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the sexiest thing in the world. Now that I was in love, I wanted her all the time.
    I looked across the booth and saw Sean and Scarlet. Sean looked out the window, ignoring her. There was a large gap between them. They weren’t touching each other. In fact, it seemed like they didn’t even like each other.
    “Um…should I be worried?” I asked.
    Neither one of them responded.
    “Wow. A divorce a few months after marriage,” I said. “Pitiful.”
    “Shut the hell up,” Sean said. “We aren’t getting a divorce.”
    “Well, you shouldn’t stay together just for the kid…”
    Sean glared at me.
    Wow. He was on edge today.
    “What’s going on?” I asked. “Can we help?”
    “No.” Scarlet’s voice was quiet and passionless.
    Cassandra cleared her throat. “It’s always good to talk it out…”
    Neither one of them would be rude to Cassandra for any reason. They knew she was important to me. She was exempt from their shitty attitudes.
    “Thank you for the advice,” Sean said politely.
    “Yeah,” Scarlet said with a nod.
    “Why can’t you be nice to me like that?” Mike asked.
    “Because you’re an asshole,” Sean snapped.
    It was like a 180.
    “Okay,” I said. “What the hell is going on? You guys have been weird all week.”
    Scarlet didn’t look at him. “Sean owes me an apology.”
    “Ha,” Sean said. “I’m the one who deserves one—a big one.”
    She shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest.
    “It looks like we’re in couples therapy and I’m the psychiatrist,” I said. “Let’s start from the beginning.”
    Scarlet told her side of the story. The fact she was honest about her mom and her roots was a testament to her confidence in my relationship with Cassandra. She was totally accepted into our group. Scarlet wasn’t open with just anyone.
    Sean snapped and told his v ersion. The redness in his face showed just how pissed he was about the whole thing.
    “So, now we aren’t speaking,” Scarlet said. “Not until he apologizes to me.”
    Sean shook his head. “Forget it.”
    “Well, I’m going to announce the ruling and you two are just going to forget about this,” I said.
    “No,” Sean said. “You’re going to take Scarlet’s side.”
    “Because I’m right,” Scarlet snapped.
    Sean glared at her but didn’t speak. He turned back to me. “You’re going to side with her because you two are so damn buddy-buddy.”
    “Actually, I was going to side wit h you on this one…”
    Scarlet’s mouth dropped open.
    Sean looked just as shocked.
    I turned to Scarlet. “Honestly, what else could he have done? He handled the situation as best he could at the time. And you can’t deny the underlying meaning to it. Everything he did, it was to make you happy.”
    Sean smiled at me. “I guess you don’t hate me after all.”
    “I think you’re a fucking jackass. I’m just being objective here.”
    Cassandra chuckled.
    Scarlet turned away, moisture in her eyes. “You don’t get it,” she snapped. “Ryan and I had everything taken away from us. My dad worked his ass off so we could have better lives, and we finally got the money my mom hung over my head every fucking day. Getting that back was a victory. It’s not about the money or what it could buy us. It’s my dad’s legacy. It finally got to his kids, what he really wanted.” Her voice broke with emotion. “And you just gave it back to her. It’s like it never happened.” She stood up from the booth then stormed out.
    We all sat in silence, replaying the emotional words in our heads. I knew we hit a nerve.
    Sean was glued to the spot.
    “Aren’t you going to get her?” I asked.
    Sean stared at the counter.
    “Dude, you guys are having a kid together. Just apologize, even if you aren’t wrong, and be happy together. This is stupid.”
    “I’ve always understood her point of view. That was never the problem. But she threw our past in my face, and she thinks I don’t put her first. I’m