Merrick thought of the last time he’d taken Chloe away. “Hawaii,” he uttered.
“A second honeymoon? Yep, that should do the trick.”
Blade was so sure, but he hadn’t heard the stubbornness in Chloe’s voice that morning. “What if it doesn’t? What if she still wants a divorce?”
“Then you tie her cute ass to the bed and keep her there.”
Merrick laughed and shook his head. “Oh, yeah, you’re all reformed.”
Blade frowne
d. “Huh?”
“Never mind,” he said as he made his way to the door. “Just tell Candice that I said she’s got a lot more work to do.”
As Merrick left the house, got into his car and started the engine, a plan began to form. Hawaii. Yeah, he’d take her to Hawaii, but it wouldn’t be like their honeymoon. Back then he’d been content to let things flow. He’d been hopelessly in love, not a care in the world. This time around, he’d be fighting for his life, his future.
Chapter Three
Chloe sat at their usual table in the back of Sal’s restaurant. Sal, the owner, came over and took her hand in his. “You’re as beautiful as ever, darling.”
She winked and said, “And you’re a shameless flirt, Sal, as always.”