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She’d almost broken into a dead run when the back door opened and there he was. That cute little face. Smiling as he ate... something. “Nathan!”
“Hi, Mom.”
That’s all he got out. She dropped to her knees and grabbedhim. He’d gotten taller, so he actually leaned over her, but she didn’t care. She wrapped him up in a smothering, your-mom-needs-a-moment-to-calm-her-paralyzing-fear hug.
He made a squeaking sound. The whining started a second later. “That’s kind of tight.”
“Sorry.” She wanted to bundle him up and run, but she forced a smile and eased up a bit on the hold enough to touch his hair. “I missed you.”
He made a you’re-kidding face. “I was at school.”
“There you two are,” Josh said as he walked in from the backyard without his suit jacket, which explained what was sitting on the counter. He carried his cell and wore a carefree look that saidno big deal.
“Josh.” Her voice shook. She wanted to beat the shit out of him. Pummel him and keep doing it. Only her refusal to lose it in front of Nathan saved Josh.
She stood up but continued to hold on to Nathan. He squirmed and chewed but generally tolerated her.
Nathan threw his head back and looked up. “Uncle Josh picked me up today.”
“I heard.” The shake grew more pronounced, but Nathan didn’t seem to notice.
The smirk on Josh’s face suggested he did.
One of the cats brushed against her leg. She didn’t look down to see which one. No way was she breaking eye contact with Josh. “Nathan, have you fed Fuzz and Buzz?”
“The second he got home.” Josh winked at Nathan. “He’s very responsible.”
“Right.” And her temper rumbled and fought, waiting to burst out. “You can go back outside and play.”
“Okay,” Nathan said in his usual cheerful voice. “You coming, Uncle Josh?”
She answered for him. “He’ll be out in a few minutes.”
Nathan didn’t wait for any more adult talk or questions. He leaned down to pet the cats then escaped into the backyard again.
Elisa stood there, watching him go. She started a mental countdown, trying not to blow up at Josh. He wanted a reaction. The gaslighting and pushing suggested he craved the opportunity to see her crumble. Every move he made was carefully planned and calculated to throw her off balance.
She would not give him the satisfaction of losing it. Of letting him be the stable one. Nathan deserved better.Shedeserved better.
“Why did you show up at Nathan’s school today?” She asked mostly to see what ridiculous excuse he’d offer.
He had the nerve to frown at her. “You asked me to.”
More lying. More gaslighting. “I didn’t.”
He tapped on his phone and then turned it toward her. “Your text.”
She took his cell and read the message.I have a problem at a client’s office. Could you pick up Nathan? If not, I’ll call Harris.
She’d never seen that. She wouldn’t send that. Months ago when life was different and she viewed Josh as a brother, yes, but not now. She didn’t trust him to feed Fuzz and Buzz on time, let alone to be with Nathan for hours without her.
She didn’t think he’d ever hurt Nathan, but she couldn’ttake the risk. She had zero trust. Not in herself or in others right now. And if she was right, he’d killed before. At the very least, he could easily bad-mouth her or do something to make Nathan angry with her. She refused to let Josh unleash that kind of destruction in her life.
“How did you do it?” she asked, knowing she sounded paranoid. But he knew the truth about that text. “Let me see the phone number attached to that text. Is it really mine or did you just put my name on someone else’s number?”
He walked around the kitchen island to the sink and washed his hands. “What are you talking about?”
She guessed she was right. “I didn’t send that.”
