“So, my being single hurts me?”
“Can you meet me at one today, and we can go over everything?”
“I’ll be there.” I hung up the phone and gripped the steering wheel like it was the only thing keeping me from drifting into nothingness. A week ago, I had the perfect little fam
ily. Me and Maisie and yes, Tessa too. Now I was at risk of losing it all.
11
Tessa
When I knocked on Dylan’s door on Monday morning, I was relieved when Maisie answered even though I knew I’d still have to see him. I wanted to act normal like nothing happened, but inside I was an emotional mess, worried that he’d look at me with regret. When he seemed to be indifferent, I felt angry. I knew he didn’t like what had happened, even if he said he enjoyed it. But had he really forgotten it?
Then he told me about Veronica suing for custody and I felt like an idiot. My ego wasn’t important compared to Dylan’s being able to keep Maisie. I could only imagine the worry he felt. Of course, it seemed unlikely Veronica could win considering how little she’d been in Maisie’s life, but I’d been around long enough to know that crazy things could happen. Veronica was famous and that could be used in her favor. Her husband seemed rich, which meant maybe he had connections that could be used in her favor as well.
When Dylan left, I helped Maisie get dressed. She wanted to wear one of the dresses she’d gotten during her visit with her mother. The dress was cute, but I felt like it was betraying Dylan to wear it. Of course, it wasn’t Maisie’s fault. I felt bad for the little girl that was about to become a pawn between her parents.
“What do you want to do today?” I asked her as I finished putting her hair up in a ponytail.
“Can we go swimming?”
“Not in this dress, we can’t.”
“Oh yeah. The park?”
“You might get your dress dirty.” I said, putting the brush and hair accessories away. “How about a movie and lunch?”
“Yay!” She jumped up and down.
I pulled out my phone to see what was playing. Luckily there was a kid’s movie that looked sweet. I ordered tickets on my phone.
“Did you have fun with your mom this weekend?” I toyed over whether or not to ask. It seemed normal to inquire about her weekend, and yet, under the circumstances it could be construed as trying to get information.
“Yes, we went to the zoo. Papa Leo told me about animals.”
“Papa Leo?” Is that really what Veronica told Maisie to call him? That felt like an even bigger betrayal than Maisie wearing a dress.
“That’s her new husband but he’s not my dad. My daddy will always be my daddy.”
“Yes, absolutely. You have the best daddy, Maisie. He loves you so much.”
She grinned. “He gave me ice cream last night.”
I smiled back. “Did he?”
“I wish he could come with me to Mommy’s house. I don’t know why he can’t.”
“He doesn’t want to get in the way of your time with her. You do like being with her, don’t you?” Inwardly I winced as I realized that might not be an appropriate question. Then again, if I was ever asked to testify in court, what Maisie told me could help.
“Yeah, but I like it here better.”
“Sometimes it’s hard to adjust to new things. When you get used to her house, it will be better.”
Maisie shrugged. “I can’t do very much there. Just play in my room unless Mommy takes me to the park.”
“What do you mean?”
“I can’t color or play in the living room because I might mess it up.”