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“Daddy!” Kate yells, and I look down just in time to see her wrap her arms around his waist and hug him. Mia is close behind her, but her eyes are on Mike.
“This isn’t the time or place,” she tells him, her face more serious than I’ve ever seen it.
He shakes his head at her. “I was just served these… asinine papers at work. If I can be interrupted for such ridiculousness, then so can she,” he sneers, turning his eyes on me.
Mia takes Kate’s hand. “Work or not, you shouldn’t be saying any of it in front of your daughter,” she hisses, and he at least has the decency to look chastised as he flashes apologetic eyes Kate’s way before Mia pulls her back to their table.
His nostrils flare as his eyes narrow. “I’m aware of what the papers are. But what were you thinking, asking for all the things in them? And how the hell did you even come up with the money to file, when you can’t even afford to pay your bills with your sister’s help?”
Did I really used to think him handsome? Because right now, I hate the sight of his fucking face.
“I loaned it to her,” comes a voice that sends a chill up my spine it’s so deep and icy. And then Winston is there beside me, his hulking frame towering over Mike as he crosses his thick arms over his bulging chest. He’s intimidating as fuck, and even in this fucked up situation, I can’t help but to almost whimper at the sexy and supremely alpha image he makes. “Didn’t think a lady should be forced to stay in a relationship she clearly didn’t want to be in anymore with no way out of it.”
Mike visibly swallows then stands up straighter, attempting to puff out his narrow chest hidden behind his button-up shirt and blazer. “Well then how about you also pay for all the bullshit she’s asking for? Because I’m not going to.”
If looks could kill and Mike was a cat, Winston would’ve just taken all nine of his lives with the murderous glare he sends his way. He moves to take a step toward Mike, and before I can even think to stop him, a huge, middle-aged, fiercely good-looking man steps between them, facing Winston as he puts a hand on his shoulder.
“Hey, bud!” the man says in his rumbly but friendly voice. “Haven’t seen you in a while. Why don’t we go catch up outside so we don’t disturb anyone’s dinner?” He steps out from between Winston and Mike and turns his eyes toward my ex in warning. He leaves absolutely zero room for argument, and Mike nods and turns on his heel with a roll of his eyes.
The man gestures for Winston and me to go ahead of him, and I see him then lift his chin at the table where Talon’s family is eating dinner. Another, younger, man stands and follows all of us out.
“That’s Asher, Talon’s uncle, and his brother Bax,” Winston murmurs, and I feel his hand on my lower back. Between knowing this new information and the feel of his palm seeping his nearness into me, I’m somehow comforted and calmed even in this nerve-wracking situation.
“Now then, is there a problem?” Asher asks Mike as we all move to the waiting area away from the door, Asher and Bax on one side of me, Winston on the other, and my ex faced off in front of us. I feel like I’m in the land of giants, and these three huge guys have deemed themselves my personal bodyguards.
I don’t hate it. Not one bit. I’ve never had anyone in my corner against Mike besides my sister. There was never anything I could do, being as I moved down here to Tennessee where he was from, where his family lived, where his friends were. I never had anyone on my side, and now, at least in this moment, I feel like I have a whole army.
“Yes, there’s a problem. I was served divorce papers today at work,” Mike huffs, holding up the manila folder and looking all sorts of flustered. I’ve never seen him this way before, and I take a mental snapshot to appreciate later.
Asher looks at me. “You served him with divorce papers?” he asks for clarity, no accusatory inflection in his voice.
“Yes, we’ve been separated for more than half a year. He has his own place and a new girlfriend I learned about from our daughter. So yes, I served him with divorce papers after he said it was up to me to do it, since he refused to take care of it,” I explain to Asher, even though my eyes turned to Mike and narrowed.
“I see. Well, what seems to be the issue then? You left it up to her to take care of it”—he gestures toward the folder gripped tightly in Mike’s hand—“and she took care of it.”
