“Ha! I knew it. God, you’re so smitten. It’s adorable.” She beamed. “Listen, I know it didn’t quite go as planned, but I didn’t come out of malicious intent. You know that. I thought it would be nice for you to take a break for a bit. I know y’all haven’t had any true alone time since you came down to Texas. Figured I could watch over Charlie while you go to get your girl.”
“I had my girl. She was already here. Your plan clearly had flaws.”
Liv rolled her eyes and sighed dramatically. “Yes, well, I see that now, Captain Obvious. But back when I concocted it, I really thought it was brilliant.”
“You would,” I said, stuffing my mouth and downing the sugary donut with the black coffee. It was hot as shit, but I hardly flinched.
“Come on,” Liv said, tugging me toward the table. With a sigh, I followed her, dropping my ass in the seat across from my daughter. Charlie glanced at me and the box before nudging it over.
Fine. I guess another wouldn’t hurt since I’m probably about to be single.
“Is Miss Cleo coming back?” Charlie asked, looking between Liv and me.
“Of course, she will,” Liv said. “She just had to get some clean clothes.”
Clean clothes?I mouthed, and Liv shrugged.
Charlie’s brows furrowed. “But why can’t she wear more of Daddy’s like she was earlier?”
I nearly spat out my coffee all over the table, but I choked it down instead.
“You’d be much more comfortable in your own clothes oversomeone else’s, right?” Liv asked, and Charlie nodded. “Right. Miss Cleo feels the same.”
Seemingly satisfied with the answer, Charlie reached for a kolache and took a big bite. I followed suit, grabbing a spicy one for me and a regular for Liv. We were silent for a minute, until I turned to her. “You’re really okay with all of this?”
“Were the signed divorce papers not clear enough?” she snorted. “Yes, dummy. I’m very okay with it. I know you wouldn’t bring anyone into our lives that would hurt our daughter. I trust your judgement. Plus, I’ve literally heard about her since the night she dumped your ass. Believe me when I tell you I’m not worried about Cleo’s character for even a moment. And besides, Charlie loves her.”
Our daughter beamed. “I do. Miss Cleo is great.”
“See? She’s great. I’m great. You’re really a very lucky man, Mr. Wilde.”
“You’re such a smartass,” I growled, though I couldn’t help my smile.
Liv was right. I was fucking lucky. I was sitting here, surrounded by love, by two of the most important people in my life. I was blessed to not only have a daughter who lit up my world, but an amazing ex, who was both the mother of my child and my best friend. And finally, I had gotten Cleo Hayes back—the love of my fucking life.
cleo
. . .
I drove home in silence,letting only the creaking of the seat and rumble of the diesel engine fill the cab as I drove over the rough gravel road. Whatever happened back there wasn’t my finest moment; I probably should have blasted something to drown out the overwhelming noise in my head, but for the first time in ages, I didn’t want to.
Meeting Grady’s ex-wife was inevitable. It was going to happen sooner rather than later. They had a kid, for crying out loud. So, why was I surprised when she showed up at Grady’s door with a smile, arms laden with breakfast and coffee? Sure, it’d been unannounced, but she shouldn’t need to make an announcement to visit her family.
After all, I was the one who was an outsider.
Except, I wasn’t really, was I? I loved him first. He was mine before he was ever hers. Not that it was a competition. The thought was stupid, and I didn’t really feel that way. If anything, I was glad he wasn’t alone for the half of his life I wasn’t a part of. I was grateful for the happiness he experienced, the success he’d achieved, and the life he’d built.
If it hadn’t been for Liv and their relationship, regardless of what forces brought them together, they wouldn’t have Charlie.
Iwouldn’t have Charlie.
Regardless of my relatively logical reasoning, for some reason, when I saw her standing there looking like a freaking supermodel, I panicked. My fight or flight response kicked in, and I was all flight. Suddenly, my clothes had felt too tight, and my skin itched with the need to get out of there. It was selfish, but I panicked. I just needed a moment to compose myself, and I’d be fine. I did hope Grady realized I wasn’t running away, even though I gave him no indication otherwise.
As I pulled up to the house, I put the truck in park and let my head fall against the steering wheel.God, Cleo. How do you have such a talent for complicating things?It wasn’t like I meant to, but sometimes I struggled to properly articulate what was going on in my head, which made matters worse. The only choice I had left was to retreat.
Rachel called it turtling. I called it spiraling.
The rumble of the engine centered me, and after a few minutes, I felt strong enough to step outside. I was sure either one or both of my parents would be waiting to jump on me the moment I walked through the door. And Lennox wouldn’t be far behind. Maybe I could just take a shower, grab some fresh clothes, and drive back into town before anyone noticed I was here.
