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“Much.” With a swallow and a severe clearing of my throat, I grab my purse and follow him to his truck. “I don’t understand why I can’t drive myself.”
“I want to make sure you show up.”
“A police escort of my very own. What did I ever do to deserve this?”
“Got yourself locked up twice.”
“Oh, that’s right. Will I be returning to my residence with a home electronic monitoring device on my ankle?”
“Only if you’re lucky.”
He closes the door behind me, and we drive toward the highway in the direction of Castleton.
I settle into my seat, admiring the neatness of his car. It beats mine, which has Goldfish remnants and fruit snack wrappers thrown about. I even found an old banana peel under the seat last week.
“Your house is nice,” he says.
“My parents’ place. Not exactly living the dream.”
His mouth twists as he looks straight at the road, and his fingers drum on his thigh.
“You want to ask me something,” I state. “Say it.”
The side of his mouth rises at my comment as his head tilts to the side. “Why did your ex get the house?”
“Good question. Well, I didn’t lose it in the divorce, if that’s what you’re wondering. In fact, I won the right to live in the residence, but Tyler couldn’t afford to pay the mortgage and buy something of his own. To keep it, I had to buy Tyler out, which I couldn’t. Even with half a mortgage, the bills were too high for my salary. We were going to sell it and split the profit fifty-fifty, but then what? Tyler would get a condo somewhere in town, and the kids would be sleeping on a couch during their weekend visits. This plan … was my plan. Tyler bought me out of my share of the house, and the kids and I moved in with my dad. This way, the kids still get to live in their childhood home when they’re with their dad, and they’re also living at their grandfather’s house, a home they know and love, with their mom during the week. It’s all familiar and safe. The kids each get to have their own bedroom and get to be around family. Divorce is such a whirlwind of change for kids. I wanted to provide them with as much familiarity as possible.”
“That was very unselfish of you.”
“Not entirely. I demanded the kids live with me on the weekdays. School nights should be spent in the same bed. If it were up to me, they’d never sleep out, but Hunter can’t handle being away from Tyler that long, and Izzy needs a reason to be alone with her dad and bond. She has so much resentment in her young mind.”
“Apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”
“Izzy’s a realist and always thinks so negatively.”
“What kind of girl are you?”
“Ago with the flow and let things happenkind of girl. I’m a wedding designer. I have to believe in unicorns and fairy dust and all that other crap.”
“Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster too?”
“Absolutely.”
He laughs as we listen to the radio while he drives, and he pulls into the parking lot of a strip mall. He points to a hair salon and then gets out of the truck. I lean forward and stare up at the storefront of white stucco and gold metal lettering that readsIllusion Salon and Spa.
My door opens, and I turn to see William has walked around the front and opened my door.
“Did you make me clear my day to get my hair done?”
“Yep.”
I furrow my brow and look up at him. “That’s incredibly presumptuous! A women’s hair is a delicate matter that can only be trusted to a limited few. You can’t just bring her to any Joe Schmoe establishment and expect her to have blind trust. I need a hair goddess, not a hack.”
He takes my hand and escorts me out of the truck. “Last I heard, your hair goddess ran off with your husband, and you’ve been suffering from brassiness since.”
“You had to bring up the brassy.”
“You’re the one who broke into a salon for your hair color card.”
