“You’re so touchy. He must pay well if you can afford to live in Carrington Cove.”
That was none of his business. “When will you and your family get here?”
He paused and paused some more. “It will only be me,” he obviously hated to admit.
That was quick. I wondered what happened to the love of his life, the woman who showed him what real love was. And what about his baby daughter? “Trouble in paradise?” I couldn’t help but ask.
“Don’t worry about it. We’re just taking a break.”
Right.
“I want to see Chloe when I get back.”
“I don’t know if she wants to see you.”
“Dammit, Aspen, you can’t keep her from me.”
“I never have. That’s been all you. You left. Not me. So don’t you dare blame me. And if you think you’re coming back just to leave her again, then think again. I will not let you flit in and out of her life, breaking her heart over and over again.”
“I want a relationship with her.”
“Then prove it.”
“I will. I’ll be in touch.” He hung up.
I dropped my phone and rubbed my arms only covered in a thin layer of fabric. Tears streamed down my cheeks. I hated that my daughter was paying for my mistakes. She deserved so much better. She deserved a dad like Sawyer, who cried during ultrasounds, or Ryder, who was already working on the nursery, or even Brad, who about threw up every time he changed a diaper, but he did it anyways because he loved Elliott and Jenna. I couldn’t even trust Leland to watch her while I took a shower when she was a baby.
While I tried to compose myself to go in and face my daughter, a light switched on in the main house. I looked up to find Miles standing at the window in the great room looking out, drinking what was probably tea. He had an entire cupboard dedicated to it. Before I could look away, he caught me glancing up and wiping the tears from my cheeks. He cocked his head before he raised his hand and waved.
I ran inside. I didn’t want him to notice me. I certainly didn’t want to notice him.
~*~
The men in my life, past and present, were doing a good job of proving to me why I had sworn them off. Leland started my day off with a text. I’ll be there in two weeks. I expect to see Chloe.
I expected a lot of things from him too, but not once had he delivered. And the thought of having to see him made me unable to eat breakfast. I wasn’t even sure how or if I should tell Chloe about the possibility. Not only did I think there was a high probability of him flaking out, but Chloe truly didn’t want to see him. She felt his abandonment acutely. Each and every broken promise of his shredded her tender heart. I needed to talk to my parents and get their advice. But first I had to get Henry up and then get Chloe to school.
Henry was already beginning to stir when I walked into his room. I loved sleepy little ones. And that smile of his when he saw me had me forgetting about Leland for a moment. I cuddled him for as long as he would let me. It soothed my heart.
After I got Henry dressed, he zipped down the hall, hoping for another dance party with his uncle. This time to Elton John’s “Rocket Man.” I was beginning to see a pattern here—1970s British rockers. Miles thankfully fulfilled Henry’s wish and they danced around together. I hoped Miles would see how much Henry craved his attention, but like yesterday, as soon as the song was over, Miles set him down and went from fun uncle to brooding writer.
I took Henry into my own arms, trying to bite my tongue. Get the lay of the land first, I heard my dad say. It had only been a few days, I reminded myself. It also reminded me of some of the ideas I had come up with for his social media pages. I had stayed up late into the night, unable to sleep after my phone call with Leland, looking up different celebrities to get some ideas. I also read several marketing blogs about branding.
“Would you be amenable to me filming you each morning during your ritual dance and posting it on social media? I think it would be the kind of engaging content your publisher is hoping for. I also have some ideas for some contests we can run.”
Miles gave it some thought. “Brilliant. We’ll start tomorrow. Have a nice day,” he dismissed me and Henry.
Yep, I still didn’t like it.
I didn’t like it even more that every day was the same thing. The only difference was the rest of the week, I used my phone to capture his ritual dance with Henry. It didn’t matter which band, whether it was The Kinks or Queen he sang and danced along to, his fans were eating it up. The shares, comments, and reposts were through the roof. It was a tossup who people found more adorable, Miles or Henry.