LITMIR.BIZ

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for his daughter? Would he screw the kid up by levying the same unrealistic expectations of perfection on her the way his parents had done to him? That was the vicious cycle, right?

      Each time he turned away from his brother, he caught a whiff of Scarlet’s perfume on the air. He knew the scent well, having bought her a bottle of it every year on her birthday for the last nine years. The scent reminded him of her hair spilled across pillowcases, of his lips pressed against the hollow of her throat, tasting her pulse, and of her wrapped in nothing but a towel getting ready for the day.

      He’d been desperate when he’d asked Scarlet to play house with him for a few weeks. Now a part of him regretted it. Leaving her the first time had been hard enough, but it was something he knew he had to do. Being back under the same roof might make it impossible to leave a second time. But he had no other choice. He couldn’t give her what she needed, despite what she might say to the contrary.

      Glancing over at her, he saw Scarlet weeping silent tears as she clutched baby Luna in her arms. They’d decided that their time as a reunited couple needed to start at the service so there was one less worry on Jay’s mind. Once it was over, Mason would unload his stuff from the back of his Range Rover into the beach house. He’d also packed a bag at Jay’s house with Luna’s clothes and some toys. He’d move the rest of her belongings directly into his new place once the time came.

      Thankfully, along with her stuff, Mason was also able to bring over Luna’s nanny, Carroll. She was happy to stay with the baby and keep her job, which would ease the transition for everyone involved. It would also give Luna a familiar caregiver when her whole world was changing around her.

      Who was going to help Mason as his whole world changed around him?

      The pastor ended his short graveside sermon and began the commitment prayer. “We thank You for Rachel’s life here on this earth, and we recognize that the body that lies before us is not Rachel, but rather the house in which she lived. We acknowledge that Rachel is rejoicing, even now, in Your very presence, enjoying the blessings of Heaven. Father, we commit her body to the earth, from which our bodies were originally created, and we rejoice in the fact that her spirit is even now with You. We thank You, Father, that in the days, weeks and months to come, these realities and the abiding presence of Your Spirit will especially strengthen, sustain and comfort Rachel’s friends and family until they can join her there. In Jesus’s name, amen.”

      The pastor gestured to Jay and the nurse rolled him forward to place his rose on top of her casket. Jay placed his palm flat against the smooth white wood and closed his eyes. “I’ll see you soon, baby.”

      Once he moved back, the pastor thanked everyone for coming and the crowd started to disperse so the team could complete the burial. With Jay needing to return immediately to the hospital, the family had opted against a wake, so it was done. Mason was relieved it was over, even though the next step he had to take might be even harder.

      Mason squeezed Jay’s shoulder. “We’ll bring Luna to see you in a day or two, okay?”

      His brother nodded and turned to the ambulance that had pulled into the cemetery. “My ride is here. Take good care of her.”

      Mason, Scarlet and Luna stood by the grave as the crowd cleared away and Jay was taken back to the hospital. When they could stall no longer, he turned back to her. “I guess we’d better go. I’ve got a lot of stuff to bring in and get settled.”

      Scarlet wiped her damp cheeks and nodded. Luna had fallen asleep in her arms. They walked to the car like the family everyone thought they were, loading Luna into her car seat and climbing into the front together.

      Driving down the highway back to Malibu with Scarlet in the passenger seat and a baby in the back was a moment that brought back uncomfortable memories for Mason. It felt so easy, so normal, and yet it reminded him of Evan and their short stint as parents.

      He’d thought they had a great marriage. He’d had no doubt that they would be together forever. They complemented each other well, had common interests and were very compatible in their day-to-day lives. He enjoyed spoiling Scarlet. He could tell her anything without feeling judged. It was a far cry from the family he’d grown up in, where his father was always needling at him to push harder and do better. He’d meant well, of course, wanting Mason to succeed, but in the end, all he’d done was create a man with an inability to accept failure.

      When they’d brought Evan home from the hospital, he had been only four days old. Mason remembered holding his son in his arms, looking at Scarlet and thinking their life was really complete now. Their perfect marriage had now become the perfect family, despite his inability to give her a child of their own. He’d started to think that perhaps he hadn’t failed in this endeavor at all. Scarlet was happy, Evan had a loving family...things had worked out the way they were meant to.

      It wasn’t until they got the call from their attorney telling them that Evan’s birth mother had changed her mind that he believed otherwise.

      Scarlet pulled the gate opener out of her purse and Mason waited for it to open, allowing them to pull onto their property. “I’m going to put her down to finish her nap,” she said, getting out of the car and unfastening Luna.

      Mason went to the back of his SUV and opened the hatch. He hadn’t packed much—a couple of suitcases’ worth of clothes, toiletries and random items he might need, like his laptop and tablet.

      As he stepped through the ground-floor entry of their former home, Mason hesitated. He’d moved on instinct up until this moment, but he realized things were different now. Some of the furniture had changed. His favorite chair and big-screen television had moved with him. There was a large floral arrangement on the dining room table in a vase that he didn’t recognize and a bright-colored rug in the entry that was way too loud for his taste.

      It was obvious this wasn’t his house any longer and he wasn’t sure where to go next. “Where am I sleeping?” he asked. Initially, he’d thought he’d be in the guest room, but that was where the nanny would sleep. Their four-bedroom house had a master suite, a nursery, a guest room and Scarlet’s art studio.

      Scarlet paused and turned to look at him. “I guess we’d better make that decision before the nanny arrives with her things. I think you’ll have to sleep on the futon in my studio, with Carroll staying in the guest room that adjoins the nursery. Since my studio is upstairs near the master, it’s probably a better choice anyway. Even the nanny will think that we’re sharing a room.”

      “We can’t just share a room?”

      “Uh, no. I’m going along with this whole thing for Jay’s sake, but if you think you’re going to take liberties with me, you’re wrong. I think it’s best you sleep in the studio.”

      Although the idea of toughing it out on a futon didn’t appeal to him, she was right. “I don’t want to clutter your workspace. Will I be able to put my clothes and toiletries in your bathroom?”

      “I suppose.” Scarlet placed the sleeping baby into the Pack ’n Play they’d set up in the living room. “Just don’t make a mess,” she added with a smile.

      Mason chuckled as he turned to the stairs and carried his bags up to the second floor. They both knew that Scarlet was the messy one. Mason was the oldest child, raised to the highest standards possible. He was as perfect as he could be. He was tidy. He cleaned up after himself. He always put his clothes in the hamper and his shoes on the rack. He even made the bed. Or at least his side if Scarlet was still in it.

      Scarlet was an artist. She was an only child and was raised to be a free spirit. She saw nothing wrong with leaving a cereal bowl on the counter overnight or leaving a glob of toothpaste in the sink. Most of the time she was splattered in paint.

      They were different, but he’d loved that about her. Really, Mason had been envious of her ability to let things go. In the few months they’d had Evan, Mason had been on edge over the mess. “Babies are messy,” Scarlet would tell him with a happy smile even as she wiped away spit-up. He’d tried to loosen up then, but he had more than thirty years of training

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