Current Day

Great. What is he doing here? After two exchanges and a delayed flight with three very tired kids, the last thing I want to see parked in my driveway is the familiar black Mercedes. I no more get parked when he flies out of the car, red-faced and glaring. I bite back every curse word screaming in my head. If I gambled, my bet would be that damn jaw muscle is twitching in overdrive. So much for the truce we agreed upon at Thanksgiving.

“Okay, kids. Give your daddy a hug and then get inside.” I step onto the concrete and pivot to get Melanie. “What do you want, Carl?”

Melanie picks this moment to wail, blocking his answer. I can’t fault her, though. The poor girl’s exhausted. She fell asleep at the second departure lounge, but with all the jostling she’s been through, she’s anything but rested. Traveling with three kids is way easier with Jax. I must’ve been an idiot attempting this alone.

“Daddy, Daddy, we saw Mickey and Minnie Mouse.” Trenna shoots Carl a toothy grin. Her dishwater blonde curls, matted under the Minnie Mouse headband she refuses to remove, frame her excited face. Jax bought the kids souvenirs our last day at Disney World, and the gifts were a huge hit. Especially with Trenna. I think he made a friend for life.

“You can tell Daddy all about it later. Go inside. I need to talk to Mommy.”

Her face falls, but Melanie’s constant whining prevents any offer of comfort I could give. “Come on, kids.” I juggle Mel in my arms and traipse to the front door. The bastard could offer to get the luggage, but he’s too busy stewing about God only knows what.

“Let me take care of her,” I say when we walk through the door.

“Fine, get the kids settled, then we’ll talk.” He huffs and stalks over to his—no, not his, my—recliner. As he settles into the seat, I study him for a beat. Flashes of the years play through my mind. I always was the one who took care of the kids. I fed them, changed them, played with them, bathed them, and put them to bed. The bastard hasn’t seen them for a week, and he’s more concerned with whatever I did to piss him off than tucking his kids in for the night.

After I get Melanie settled, I check in with the twins. In their beds snuggled under the covers, Trenna still wears her headband.

“Hey, sweet pea. Don’t you think we can take this off now?”

“No, Mickey doesn’t want me to.” She yawns and clutches Mickey Mouse.

“We don’t want the ears to get smashed when you roll over.”

“I be real still.”

I laugh. “Okay, sweetie. Love you bunches. I’ll see you in the morning.” We rub noses, and I kiss her on her forehead, careful not to mess up her ears.

“Mommy?” Tristan calls out.

“Yeah, honey.” I sit next to him, and he watches me pull the covers over his shoulders.

“I really like Jax.” He narrows his eyes like he’s deep in thought. “Is he going to live with us?”

Wow, I didn’t expect that. This is too heavy of a conversation for this time of night. And with his father sitting in my living room, no less. “No, honey. He’s back to playing baseball, so we won’t get to see him too much.”

“But he’s really nice to us.”

“He is.” I bite my lip because it pains me that my kids have gotten close so quickly. We will try to make this work, but it won’t be easy. Girls, like the one who approached me in the bathroom, will always be around to destroy our relationship. Our relationship. It’s so fragile and new. Toss in my trust issues, along with the inability to bear children, and we have one hell of a bumpy ride ahead of us.

“I don’t want him to go away.” His words come out low and rushed, and I almost miss them. I smile down at him and kiss his forehead.

“Me either, but for now, get some sleep.” I hold back a sigh. Parenting sure isn’t easy.

“Carl, it’s been a long day. Can we discuss this tomorrow?” I ask when I enter the living room.

He purses his lips as he studies me for a moment. He releases the foot mechanism, and for a fragment of time, I think he’s going to comply.

“What I have to say won’t take long.”

Of course not. Why would I ever think he’d be considerate? “Then go ahead and say it because I still have things to get done.”

“What, like calling your boyfriend?”

Yes, but he doesn’t need to know that. Jax wanted me to call as soon as I was home safe. I texted him about the delayed flight, so he shouldn’t be worried, yet.

“No, things like bringing in the suitcases. I did just get back from a trip.” I take off toward the kitchen. Surely, I have some wine tucked somewhere. Technically, I won’t be drinking alone since Carl is here, and I have a feeling I’ll need it.

“And that’s what I came to talk about.” The chair creaks and groans followed by heavy-footed steps clanking against the hardwood. Great, he’s following me into the kitchen. “I don’t like my kids jetting off halfway across the country.”

“You knew we were going.” I grab one glass, hoping he gets the hint. “And the kids had a fun time. They’ve never been anywhere before.”

“I don’t want them exposed to the company he keeps.”

“Who? Zach and Lacey?”

“No, the whores that flit around him.”

My back straightens. “One, watch your language. You don’t need to use that word around my kids. And there weren’t any…women flaunting themselves.” Not really. Just the one. And she mainly came after me, not him. I take a sip and head back to the living room.

“They’re my kids, too.” He shakes his head and blows out a breath. “You’re going to stand there, looking me in the eye, and tell me there weren’t any women hitting on him?”

“No, not really. And certainly not around the kids. Why would you even think that?”

“It’s inevitable, Jocelyn. Think about it. He’s a baseball player with a bad reputation. What do you think will happen during spring training? He’s just going to hole himself up in the condo for six weeks? Open your damn eyes. You saw how he was around campus; girls flocked to him. You think that’s going to change now that he’s a professional? Hell, he probably has some leggy blonde on speed dial.”

He has no idea how close his words hit home. I toss my shoulders back and face him straight on. “He’s not you.”

“I’m sorry for ever hurting you. If I could go back and have a redo, I would, but don’t let another person play you.” The sincerity in his voice takes my anger down a few notches, but he can’t erase the hurt he caused.

“You don’t know him. You don’t know anything about him,” I say with less fierceness.

“I know enough that you were devastated after your breakup. Did you forget how he tossed you aside?”

“And what? You think you’re better? There’s a difference between you and him. He never cheated!” And just like that, my anger resurfaces.

“I don’t want to become the couple who constantly fights.” He runs his hand through his hair and releases a frustrated huff. “I thought we’d be more mature than this.”

“We could be if you wouldn’t make sexist remarks to our kids and judge who I date.”

“When the person you date reflects badly on our kids, you leave me no choice.”

“What the hell does that mean?”

“It means the first sign of trouble, and I’ll take you back to court for custody.”

My jaw drops as I openly stare at him. Why is he doing this? I know he’s hated Jax ever since college but threaten me with the kids…he wouldn’t dare.

“You do realize that means you’d have the kids full-time. No pawning them off early.”

“I’m just saying. You should end things before you get hurt.” He storms out the door, and I let him.

He’s wrong. Jax isn’t playing me. What would he gain by playing me? Nothing. That’s it. He can have anyone. Including the leggy blonde. I plop on my couch and pull my phone out. I hover my thumb over Jax’s name. He wanted me to call, but…

I open the messages and type out a quick got-home-safe message. Making an excuse that I’m tired and going to bed, I hit Send and power off the phone. Carl’s wrong. It will work between us. It has to.