I stood in front of her, vowing not to leave until she looked at me. She finally did, but her amber eyes were filled with annoyance.
“What do you want?” She raised one eyebrow.
“When are we going to talk about what happened between us?” Okay, I couldn’t take it anymore. I had to know what changed on her end.
“What do you mean?” she asked with deliberate hesitation.
“One minute we’re making love, and the next minute you’re treating me like a beggar on the street,” I said, sitting down.
“That’s the problem right there,” she told me. “I was only having sex.” She narrowed her eyes and tilted her head to the side.
Her words hit me like a transport truck slamming into the side of a concrete building, shattering that amazing union between us.
“Now, can we get back to work?” The look on her face told me I’d better leave, or the next thing she would say would light me on fire.
I stood up slowly. “If that’s the way you want to play it,” I said as I walked to the door, not looking back at her.
When I returned to my office, I sat there in a trance until my phone rang, feeling like I’d lost her forever.
* * *
I was driving homeafter a hellish day when Keith called me in a panic. “What is it? What’s happened?” I asked.
“You have to come over. You have to see what Layla’s done,” he begged.
“I’ll be right over,” I told him. I made a U-turn, making sure there were no cops around first. Luckily, I was only five minutes away from his cute little Bavarian-style house, just outside Spring Valley, California. I always loved visiting him and had considered moving into his neighborhood, but the house I bought had been sold by a couple who were divorcing and needed to unload the property quickly, giving me an incredibly low price. I figured I’d live there for a few years, then flip it and make lots of profit, then I might move across town to this enchanting area.
Keith was waiting for me and opened the door before I could even knock. “Come in, come in,” he said quickly and waved me to follow him into the kitchen.
“Where’s Faith,” I asked, looking around for her.
“She’s napping at the moment. You have to see what Layla had her lawyer send me.” He thrust the letter at me, so I took it.
I read it, then glanced up at him. “Did you get this in the mail today?”
He nodded, a look of defeat shadowing his handsome features. He’s my twin, so of course, I think he’s handsome.
I sat down at the island. “Okay, don’t panic. Just because she is sending you a letter asking for another four nights a month doesn’t mean it will be rewarded to her. You’ll fight it, of course.”
“I don’t have the funds to go through another battle with her,” Keith explained as the color drained out of his face.
“Don’t worry about the cost. I’ll cover that for you. You know the only reason she is doing this, right?”
“She’s trying to take Faith away from me,” Keith guessed.
I shook my head. “No, she’s trying to make it, so she doesn’t have to pay you child support. Right now, you have Faith sixty percent of the time, so she pays you child support. If she gets more nights, then it brings it to fifty-fifty, meaning it becomes joint custody, and she no longer has to pay. We’ll send a letter back stating that it’s not in Faith’s best interest for her to have the four extra Wednesday nights because she needs consistency. Being jostled around back and forth between homes will only confuse her. If it really is about her spending more time with Faith, as it says here in the letter then just state that she is welcome to come and spend time with her on your days, but there will not be an overnight involved. Also, she can’t just send you a letter and expect to change the schedule set out by the courts in your previous case. She has to file a variance and go through the court; therefore, she will incur all the legal charges,” I explained.
“How do you know all of that?” Keith asked.
“A friend of mine went through this last year. Layla is just hoping you don’t know what she’s doing, and because you’re a great dad and only think of Faith’s best interest, she knows you might see this as her trying to spend more time with her daughter. I guarantee you she won’t come and try to spend more time with her because this letter isn’t really about that. She’s playing you. I’d be surprised if she comes and spends more time with Faith on your watch. You’ll see.”
“Okay, I feel better. So, she can’t change anything without first going through the court?” Keith asked.
“Correct. Don’t worry. You’re doing a great job with Faith. She seems well-adjusted and happy. Have faith, pun intended, and believe in yourself more,” I said.
“It’s so hard, Chris. Raising a child on your own is difficult. I’m exhausted and need some time to myself.” I heard the anguish in his voice.
“You don’t have to do it all by yourself. I’m here for you and only a fifteen-minute drive away. If you need sleep, I can take her for a night. If you need to go out and have a good time, I can babysit. You should get back out there and start dating again,” I suggested. “I’ll do anything I can to help you.”