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I turned back. “What won’t stop?”
“The press. The interest. I don’t get it either, but I watched it happen for years in the UK. There’s something about him. Maybe he’s rotten to the core, but that doesn’t curb people’s fascination.”
Disgust—or maybe envy—practically dripped off his vowels. I didn’t have to ask to whom he was referring.
“Xavier has a lot of charisma,” I agreed. “But in the UK, it’s because he’s the Duke of Kendal and all that. Americans don’t care about that sort of thing the way the British do. All the fuss will die down, they’ll get bored with my mom, and things will go back to normal.”
“Is it worth it, though? Especially now that’s he’s out of your life?” Adam pressed.
“Who said he was out of my life? He’s the father of my children and has every right to be a part of whatever I’m going to do next. Whereas you, unfortunately, donot. Why do I have to keep reminding you of this?”
“I saw the articles in thePost,” Adam rattled on. “Everyone has. He’s already cost you your freedom, your youth, and now your job, Frankie. How much more are you going to let him take, huh? When are you going to realize the only person Xavier Parker looks out for is himself and no one else?”
My shoulders slumped the more he spoke. The box seemed so heavy. Suddenly, the world seemed so heavy.
“Just let me go, Adam,” I said. “I understand your concerns, but I can deal with all of this myself.”
Just like I always had.
He watched me for a long moment, then eventually nodded and took a step back.
“I have to go,” I said. “I’m meeting Xavier at Sofia’s school, and then I have to get home.”To sort out the rest of my life.
“I get it.” Adam nodded, brown eyes begging me to listen. “If you ever need anyone, just know I’m here for you. Always. I meant what I said. Don’t forget it.”
What he’d said was that he loved me.
To some, it might have felt good. Warped, maybe, but this was a warped, lonely world. So maybe it should have been nice to know that someone else in it still felt that way about me, even if it was someone like him.
But for some reason, it just made the stone in my stomach sink even lower.
I wished I could forget Adam’s revelations. I wished they had never happened at all.
* * *
I trudgedthe five blocks or so up to Sofia’s school like my feet were made of lead. My arms felt like rubber. That heaviness hadn’t left my shoulders—in fact, it had worsened the farther I got from the school.
“Ces.”
Xavier stepped out of his black Audi, looking svelte and casual in a pair of jeans and yet another hoodie.
“Hey,” I said. “What are you doing here? I thought you weren’t arriving until tonight.”
“Got in early. Thought I’d meet you for pickup.”
I swallowed as a million questions buzzed through my mind.
Was he starting that restaurant for real, or was it just an excuse to see us?
Was he here for her or for me?
Why did I want to know at all?
“Can I put these in the trunk?” I asked at last, holding up the cardboard box.
Xavier’s quick blue gaze flickered over my belongings, but before he could answer, the door to the preschool unlocked, and they opened the top half to start welcoming parents.
“Sure,” he said, then signaled to his driver to open the trunk while I turned to sign Sofia out of school.
