Frayed Silk(46)

“Yes,” my mom says while Taylor says, “For a little while. God, you two really need to do it. Travel, it’s exhilarating and so much fun.”

Leo’s lips curl into some semblance of a smirk as he looks at his mom. “Yeah?” he asks.

She nods eagerly, chewing some food.

“Yeah, until you lose your luggage, get third degree sunburn, swindled by a seventy-nine-year-old man in the airport, and food poisoning while you’re on a cruise,” my mom grumbles.

Taylor scowls at her. “Oh, don’t be such a bore, Renee. You weren’t even the one who got sunburned.” Her eyes turn to me. “Oh, but that was terrible. My skin peeled for weeks.” She mock shivers.

My mom snorts. “Yeah, but I was the one who had to slap aloe vera onto your flaking skin while you whined ungratefully at me. Every damn day. For two weeks,” she deadpans.

A laugh escapes me, and I feel Leo’s eyes on me as I cut into my meat and take a bite. My stomach revolts, and I quickly grab my glass of water, chugging half of it down.

“You all right, dear?” Taylor asks.

My mom reaches over, thumping me hard on the back. “Probably went down the wrong pipe.” I flinch, trying to shove her hand off me.

“I’m fine,” I croak.

“Really, Renee. If someone saw you doing that in this day and age, you’d be locked away for child abuse,” Taylor informs her.

“For trying to save my choking daughter’s life?” My mom guffaws. “I’d like to see them try.”

Taylor laughs. “As would I.”

They both laugh with each other, and I remove my gaze from them to find the kids still eating, their eyes darting to and fro between their grandmothers and then I finally look at Leo. He’s watching me again, his brows tugging in to form a tiny crease between them. My eyes stay glued to his as I struggle to understand why. Why he wouldn’t tell me, why he chose to deal with this all alone, for so damn long. He swallows, but I didn’t see him chew anything, and he averts his gaze back to the conversation carrying on around us.

Clearing my throat, I excuse myself to prepare dessert. I dig out the wine from the fridge, opening it and taking a hearty swig and then another before recapping it and putting it away to bring the cheesecake out.

After dessert is done, I take the kids upstairs for a shower before they leave. We’re quiet, listening to Taylor and my mom talking as they help clean up the kitchen downstairs. I don’t know where Leo is when the kids are in their pajamas and we’re walking back down with their bags, but he needs to come say goodbye to them.

“Ready?” my mom asks.

They nod their heads eagerly then Greta yawns.

“We’ll watch a movie and get you two in bed, I think,” my mom says as Taylor hangs up the dish towel behind her.

They’ll stay at Taylor’s place for the weekend as they usually do when they take the kids for sleepovers. I think they handle them a little better when they’re together. Plus, Taylor’s house is even bigger than Fiona’s. Her face flashes through my mind and I cough.

Oh, my God.

“You all right?” my mom asks quietly, coming to stand beside me.

I nod. “Yeah, just not feeling too well.” It’s not a lie.

She frowns, rubbing my back. “Well, you put your feet up and just relax for the weekend, okay? You need to take care of yourself.”

I force a smile onto my face, walking them all outside and helping them get the kids into Taylor’s Mercedes.

“Be good. No fighting,” I warn them as I kiss their heads.

They both nod, distracted by the iPads in the back of the headrests.

“Love you both.” I blow them a kiss and step back.

“Love you, too!” they call out.

Leo finally emerges from the house, leaning inside the car to kiss them goodbye.

I thank my mom and Renee for taking them, telling them to call me if they need anything.

“We’ll be fine,” my mom insists. “Besides, the queen over there has a cook and a butler that we can always hand them off to if we need to sneak away for a smoke break.” She laughs.

Taylor scowls. “We will do no such thing. Come on, let’s go.” She climbs into the car as my mom winces playfully at me. I kiss her cheek and stand back, trying not to put too much distance between Leo and I, for fear of him disappearing as soon as Taylor’s car is out of sight.

Which is exactly what he tries to do, but I run after him.

“Leo,” I call down the hall once we’re back inside. I flip the lock on the door, slamming it closed behind me.

He doesn’t answer me, but I hear his feet moving around upstairs. I walk up them and head down the hallway to find him in our room, snatching clothes out of drawers and tossing them onto the bed.

My pulse starts ringing in my ears. “What are you doing?”

“What does it look like I’m doing?” He walks into our wardrobe and reemerges with a duffle bag, stuffing the clothes inside then walking to the bathroom.

“You’re leaving?” I take a seat on the bed, my hands starting to shake.

“You think I’m going to stay here with you all weekend?” He laughs, putting his body wash in the bag. “Not fucking likely.”

My eyes squeeze closed at his cruel words. “Why tell me I could do something when you didn’t actually want me to do it?”