Yoga and dance classes started up, not just for the kids, but also for the older folks who enjoyed line dancing and even ballroom.
Donovan didn’t discriminate against or stick his nose up at any form of exercise. His belief was that any type of movement was good for the body and soul, even if it didn’t fit in with the traditional idea of a gym aesthetic. His great attitude and enthusiasm helped drive the number of people who signed up.
My little business was booming. What made it special was that I could basically do an accountant’s job when it came to tax returns, but on a much smaller scale, which meant lower costs. My client list started to grow to the point where I had a waiting list of people who wanted to work with me.
I had a couple of run-ins with clients, who I met for initial meetings. Our area was very conservative, so when I turned up with my cleavage showing and big mouth, it didn’t go down well with some. But money talked, so apart from the odd one or two religious nuts who regarded me as a scarlet woman, most people got over it pretty quickly, especially since word got around that I was providing my services to the local church, free of charge.
I mean, if it was good enough for Jesus...
The only dark cloud on the horizon was Evan and the looming custody case.
There had been no communication with my ex-husband at all. He hadn’t even attempted to call the kids. I took that as a declaration of war, and it made me nervous.
When we got divorced, it took Atlas’s help for me to get through it with my finances and sanity intact, and now, years later, I needed help again. It made me uncomfortable, but I also wasn’t stupid. If people offered to have my back, my kids were worth me taking them up on it, because the thought of losing them made me want to throw up.
Everybody around me said I shouldn’t worry, but how could I not?
My babies were hurt and upset, which meant I was too. I hated Evan for putting us through this. All it would have taken was for him to have considered their feelings when it came to Rachel.
My children weren’t ammunition to be used in battle to prove a point, and the sooner Evan learned that, the better it would be for everybody. Except in the meantime, he risked damaging his relationship with Gabby and DJ in ways that couldn’t be fixed, and despite his behavior, I didn’t want that for them.
My son vowed he would never have anything to do with his father again. Gabrielle was more forgiving, but she still wasn’t ready to make contact with her dad. I think the pending court case and seeing me so subdued and frankly downright frightened by the prospect of court, made them gravitate more toward Donovan, who remained his usual good-humored self.
The kids themselves seemed fine, almost resigned to the fact that their dad was being an asshole. Though I think the situation was helped by Donovan, who was amazing with both of them and more than filled the hole their dad had left.
DJ and Gabby had come from school full of gossip, and Donovan was totally invested in the epic unrequited love story of Kai and Sunny. My guy made sure he was home for dinner most nights, purely because he wanted the tea, and tonight was no exception.
I stood at the countertop browning ground beef for lasagna while Donovan chopped garlic and herbs.
He glanced at Gabby and asked, “So you’re telling me that Kai walked down the hall with his arm around Sienna Barrington and Sunny saw everything?”
Gabby made a face and held her index finger in the air, wagging it around as she spoke. “Yep!Andhe did it on purpose. He knew Sunny would be there, and he didn’t care. He’s such a dawg; I mean, when we went to the Superstore for school supplies, he was really nice to her. Then, as soon as school starts, he’s up to his crappy tricks again.” She pouted her lips, like she was twenty-five. “Kai Stone’s the biggest player in school.”
Donovan shook his head disbelievingly, glancing at me. “Did you hear that? Kai did that? InSunny’s face?” He pursed his lips, shaking his head as he muttered, “Unbelievable.”
I looked down at my ground beef, my lips twitching.
Donovan passed a piece of carrot he’d just chopped to Imogen, who sat in her highchair, seemingly listening to every word. “You should ask Sunny out, Deej. She looks like a fairy princess.”
I winced.
Shit,that wasn’t good.
Bowie, Sunny’s dad, was a good family friend and one of Atlas’s closest brothers, and my son went through girls in a way that made me sleep with a gun in my nightstand to warn off any angry fathers who came knocking.
The last thing I needed was for DJ to work his alpha-badass-in-training magic on Sunshine Stone of all girls. Everybody knewhow protective Bowie Stone was of his daughter. She may not have been his blood, but she was his heart.
“Hell, naw,” DJ drawled, chucking Immie under her chin and smiling. “It’d be like making out with my sister.”
My shoulders relaxed.
“That’s why Kai won’t go there,” he went on. “I think he likes her, but the family dynamic is weird between them. Anyway, Mav Meadows is interested in Sunny. He’s had his eye on her for a while, but he was waiting for her to age up. Now, he’s officially warned all the dudes in our class off her, and once a man’s staked his claim, there’s no gettin’ around it.”
“Oh myGod,” Gabby breathed, her eyes widening, “Maverick Meadows ishot. Sunny’s gonnafreak.”
“So’s Kai,” Donovan muttered, his knife slicing through the basil leaves. “Mark my words, there’s feels there. A man doesn’t string a girl along the way Kai has with Sunny unless he’s into her. Get me?”
DJ nodded. “Agreed.”
