“Part of me is unreasonably angry at the mother for the time I missed with my kids.”
Brick nodded sympathetically. His own daughter had been dumped on his doorstep at five years old. He’d had no prior knowledge of her. “I understand that. I was angry as fuck regarding the time I’d missed, too, but you have to let it go. That anger will eat you up inside, and in your case, she didn’t know. You need to believe what she told you.”
“Forgive and move on. The kids need both of you to present a united front for their sakes. It’s all about the kids now, not about your hurt feelings or time lost. Concentrate on making up that time and being the best father you can be,” Matt added.
“Make sure everything you do is for the betterment of your kids. Selfishness has zero place in a father’s heart,” added Jock.
“She doesn’t want them to know I’m their father yet.”
“I can’t blame her,” Ice spoke up from behind me. “She’s gun-shy, and she’s going to protect her kids. You can’t be mad about that.”
Oh, but I was. I was mad at her for so very many things, unreasonably so. I had to get beyond it, but I hadn’t reached that point yet.
“We should give Big E a baby shower.” Rush sat down across the table. The asshole grinned at me. “We can play party games and watch him open gifts.”
The jerks hooted with laughter.
“They better be drinking games,” Ziggy added and more hilarity ensued. These guys were idiots.
“I’ll give him a box of condoms,” Rush said.
“It’s a little late for the condoms.” Ic snorted and took a chug of his Coke. I was grateful Ice didn’t drink. He was enough of a demanding dickhead stone-cold sober.
“Do they have strippers at baby showers?” Kaden waggled his brows and leered at no one in particular.
“She can jump out of a cake in nothing but a diaper,” Ziggy said.
“I’m in.” Caveman fist-bumped Ziggy, and they both grinned at me.
Who invited all these assholes into my private conversation?
“All right, ladies, dinner’s being served!” Cedric interrupted the clowns planning my imaginary shower. The guys scrambled for seats but not before almost every one of them slapped me on the back and congratulated me.
“Dude, I don’t think we’re getting that stripper,” Ziggy said sadly.
“No, buddy, I don’t think we are.” I sighed and dug into my steak. I might as well join ’em, but I wasn’t going to be able to beat ’em or even get a word in.
Caroline point of view
Easton didn’t waste any time. Once I’d agreed to his plan to move us to Seattle, things happened at an overwhelming speed. By now it was mid-November, and the holidays were looming on the horizon. I wanted to get the kids moved and settled into a new school as quickly as possible to lessen any strain on them.
I was officially overwhelmed. No amount of list making and worrying would organize this colossal life change.
Easton left on a road trip on Tuesday and returned the following Wednesday morning, which happened to be today, one week before Thanksgiving. I was pretty sure he’d want to meet the kids immediately, and I wasn’t prepared for that inevitable step just yet.
He’d been true to his word. His attorney contacted me about a temporary parenting plan. The movers had packed up our stuff and moved it to Seattle to be put into storage until we moved into our new home. We’d flown to Seattle over the weekend and were housed in a very nice suite in a hotel near where we’d be living, which I’d yet to see.
I enrolled the kids in school immediately, and on Monday they attended their first day of class. I didn’t worry much about Hailey. She was an excellent student, inquisitive and bright. She loved school. Heath, on the other hand, considered going to school a necessary evil and lived for the final bell every day so he could play hockey.
Juniper was with us every step of the way, and I appreciated her more than words would ever say. She’d already found a job at a car dealership processing paperwork. She liked it so far. Benefits were good, and the pay was okay. Neither of us had realized how high the cost of living was in Seattle, though, and a good wage where we’d lived was, in Seattle, closer to living at poverty level.
We were all anxious to get settled into the condo. The four of us in a one-bedroom hotel suite, no matter how nice, was challenging. This move was putting a dent in my depleted bank account, despite Easton paying most of the bills. I was paying for our meals, as the hotel only had a small fridge in the room, and we were eating out daily.
This particular morning, I was fretting about Easton’s return, knowing I’d be hearing from him soon. I didn’t have to wait long. The text messages started about seven a.m. I read the first few and ignored the rest. Juniper, who didn’t work a regular shift, flopped on the couch next to me, still in her pajamas. Her hair was a mess, and she was yawning. “Aren’t you going to look at that text?” She glanced at my phone, which had been beeping urgently for a few minutes.
“It’s Easton, and he wants to meet this morning. Go over everything. The condo will be ready in a few days.”
“Then meet with him.”
“I’m not ready yet. It’s not a good time.”
“It’ll never be a good time.” Juniper rolled her eyes. “Putting off this meeting isn’t going to make things easier. You’re here and committed to going through with this.”
“Regardless, he’ll want to meet the kids right away. They’re still adjusting to the move, and his appearance might set them back. I need to make a plan, figure out how to handle this for the kids’ sakes.”
“You’ve had a week to devise a plan. So far all I’ve seen is a garbage can full of half-finished lists. Quit worrying. Kids are resilient. They’ll bounce back.”
“My kids also hold grudges. They’ve been taking out their grief on me ever since their dad died. When they find out about Easton, they’ll be furious. I’m not sure how I’ll go about explaining the situation to them. They’re only six.”
“They might be six, but they’re bright kids, and they will forgive you.”
“I wish I had your confidence.”
“Mom, Heath stole my candy bar!” Hailey ran into the room, tears streaking down her face and sobbing as if she’d lost something far more valuable than a candy bar. Heath stood behind her, saying nothing. His face was void of all emotion, reminding me of his father during a hockey game.
“First of all, how did you get a candy bar? You know I don’t like you eating too much candy.”
Hailey didn’t answer me.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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