My throat constricted painfully, guilt surging. “I’m so sorry. I had no idea it would be like this.”
She stood and crossed to me, wrapping her arms around my waist. I hugged her back, comforted by her warmth. “It’s okay, Mom. It’s not that big of a deal. The gossip sites will run with it for a few days until something more interesting comes along.”
“No one even knows who I am,” I said. “Why does Kenzie think anyone would care?”
“Apparently, she thinks it will,” Vance said. “As insane as that sounds.”
“These people are the worst,” Mia said.
The soft chime of my phone interrupted the moment. Mia glanced at it on the counter, stiffening instantly. “Mom—just ignore him.”
But I couldn’t. My ex-husband’s text mocked me from the screen, words sharp and cutting.
I hope fame’s worth it when you see what this will do to Mia. Think about how she’ll have to deal with this once school starts. You know how cruel kids can be. Well done, Lila.
The nerve of him. Lecturing me about Mia? My hands trembled around the phone, fingers tightening until my knuckles went white. How dare he even think he had the right to say anything at all—the man who’d walked away without a backward glance.
Mia started to cry. “What a total jerk. Talking about me as if he cares. Tell him to pay attention to the daughters he actually loves.”
Her words brought a new ripple of pain and guilt. How had I ever thought he was the man to build my life around? I’d seen his cruel streak from the beginning—the avarice that came out whenever I’d outshone him.
I sat heavily on one of the barstools. A sudden, blinding clarity pushed aside all the noise. He’d chosen to have an affair just after I’d landed my first big contract, during a slump in his own business. I’d been so delighted that my work could help our family, and he’d mocked me for it. Belittled the project. Called it my “little hobby.” My success had been emasculating. He’d counteracted the blow to his ego by having an affair with a barely legal employee.
“He can’t stand it when I have anything good,” I said. “That’s all this is.”
“He’s happy when things go bad for you, Mom. It’s so obvious.”
“I’m sorry, baby,” I said, that crawling, creepy helplessness making its way up my spine.
“It’s not your fault.” Mia swiped under her eyes, clearly trying to stop crying. “He’s poison. To both of us.”
“Come here, my Mia.” Vance turned to Mia, offering his hand, then pulled her into a hug. “Yes, he’s just trying to get to her—to make her doubt herself because he feels guilty over what he’s done.”
“Or hasn’t done,” Mia mumbled, resting her cheek against Vance’s chest.
Vance tutted, catching my gaze over my daughter’s head. “That’s right. Regardless, I feel sorry for him—not getting to be part of your life.”
“You do?” Mia asked, sniffing.
“I do. And guess what?” Vance asked, breaking the hug but resting his hands on her shoulders. “I’m here. And I’m privileged to be part of your life.”
“I don’t want to see him,” Mia said. “Ever.”
The custody agreement said she was to spend one weekend a month with him. But most of the time he had reasons to cancel. Basically, it was a moot point.
“That’s right. Just ignore him,” Vance said. “Don’t reply to his message—either of you. That’ll bother him.”
“It’s true,” I said.
I heard footsteps and turned to see Margot trudging down the stairs, holding her teddy bear, hair flattened on one side from sleep and her cheeks still rosy from her warm bed.
“What’s going on?” Margot asked. “Mia, why are you crying?” She came running over, throwing her arms around Mia’s legs.
Mia wiped her face and knelt to give Margot a hug. “Nothing. I’m fine.”
“Did I do something?” Margot asked. I caught a twitch at the corner of her left eye.
Our exes really had done a number on these girls. Damn them both.
