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can just have one cup of coffee.”
    Tracy turned to grab herself a mug and pour her own cup while Riley conducted her negotiation.
    “What do you think caffeine does to high blood pressure?” he asked, his voice level.
    “Negligible effect,” Riley said. “I Googled it.”
    “Funny, because I did too and it said something very different,” Shawn said.
    Tracy noted that he managed to look annoyed, but not at Riley. How he did that, she would never know. She mixed creamer into her coffee and took a deep swallow. Perfect .
    For a moment, anticipating the first sip of coffee distracted her from her other mission, but now she refocused.
    “So when were you going to tell me about the doctor’s appointment?” Tracy asked casually. “About the fluid levels and all that?”
    “I wasn’t aware I had to report back to you about my OB appointments,” Riley said, her voice light. She pulled away from Shawn’s embrace and opened the fridge, taking out the same carton of orange juice he had, and like him, drank directly from it.
    Tracy wondered idly whether that was the kitchen etiquette they would teach their kid.
    “You don’t. But I think it’s pretty telling that you failed to mention something so important. I feel kind of hurt, to be honest,” Tracy lied.
    That got Riley’s attention. Riley did not like hurting people, however inadvertently. Her friend was such a pushover in that way. She turned to look at Tracy, her eyes wide.
    “I didn’t mention it because it wasn’t the end of the world, Tracy. Women get elevations in blood pressure during pregnancy all the time. And as for the fluid levels . . .”
    “So what if something happened to the baby?” Tracy demanded. She knew just how much pressure to exert and exactly where to exert it. And with Riley you had to be just short of brutal, remembering that she was a pretty strong-willed woman after all.
    Riley put a protective hand on her stomach and rubbed it, her brows furrowing. “I don’t think it would hurt the . . .”
    “So I guess the doctor just checks stuff like that for shits and giggles,” Tracy said taking another sip of coffee. “Fine. Take care of your little literary journal. I mean, after all, what could be more important than that?”
    Tracy watched as Riley’s eyes filled with tears. Hormones , she thought, unaffected. Shawn noticed the tears as well and made a move toward his wife but Tracy shot him a look. Did he want his pregnant wife to stop working or not? If he did, he was going to have to man up and not let a few tears get to him.
    “Nothing is more important than this baby, than my family,” Riley said, her voice trembling. “ Nothing .”
    “Hmm,” Tracy said coldly. She took her last gulp of coffee. “Really? Then if so, I suggest you start acting like it.” She put her coffee mug in the sink and then headed for the door.  “Call me later if you’re still talking to me.”
    As she left, she caught a glimpse of Shawn’s face, on it just the shadow of a grateful smile and a hint of something he’d never had much of for her before: respect .
     
     
    Fuck her.
    The thing about women like Tracy was that they were all game. After months of complete silence, all of a sudden she was thinking about that night in L.A.? Right. More likely she took one look at Meghan and decided she needed to make sure no one was stepping in to take him off her stand-by list. Well, the hell with that.
    Brendan slammed his car door then winced, regretting it immediately. He loved his car, his beautiful midnight blue, Aston Martin V12 Zagato . It was reliable, did what he asked it to do, and didn’t change shit up from one moment to the next. Unlike women. Unlike Tracy. Because of her, he’d messed up a perfectly good evening with Meghan. Coming back from the brunch at Shawn and Riley’s he’d been too drunk to drive so she had to, which made her mad.
    Meghan was not typical of the women he’d been with in the past. She didn’t tolerate that