His heart was pounding. Wren was very important to him. He loved her and he wanted to help, but he knew he couldn’t. He almost suggested Jensen, but he knew that would be a bad idea. Because Jensen would do it, but he would be all in, fully in love and ready to raise her kid, and she wouldn’t want him after she got her money. Vaughn wouldn’t do that to his best friend, and he sure as hell wouldn’t put Brie through that, no matter how much he wanted to help Wren. “Wren, I can’t.”

“Why? You’d be perfect because we don’t want each other. We wouldn’t even have to live with each other. I just need you to go to Wells’s wedding with me and act like my husband and an excited father. We wouldn’t even need to tell Brie… Though, that would be wrong, so we will. Hell, I’ll even give her a cut.”

“No.”

“What do you mean, no?” she yelled, her eyes filling with tears and spilling over her cheeks. “I need your help!”

“I understand that, but I can’t do this. This is insane! Just tell them the truth.”

“No, I’ll lose all my money. I have all this debt I need to pay off. I need your help.”

“Wren, I can’t. That wouldn’t be fair to Brie.”

“She would be okay with it. I know she would be. She’s sweet, she’ll understand.”

“No, she wouldn’t. I know she wouldn’t, and it doesn’t feel right. If I get married, I want it to be to someone I love.”

“You’re my best friend. You love me—”

“I do, but I love her more than you, and I’m not putting her through all that.” Once the words left his lips, he stopped and held up his hands when she started to bitch more. “Why can I tell you that, but not her?”

Flabbergasted, Wren stopped her tirade. “What?”

“I just told you I love her, that I love Brie, and I fucking do. Yet, I can’t say it to her. Why is that?”

Wren’s eyes were wide, annoyed as she yelled, “’Cause you’re an idiot! Did she say she loved you?”

“Yes, and I didn’t say it back.”

“Vaughn, really. You love that girl!”

“I know!”

“Then tell her that!”

“I don’t know how.”

“The way you just did, you big idiot! You love her. I know it, you know it, she probably knows it. Stop being a big idiot, and tell the girl the damn truth before you lose her.”

He thought that over. “What just happened here?”

“Well, you turned me down, but all is not lost because you had a revelation that you needed. So, thank God, good for you. Now go live happily ever after,” she said, falling onto the couch, shaking her head, “while my life falls apart.”

“Wren…”

“No, it’s fine. I’m a strong girl. I’ve got this.”

“What are you going to do?”

She shook her head. “Pay someone off the street?”

Jensen was there. Right on the tip of his tongue, but Vaughn shook his head. “You can’t go marry someone off the street.”

“I know, I’ll figure it out. Just please don’t tell anyone about this. Please, I’m begging you.”

He nodded. “I won’t.”

“And not even Jensen or Wells. No one. No one can know you know.”

“That’s fine. I promise.” He knew if he told Jensen, he’d be over here in a second, and Wells would lose his ever-loving shit. So Vaughn would sit on it. Let Wren handle it because he had enough to worry about. Brie. He had to fix this with Brie.

“And don’t fuck up anymore. If she tells you she loves you, she means it. She’s not fucking Hazel. She’s not any fucking ho. She’s real, and she loves you. So say it back because you love her, and that’s that.”

Vaughn scoffed. “I thought you didn’t believe in love.”

Wren’s eyes were sad as she exhaled. “Not for me, I don’t. But for you, I do. And it’s her. She is the one, Vaughn. Everyone sees it. The same way they see that Alex isn’t the one for Wells. People know these things, and, Vaughn, you know. I know you know.”

“I do.”

“So stop being a dumbass! Tell the girl you love her.”

“What if she doesn’t believe me?”

“Then make her.”

Breathless, he held his best friend’s gaze and had no clue what to do.

But he was going to do it.

As soon as he figured out what that was.

“Thanks for asking me to lunch.”

Mekena smiled as she took a sip of her tea. “We needed to get together. I don’t like how everything has played out lately. We’re friends, and I’ve been shitty.”

“Just a bit.”

Mekena laughed. “I’ve been so far up Markus’s ass that I haven’t been fair to you, and I’m sorry.”

Brie waved her off. “I’m fine.”

“Of course you are, you’re the strongest person I know. But really, I suck, so I’m thankful you wanted to come.”

Brie smiled sadly. “Of course.”

“How’s Rodney doing?”

“Great. He’s doing really good. The doctors are happy. I’m happy, he’s happy, everyone is really happy,” she laughed, though she still felt like crying. The day before was weighing heavy on her heart. That morning, Vaughn hadn’t really talked much and she knew he was struggling with how he was feeling, but there was nothing she could do. She couldn’t make him love her. It was all on him, he had to feel it, and it just sucked that he claimed he didn’t.

Because she knew he did.

“Good! I’m so glad. How’s Vaughn?”

She exhaled as she nodded. “We’re fine.”

Mekena eyed her. “That doesn’t sound good. A couple weeks ago, you were all smiles and giggling talking about him. It didn’t end already, did it?”

“No, we’re just in a rough patch.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, he’s being difficult.”

“I’m sorry.”

Brie shrugged. “He’s a challenging guy. I knew that going in. He’s rough around the edges and he’s got a foul mouth that drives me wild, but I swear, he has this heart of pure gold. He would lay down his life for me in a heartbeat, but he won’t let himself feel what he is feeling. He holds back so fiercely, and it is driving me insane… Wow, I unloaded on you.”