Shelly
“Mommy, it’s time to get up. We’re going to the park today!” Ryker shouts as he shakes me.
I can’t help but laugh. “Okay, buddy. Mommy is getting up.” I climb out of bed to find my sister sitting at the kitchen table with her breakfast and an empty plate that I assume is Ryker’s. “Did you eat, buddy?”
“Yeah, Auntie made me an egg sandwich.”
“All right, then go get dressed while Mommy gets ready to go.” He skips off to his room. I need to pack us some snacks, but first I need coffee and something to eat.
“I already made you an egg sandwich, it’s in the microwave,” Brea calls out.
“Thanks, sis.” I open the microwave, grab my egg sandwich, and take a seat at the table with my coffee.
“How was work?” Brea asks as I’m digging in. I’m starving.
I nod as I chew. “It was good. Mikey came in, of course.”
“What do you mean? I thought he always worked there.”
I shake my head. “He bounces between the two clubs, but I know he only came in last night because he wanted to see me. He tried to talk to me, but I walked away, so in his usual stubborn way he called me to his office at the end of my shift.”
She chuckles. “He’s your boss.”
“Yeah, well, I wanted to tell my boss to fuck off, but I couldn’t because I’m in love with him.” A huge grin spreads across my face. “I told him to call me and we’ll make plans for dinner this week.”
She grins and shakes her head. “I knew you wouldn’t be able to stay away long.”
“Yeah, well, when you’ve gone three years without getting any and then you get to have Mikey…it’s hard to stay away.” She bursts into laughter and I join her. It feels good to laugh after spending a week upset. I need to set some ground rules with him and get my relationship back on track because it’s not just the sex I miss. I miss my man.
“Go get ready before your son starts getting antsy. I’ll pack you guys a cooler.”
I grab our plates from the table. “Thanks, sis.” I walk into the kitchen, load our dishes into the dishwasher, and head to the shower.
It takes me thirty minutes to get ready, and it’s a good thing, because my son is bouncing up and down, excited to get out of the house. I grab my phone to text Slade. I need to make sure he’s ready. They’re following us to the park and standing at a distance. I told him I didn’t want him to freak out Ryker or to be worried, so they needed to stay out of sight. The last thing I need is to confuse him, not to mention I want some time with my son. A minute later I see the text saying that they are good to go. “Ryker, we’re ready to go, buddy.” I grab the small cooler bag and his bag of toys in one hand, and grab his hand with my other before proceeding downstairs. I find Slade parked right next to me with Cole in the passenger seat. He never gets out of the car, but gives me a nod letting me know he sees me. He sits watching as I get Ryker settled and put our stuff in the back, so far so good.
When we pull up to the park, I purposely park where Slade can park near me. He’s so excited he has his seatbelt undone before I’m even out of the car. “Ryker, I need you to take the toy bag, buddy.”
“Okay, Mommy.” He takes the bag from me while I grab the cooler and the blanket from the trunk.” Taking Ryker’s hand, we walk into the park, looking for a place to set up. It’s a beautiful day, the sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and there’s a slight crisp breeze in the air.
“Mommy, can we set up by the swings?” He points with his little finger.
“Sure.” It actually works out nice. There’s a picnic table there. We can line the bench with the blanket since they’re usually so dirty anyway, and we’ll have it if we decide to move. I set up our stuff and tell Ryker he can go swing. I scan the park to see if I can spot Slade or Cole, but they are nowhere to be found and it’s making me edgy. I turn my eyes back to my son, nervous that we’re alone, but my phone chirps from my purse.
Slade: Relax, we see you.
Shelly: Thank you.
I let out a slow, deep breath and walk over to the swing to push Ryker. He knows how to swing himself, but it’s nice to be with him. No one is around us and he has the set to himself. After a few minutes he asks me to stop him so we can play with his ball. We go to the other side of our table and begin kicking it around. He looks like he’s deep in thought though. “What’s wrong, Ryker?” He shrugs. “Talk to me, buddy.”
“How come we haven’t seen Mikey?” He sounds so sad and it melts my heart. In my selfishness I hadn’t realized how much Mikey has come to mean to him.
“Why don’t we go sit and talk?” I take his hand, leading him back to the table.
He takes the seat next to me on the blanket. “Don’t you still like Mikey?”
“I do, buddy, and I’ll tell you what…Mikey likes us very much, but sometimes people make mistakes. Mikey made a mistake and it hurt Mommy’s feelings, and just now I realized that I made a mistake too.”
“You did?”
“Yeah, I was upset with Mikey, and instead of fixing it, I ignored him and it’s clearly upset you. I didn’t think about how this would affect you and I’m sorry.”
“Does that mean we’ll see Mikey again?”
I can’t help but chuckle. “You know, I promised him just last night that we would get together for dinner this week. Would you like that?” He smiles and nods his head.
“I wish Mikey could be my daddy,” he says, sounding so sad. He wraps his arms around me and my eyes begin to well. “I know, buddy, and I’m also sorry your dad isn’t here for you.”
“But I am.” A man approaches us. I can’t believe he’s standing in front of us.
“Eli, what are you doing here?”
“Come on. You knew I was out of jail. You have an entourage following you around.” He looks so angry, and that’s when I realize Ryker is squeezing me tightly. His little body is trembling—he knows who this man is.
“What do you want?”
“To see my son.”
“No. Absolutely not.”
“You can’t keep him from me,” he shouts, losing control of his temper.
Both Slade and Cole come running over. “I think it’s time you leave.” Cole steps up to him while Slade stands by Ryker and I.
“You can’t make me leave the park,” he demands. “This is public property and I have a right to be here.”
“No, but the lady asked you to leave her alone, and she has a right to do that. You need to go.” His fists ball at his sides.
“And I have a right to see my son,” he shouts in Cole’s face. I can see Cole is really starting to get angry.
“You gave up that right the second you put your hands on that kid, you piece of shit. Now you have two choices. You can leave, or I can call the police and tell them you’re harassing citizens in the park,” Cole threatens.
I can see he wants to say more, but he gains some control first. “Fine, I’ll go, but this isn’t over. I’m fighting for visitation with my son. Mark my words, Shelly, I will see him one way or another.”
Cole steps even closer. “Was that a threat?” He looks him dead in the eye.
“No, a fucking promise.” He gives me one last evil look and walks away.
“We need to get you two out of here,” Slade says, but Ryker is frozen in his seat. He won’t let go of me.
“Ryker, look at Mommy.” Still he doesn’t move. I close my eyes and let out a deep breath. Slade has a look of concern etched on his face. I hold up my finger, telling him one moment, and then I lean down and whisper into his ear, “You can count on me like one, two, three…” I continue singing our little song in a whisper. He finally looks up at me. “I will not let him hurt you again. I know you’re scared, but I need you to let go of me so we can go home.” He nods and climbs into my arms for me to carry him. He is extremely shaken up, as am I.
“Shelly, I’m going to drive your car back. Slade will drive you and Ryker in the SUV.” I agree, since I don’t think I can drive safely at this point. As soon as we’re on the road, I call Mikey.
“Hey, beautiful,” he answers, excited to hear from me.
“He was at the park.” My voice is shaken.
“Fuck, where are you now?” he growls.
“Please, Mikey, remember what I told you.”
I hear him take a deep calming breath. “I’m sorry. Where are you?” This time his voice is much calmer.
“I’m in Slade’s SUV with Ryker. We’re on our way home, but he’s pretty shaken up.” I’m trying to sound strong, but I am failing miserably.
“I’m on my way, baby.” He cuts the call as we’re pulling up to the apartment.
Slade walks Ryker and I upstairs, helping us carry our stuff. His face is buried in my shoulder and he won’t let go of me. Brea comes running into the dining room and I can see she’s concerned, realizing we’re home early. “What’s going on?” Brea asks.
“Eli was at the park. He came up to us and it scared Ryker.”
Her eyes go wide. “Come here, buddy. Let Auntie hold you.” He finally lets go of me but does the same thing to Brea. He squeezes her and buries his face in her neck.
As soon as Brea walks away with Ryker I let out a deep breath. “Holy shit, I wasn’t prepared for that at all,” I say to Slade.
“I’m sure you weren’t. What did Mikey say?” He walks me over to the table and pulls out a chair for me.
“He’s on his way here.” No sooner do I say the words he knocks on the door.
“It’s Mikey,” we hear him shout. Slade checks the peep hole and then opens the door. He comes rushing in and wraps me in a hug. “Are you all right?” I nod my head, and to my surprise Ryker comes running into the room.
“Mikey!” he shouts just before he leaps into his arms.
“Hey, little man.” Ryker squeezes him tight.
“Please don’t let him hurt me,” Ryker says through tears. I can no longer hold back, my emotions come pouring out. Mikey holds the both of us as we cry.
“Ryker, I love you and your mom so much. There’s no way I’m letting him anywhere near you, okay?” He nods his head, but he’s still shaking and crying. When I pull out of Mikey’s arms, my sister is standing there leaning against the entryway, waiting to see what will happen next.
“I love you too, Mikey,” he says through sniffles.
“Ryker, can you go sit with Auntie Brea while I talk to Mikey?” He nods his agreement and then runs back to his aunt.
Mikey wraps me in a hug. “I’m sorry for pushing you away, Mikey.”
“Shh, it’s my fault. I should have realized you were strong enough to handle this.” He looks down into my eyes. “Will you please come stay at my place? I think it’s much safer than here.” I nod my head. “Can Brea stay with Eric? I don’t want her here alone.”
“I’m sure she can.”
I almost forgot Slade was with us until he says, “I’ll go sit with him while you guys iron things out with Brea.” He walks out of the room and a second later Brea comes in.
“What’s the plan?” she asks.
“Can you stay with Eric?” Mikey asks her.
“Of course.” She says like it’s no big deal.
“Good, you girls go pack. I’m going to help Ryker get his stuff together and we’ll take it one day at a time.” We both agree.