AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The light snark rolls right off his back. He’s deliriously happy these days, to the point of being nauseating. He orders his drink and pulls over a coaster to fidget with.
“She’s having Cami over. I offered to watch Cedric to give the girls some relaxing time alone, but Cami nearly took my head off at the suggestion, so I thought I’d get out of Dodge.”
Cedric is Nathan and Kiersten’s infant son.
“Probably a good idea. You don’t ever get between a uterus and a baby.”
“No shit.” He snorts and nods to Dane in thanks before picking up his drink.
“When are you two moving again? I’m available with the Jeep at any time, though if it’s a Saturday, I’ll need to bring Tommy along.” The reminder of seeing Tommy is both sour and sweet. Six days is a long fucking time to go without seeing my own flesh and blood, but I’m counting the minutes until he’s back under my care.
“Kiersten has to be out of her house next weekend. Then we close on mine in another month. We got lucky. It lines up perfectly with closing on our new house, so we won’t be homeless for a few days.”
A quick swallow of my drink disguises the lance of pain. I don’t consider myself to be homeless. More like I’m on a perpetual camping trip like the summer I spent with my nomadic uncle.
“Call me when you need help. I’m happy to make trips.”
He takes a swig of his own drink. “What about you? Made any decisions on selling that monster house of yours? I’m not usually one to condone spite, but in this case…” He trails off. Always the nice guy. Can’t even properly criticize my whore of an ex-wife.
The truth gets tangled in a bramble of lies. What my friends don’t know can’t hurt me. I give a noncommittal shrug.
“No decisions yet.”
As if I had the power to make any right now. They still think we’re sleeping on separate floors of the house with a co-parenting schedule like we did during the beginning of our separation. Once I left for good, Nora used the opportunity to let me see my son as little as possible.
He spears a glance around the room. “You have half the beds in town open to keep you warm. I can see why it’s not at the top of your priorities.”
I shoot him a glare. “There are worse problems to have.” Like getting the damn thing out of Nora’s clutches.
“I’m just saying. Our situations are completely different, but I know what it’s like to have a plan laid out for life and have it swept out from under you.”
Nathan’s wife died from cancer a few years back. A couple of years and knocking up his best friend convinced him to be open to love again. Once that gate opened, he hasn’t looked back for a second. Long gone are the shadows beneath his eyes from guild-ridden sleepless nights of wondering if he’s betrayed his dead wife.
I don’t see myself taking that path. Sure, I had my plan. I knew what I wanted in life and was well on my way to ticking each box. And then the tidal wave of infidelity swept it away and left nothing but destruction in its wake.
There’s a different type of devastation that comes from disloyalty. A person can mourn death. It’s a lot harder to mourn betrayal when you’re forced to confront that person several times a month.
“I’ve got it as good as it gets. Tommy and me, we’re a team. And when he’s with his mom, I find myself a companion. It keeps things clean.”
Nathan shakes his head.
“I mean it.” I toss back the dregs. “Can already picture Nora getting wind of me with a girlfriend. If I thought the claws were out before…” The thunk of glass against wood precedes the scrape of my stool legs as I stand. A wave of my hand signals Dane to fill another glass. “Be right back.”
I retreat for a quick piss and a regroup. Lying to my best friend’s face makes me feel like shit. But I’m not ready to come clean about the state of my life in the wake of Hurricane Nora.
They’ll want to help, no doubt about that. But I’m just not the type of guy to request assistance. I have money. I help my friends. I lend a hand with heavy lifting, and I babysit their little kids because I miss my own so much it’s a constant physical ache. And I walk strangers' dogs because they’re tempting and sassy, and the challenge felt like a middle school dare I couldn’t refuse.
Leaning over the porcelain sink, hands braced on either side, I shake my head and stare at my reflection. Can’t have rogue thoughts like that darting about. The last time I had a school crush was Nora, and look where that got me?
The muffled music grows louder as I open the door. The weight of suggestive stares feels physical as I shuffle my way back to my friend at the bar. Familiar faces pass by. The curl of my lip into a smirk is automatic, but the subtle shake of my head is forced.
For the first time in a long while, I’m burned out.
I don’t want to play cat and mouse.
Sex sounds like a goddamn chore.
“Find who you’re looking for?” Nathan’s question has me yanking my chin into my chest.
