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“Is it okay if I text him?”
She couldn’t bear it if her daughter’s messages went into the ether, only to be ignored.
“He’s probably very busy.”
Willa rolled in her lips. “I already told him about my art project, how I wanted to do dragon fairies. He thinks it’s one of my best ideas.” She pulled her iPad from her Dragon Ball Z backpack, and sure enough there was a text thread with Dex, the most recent message dated this morning. “I didn’t want to hide it from you.”
He was still here, giving her daughter comfort. Despite the pain he was in, he had time for her little girl.
Had she expected too much from him, too soon? Throwing that mom-bomb into the mix, exploding things between them, probably looked like a test. One she had set for him to see if he would respond maturely. Or at the very least, the way Ashley felt he should.
That wasn’t fair on him. She had thought she was helping when in fact she was pushing him to the brink, forcing him to choose between the do-nothing status quo and a future of maturity and commitment—or at least, her version of it. Now she longed for a do-over.
A few minutes later, Bandit was back in his cage and Ashley went to find Willa in the cattery. She was helping Perry with the food bowls, placing them carefully in the cardboard boxes. Most of the cats had left them during the Empty the Shelters event, but the boxes were already filling up with new arrivals.
Mittens was still with them, and above his box was a new sign:
Likes: Lying in the sun
Dislikes: Idiot hockey players
“Where did that come from?” she asked Perry.
“Dex stopped by yesterday to see Bandit and Mittens. He took a few minutes to do some updates.”
He’d chosen a time he knew she wasn’t here. Sparing her the pain, she supposed.
Yet these signs seemed … hopeful. She loved that he was communicating through the animals they both loved, though she’d prefer he spoke to her directly.
Idiot hockey players?
Idiot shelter managers, too.
39
He had to be sure none of the guys would be on site because the last thing he needed was an audience. Kershaw, Foreman, and Grey left first, and then he waited another ten minutes in case one of the guys was still in there stinking up the can. Satisfied there would be no Rebels on hand to witness what came next, he headed across the street just as Ruby came out. She wore a jacket over her uniform and carried a big purse over her shoulder.
Her eyes, the same deep blue as his, went round on seeing him.
“I’m just leaving,” she said quickly.
“Right.”
“So, you can go in there and not worry about me souring the whipped cream on your waffles.”
“I’m here to talk.”
Her eyebrows rose and she took what looked like a juddering breath. For a moment, he expected her to argue, but then he realized she wouldn’t dare. After all, he had all the power, didn’t he? She wanted access and he controlled the gateway to the thing she craved.
A way back to her son.
Ashley and her old lady wisdom. He almost laughed.
“There’s a coffee shop over there.” He thumbed behind him.
“My co-workers might see. I know another place.”
She was worried people would see them together? That was supposed to be his concern.
