One Last Time(10)

He and his lawyer put all of this crap in the letter, and now he’s acting as if none of it works for him. Too damn bad. It didn’t work for me to move, but I did it. Time to grow the fuck up. I’m being nice by offering to take them to his house so he doesn’t have to drive out to Carrollwood when he works clear on the other side of Tampa.

I huff. “I’m happy for you and the lawyer, but I didn’t agree to these terms. You can’t decide something and just expect me to do it. I’ve been more than accommodating so far. I’m offering to drop them off Friday and then you can bring them back to me Sunday by the agreed time, which is exactly what you wanted and exactly what I agreed to when your lawyer delivered the terms.”

Driving to a central location makes absolutely no sense. I’m not doing it.

“I have to work on Monday,” he complains. “You’ll need to meet me at the neutral location in the morning instead of at night. I can have Jillian meet you if the time doesn’t work.”

He has to be kidding me. He must be out of his ever-loving mind if he thinks I’m dropping the kids off with his assistant. Especially considering I’ve never liked the bitch. She’s always been nasty to me and up his ass.

“I’m not meeting you—or your damn assistant—and per your stupid agreement, you have them until six. I have plans on Sunday.”

Stalking Noah Frazier and getting my blog post together, but I don’t tell him that.

“Plans?” He laughs. “Give me a break, you don’t have a life. I have a big meeting. For once, don’t be a bitch.”

I’ll show him a bitch.

“I’m sorry to hear that.” My words are laced with sarcasm. I’m not sorry about anything. “However, that’s not my problem. I will drop them off on Friday at the house, and I expect that you’ll drop them off at my home on Sunday after six. That’s what we agreed upon in writing.”

“When did you become so fucking difficult? Can you do anything helpful?”

Such an asshole. “I’d love to chat about that, Scott, but I’m busy right now. If you have an issue with the arrangements, take it up with my lawyer. I’ll drop the kids off Friday after work at your place. Thanks for calling.” I disconnect the call, and my head falls back as I groan.

I don’t feel like doing anything but passing out. This single parenting thing is exhausting. I get up and head toward the bedrooms.

Carefully, I open Aubrey’s door and move to her bed. She looks so little when she’s sleeping. I brush back her hair, kiss her forehead, and sit on the edge of her bed. Last night was hard on her. She cried for Scott for almost an hour, and I couldn’t calm her. In my arms, she begged to go home and stay with Daddy. I’m not sure how many nights of that I can take before it breaks me.

She nestles into the pillow, clutching the blanket she’s slept with since she was an infant. “Sleep tight, my beautiful girl,” I whisper and kiss her again.

I make my way to Finn’s room and smile. He’s the craziest sleeper in the world. I find him with his head hanging off the bed, his one foot is on the wall, and the other foot is on the pillow. I’ll never understand how he wiggles himself into the positions he does, but no matter what we did, it was the same each night.

My poor sweet boy is so out of control. I’ve always been close to him, but lately, he hates me. I don’t know if he assumes that us moving out was my choice or if he thinks it’s something else. I grab his legs and spin him back into a normal position.

“Mom?” He rubs his eyes, and I brush his hair back.

“Go back to sleep, honey.”

Finn sits up and wraps his arms around me. “I’m sorry I’m being mean.”

“You don’t have to be sorry,” I murmur while pulling him to my chest. “I know you’re just working out your feelings.”

He pulls back and tears fill his beautiful brown eyes that mirror Scott’s. “Why doesn’t Daddy love us?”

I take his chin in my hand. “He loves you very much. Don’t you ever question that.”

“Then he wouldn’t make us leave.”

Oh, Finn. I wish it were that easy. I’m not sure how to explain this to him, but he’s a smart kid. He’s always had this innate ability to sense when someone is lying, so I shake my head, wanting to choose my words extremely carefully.

“Sometimes, moms and dads can’t make things work.” A tear falls down his puffy cheek and slices my heart apart. “Sometimes, no matter how hard we try, we can’t fix it. It’s not because of love, honey. I love your daddy very much, and I know he cares deeply about me. It’s just . . .” I sigh. “It’s just better if we don’t live together anymore.”

All of that is the truth. Well, as much of the truth as my ten-year-old needs. I will never bash their father. No matter what happens, I’ll protect the hearts of them toward him. He’s their father and a man I loved for a long time, and I want them to love him.

“At least you won’t be sad anymore,” Finn notes as he wipes his nose with his arm.

Boys.

“What do you mean?”

He lies back on his pillow, and I cover him with the blankets. “You were so scared at night. Daddy was always yelling at you, and then you’d cry.” Finn lets out a yawn.