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ChapterTwenty-Eight
Weston
To say the night had turned heavy was an understatement. I never talked about my dad, let alone about how I’d acted out, trying to disappoint him so I wouldn’t have to run the vineyards and winery. Revealing the reasons to Emmy about why I’d run away with Andrea had even surprised me.
When Emmy had sat on my lap to hold me, something had shifted inside me. I couldn’t imagine her ever ignoring my kids, or asking me to send them away so I could pay attention to her, or even going out screwing every guy she came across, in some weird way of trying to make me jealous.
I was fucking terrified, but I wanted this woman to be mine. And for more than a few days in Reno.
As I sat thinking about how I could make that happen, my phone rang. It was early for my kids’ bedtime, but no doubt they were excited. I picked up and said, “Hello.”
Avery answered, “Daddy! You’ll never believe what we did today with Uncle Zach! Not only did we find some amazing stuff for our birthday this year, but there was a sign-up for swim lessons! We’re going to swim with the other kids. And maybe Emmy can help me learn a little faster, so I can be the best.”
I smiled. “We’ll see, love. I’m having dinner with Emmy, so I can ask her later.”
Fuck.I hadn’t meant to let that slip.
But my daughter caught it and said, “Then put it on speakerphone! Unless you’re at a restaurant or casino or something?”
“What do you know about casinos?”
“Uncle Zach told us all about them. I want to visit the circus one.”
I nearly muttered that her uncle could take her, then.
“Daddy? Are you still there?”
“Yes, I’m here. And yes, I can put you on speakerphone.” I punched the button and said, “Go ahead.”
Avery asked loudly, “Will you help us make up a story tonight, Emmy? Please?”
Emmy blinked at me, understandably. I explained, “We sometimes make bedtime stories together, each of us taking a turn to add a little bit more to the tale. But we only do it if both Avery and Wyatt agree to participate. Is Wyatt there?”
“I’m here, Dad. And as long as Avery stops hogging the phone, I want to make one tonight.”
I said, “Share with your brother, Avery.”
She sighed dramatically—heaven help me when she became a teenager—and answered, “Fine. So, Emmy, will you help?”
Emmy stood and walked over. Without thinking, I took her hand and pulled her to the bed.
As we sat down, side by side, she said, “I’ll try. I don’t have the best imagination, though.”
Her hand was still in mine, and I squeezed it. “Well, we’ll go Wyatt, Avery, me, and then you. That way you can see how it’s done.”
Emmy smiled. “Okay.”
The image of us doing this with my kids in person flashed in my head, and longing washed over me.
Knowing that Wyatt would need a little prodding to get started, I focused on the phone and the story. “All right, Wyatt. Kick us off.”
After a few beats, he finally spoke. “There once was a pirate family who ruled the seas. Their ship was bigger than anyone else’s, the most powerful, and no one could ever defeat them. But one day…”
I watched Emmy’s face as Avery picked it up. “But one day a fairy queen rode a giant horse on the water, with a fire-breathing dragon on her shoulder. The little dragon flew around the ship and…”
Amusement danced in Emmy’s gaze, and I only wanted to add to it. “The little dragon could breathe fire like a fire blade, and he cut off all the sails, so they fell into the water. Without the wind, the ship couldn’t move, and…”
Emmy bit her lip a second—which I did my best not to notice but fucking failed—and then finally spoke. “The ship couldn’t move and was stranded. But once the fairy queen left them, the little girl and boy called for their friends, the ones who lived under the water. Then…”
