I bite my lip, unsure of how to respond.
Finally, I break the tension, clearing my throat. “So, are you going to share that ice cream?”
Kai smirks, pushing the bowl toward me. “I’m not sure if I want to share the spoon with you, though.”
I laugh, rolling my eyes and grabbing another spoon.
But the lingering weight of his earlier words hangs between us, heavy, as we sit together in the moonlit kitchen, pretending things are just as simple as sharing a bowl of ice cream.
Blakely
Sunlight slips through the curtains, waking me from my sleep. I blink a few times, groggy, and glance around, realizing I’m in bed—alone. The clock on the wall reads noon.
As I walk through the house, I notice how quiet it is. No voices or sounds, only silence. Where is everyone? The smell of barbecue hits me, and I follow the scent out onto the porch, where I see Liam at the grill, flipping hot dogs.
“Well, look who’s finally up,” Liam teases, glancing at me out of the corner of his eye.
I slide on my sunglasses, bracing myself against the brightness. Surprisingly, I woke up without a pounding headache. The ice cream worked its magic after all, even though it was loaded with sugar.
“Why didn’t you wake me?” I ask, stepping closer.
“I figured you didn’t sleep well,” he says, turning the hot dogs. “Thought you could use the rest.”
I frown, confused. “Why’d you think that?”
“I heard you up and moving around last night,” he says casually, his back to me. “Figured you couldn’t sleep.”
A wave of guilt crashes over me. Did he hear me talking to Kai? He doesn’t seem suspicious, but my mind races, replaying that late-night conversation. I tell myself I shouldn’t feel guilty. Kai’s the father of my child. It’s a good thing we’re on civil terms. It’s what I’ve always strived for. I always said, if we couldn’t make it work as a couple, we at least had to make co-parenting work.
But even with that, it doesn’t help shake the nagging thought about how much we were flirting last night. Maybe it was innocent. Maybe it was just the wine. But something about it feels heavier now, sitting uncomfortably between me and Liam, even though he doesn’t know it. Or at least, I hope he doesn’t.
“Mom. Mom.” I hear Amari’s small voice in the distance. I watch as she runs her little feet through the sand in her yellow polka-dot bikini. “Come. You have to come see Dad,” she says and grabs my hand, leading me out onto the beach.
“I’ll be back!” I yell over my shoulder to Liam.
I look ridiculous in my pajamas walking on the beach, but with the excitement in my daughter’s eyes, it doesn’t matter.
Amari stops in her tracks. “Look,” she says, pointing at Kai’s head popping out of the sand. Kevin is still packing in the sand all around him. My mom, Paige, and my sister have their phones out, taking pictures and laughing.
Kai looks up at me, squinting his eyes from the brightness of the sun. “How’s it going, sleepyhead?”
I laugh at the sight of him, shaking my head. “The shit you let our daughter do to you.”
“You owe me a dollar,” Amari says, helping Kevin put more sand on top of Kai.
Shaking my head, I turn back to Kai.
“What can I say? Amari has me wrapped around her finger.”
"B, go put your swimsuit on, and let’s get in the water,” Bryn says.
I look over at all three of them set up in beach chairs with a huge umbrella shading them. Paige raises a blackberry White Claw, offering it to me. I wince at the thought of alcohol.
“Let me eat first, and then I’ll put on my swimsuit.”
"Okay,” she says, shaking the White Claw up in the air. “This will be waiting for you.”
I turn around and stop abruptly when I notice Liam walking out. He has a platter of hot dogs in hand and a bag with the buns, ketchup, mayo, and mustard in the other.
