Total pages in book: 59
Estimated words: 57908 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 290(@200wpm)___ 232(@250wpm)___ 193(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57908 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 290(@200wpm)___ 232(@250wpm)___ 193(@300wpm)
I risked putting my hand on his shoulder and squeezing it. “They lied.”
He looked up. “Sorry,” he whispered.
“How about we start over? No attitude this time.”
He sniffled, wiping his nose on his shirt sleeve. I didn’t give him shit about it. “I really get a room?”
“Yep.”
“Is Cherry mad at me?”
“No, but you owe her an apology. She isn’t your mother, Josh, but she is my fiancée and will be my wife. She is part of my life, and you need to treat her with respect.”
“Okay.” He paused. “Thanks for not yelling.”
I shut my eyes. “I don’t want to yell at you, Josh. And you made me angry this morning, but I think talking is better than yelling. And it’s better than sulking.”
Cherry walked in, looking between us. “What’s going on?”
Josh hurried over, surprising us both when he threw his arms around her. “Sorry, Cherry. I was being a pain earlier.”
She met my eyes as she hugged him. “We all have bad days, Josh.”
“I’ll do better.”
She drew back and cupped his face. “You be Josh. We already think that is pretty awesome.”
He nodded, and I heard his sniffle. Cherry hugged him again, letting him calm down a little.
“What do you think of your room?”
“It’ll be great.”
“What color do you want?”
“Blue. Can it be like a bright blue?”
“Let’s go look at swatches,” she said with a grin.
He smiled back, his good humor restored. “Okay.”
I watched them leave, grateful we had gotten past the surliness, but wondering what other issues we would face.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Dom
Sunday, I followed him to the door, waiting until Roxanne answered. The rest of the visit had gone well, with no more outbursts. Josh was friendly and helped clean up after dinner. This morning, it had been fun to share breakfast with him. To see him when he first woke up. It reminded me of when he was young, his hair tousled, a sleepy smile on his face as he said good morning. The way he leaned into Cherry as she hugged him, as if seeking her embrace. It made my heart swell with hope for the future.
I was pleased when Josh high-fived me, then hugged me before he went inside. It was fast, and he was gone before I could return the gesture, but it was huge. Roxanne turned to go, but I halted her. “Wait.”
Roxanne stared at me balefully. “What?”
“We need to talk.”
She stepped out, her shoulders back, ready for a fight. “What?”
“Stop filling his head with lies. I never walked away, and I’m not walking away this time. I want him in my life. You trying to sabotage it only makes you look bad. And your boyfriend. Tell him to stop raising his voice to Josh. He hates it.”
She laughed. “You are so typical. You have no right to tell me how to raise my son. I—”
“Our son. Josh is our son, so it gives me the right.”
“You think it’s easy? Raising him?” She stepped closer. “What are your plans, Dominic? Play dad every weekend, holidays, and leave me with the rest? Make me the scapegoat for the weeks and responsible for everything else? Getting him to school, meeting with teachers, dressing and feeding him? And you get to be the fun one, having sleepovers and eating out?”
“I want him more than weekends.”
She scoffed. “And how is that going to work? You live an hour away. You gonna drive him here to school every day? Pick him up? Take him to appointments? He isn’t going to be living half time with you and half time with me and going to two schools, having two different lives. Have you thought about that?”
I had to admit, I hadn’t thought that far ahead. I studied her, noting she looked tired. Not tired as in she didn’t sleep well the night before, but weary. I took a deep breath and spoke calmly.
“Are you okay, Roxanne?”
My question surprised her, but she snapped back. “I’m fine.”
“Surely we can come to a compromise where Josh gets the best of both of us, Roxanne. If we put him first and work together—”
She rolled her eyes and cut me off. “I’m not interested in playing friends with you. And I’m not moving to help you. You want him more? You change your life and prove how important he is.”
Then she walked in and slammed the door.
Leaving me confused, worried, and upset.
With one huge question on my mind.
How was I going to do this?
CHERRY
Dom was quiet when he got back from dropping off Josh. I’d expected him to be talkative and want to discuss how the weekend went. Instead, he stared out the window, paced the floor, and didn’t say much except Josh was home safely.
“Roxanne looked really tired,” he mused. “I texted Josh and told him to be nice to her.”
“That was kind.”
He shrugged. “Not sure why I did that.”