Free Husbandry by Allie Ritch Page A

fair.”
    Her reaction startled a snort out of me. “Are you saying
you’re jealous?”
    “Insanely. Three gorgeous, lusty males in bed? I’m surprised
you can even walk.”
    “Liz!” I slapped my hand over my mouth and felt my cheeks
burn fiery red.
    “Just saying.”
    “Well, that part is pretty great,” I admitted. “There’s only
one of me to go around, though, so sometimes I’m spread a bit thin.”
    She nodded in understanding. “I hadn’t thought of that. So
what was this fight about, and why is Chad the only one mad at you. Or was it
Charles?”
    “Charles was only annoyed. Chad is the one I have to make
things up to.” I explained what I’d done with the wedding photo.
    Liz remained silent until I was finished. “I get why you did
it, but you’ve only made things harder for yourself. You should have bragged
about the three of them loud and proud from the get-go. That would have given
your family time to get used to the idea and accept it. Now that you’ve covered
it up so long, it’s awkward. Everyone will be hurt you lied, which taints the
whole news about the marriage.”
    That was pretty much what I had concluded, though hearing
her voice the problem made it more real. She wasn’t making me feel better.
    Liz seemed to realize that. “Cheer up. It won’t be fun, but
a little confession is good for the soul. If they love you, your family will
come around eventually, and you’ve got three warm bodies to help comfort you
along the way. That’s more than most people have.”
    She was right. I was being a baby about this.
    “There’s just one thing I want to know.” She leaned forward
with an eager expression.
    “What’s that?”
    “Tell me more about this Genetic Harmony. Can I find three
hunky men there?”
    Some of the weight lifted from my shoulders. I left off
worrying for a while as I told her all about the matchmaking company, doing a
good job of giving them a referral.
    Once Liz left to get back to work, though, my mind returned
to my upcoming call to my mother. Although my coworker’s reaction gave me hope,
I knew better than to assume my mom would accept the news so easily. Back at my
desk, I decided to do what Chad had suggested. I checked my home messages.
    Sure enough, my mom had left one of her typical long,
rambling recordings, chattering excitedly about receiving the wedding photos.
She also made sure to chastise me yet again for not inviting her to the
ceremony. Before she hung up, she ended with a remark Chad had failed to share
with me. She said she and my dad were thinking of coming for a visit. It was
definitely high time I had a talk with her.
    I dived back into work, tackling as much as I could through
what remained of the afternoon. When quitting time arrived, I was anxious to
get home and deal with my more pressing issues. Unfortunately, I was forced to
take public transportation and walk part of the way since I didn’t have my car.
I had hitched a ride with Charles so I could leave Chad our second vehicle. It
was the least I could do after hurting him so badly.
    The house was silent when I came through the door.
    “Hello? Chuck?” When there was no response, I climbed the
stairs. “I’m home. Are you up here?”
    Still no answer. He must have run to the hardware store or
something. It was so rare for me to have the house to myself.
    I quickly changed into casual clothes before I sat at my
computer. The first thing I did was resend my wedding photos, undoctored, to my
mom. I included a quick note:
    Sorry these didn’t go
through right the first time. Chad and Charles shouldn’t have been cropped out.
    Okay, so I didn’t mention that I was the one who’d cropped
them out. Let her think it was a computer error. I was trying to be honest
about my relationship, but that didn’t mean I needed to air my dirty laundry.
At this point, I figured a little selective wording wouldn’t hurt—what PR
people called “spin.”
    With the photos resent, I drew a deep