“It’s about Dad.”
Chapter 21
"Hello, Colin."
Colin
This thing with Maya is running its course.
After what nearly happened in my kitchen, I came closer than I’ll ever admit out loud. I’d gone in looking for a moment of quiet… and she appeared, as she always does, precisely when I’m most exposed. The sight of her on her knees triggered something automatic, primal. A Pavlovian reflex I haven’t quite learned how to untrain.
And then my eyes landed on the table.
The same table where Ceci and I have shared countless meals. Where our children have done homework, spilled drinks,laughed too loudly, sulked through arguments. Where ordinary life has left its fingerprints. That image snapped me back with the force of a cold hand at the back of my neck.
I would never allow that to happen in my home.
Not there. Not where Ceci and the kids live.
I could never.
It was a close call. A warning. A stark reminder that I’ve been playing with fire.
And still… I can’t deny how much I like the way it burns.
So for now, I let the flame flicker, close enough to feel the heat, far enough not to be consumed.
Maya’s been on edge these past few weeks. That may explain what happened on Sunday. I’ve been going to her apartment less, keeping the visits brief, never giving her quite as much of my attention as before. With Margaret back, she’s lost the opportunity to play her little games at the office. And yet, somehow, all of this has only intensified the sex—like my absence intensifies her hunger instead of dulling it.
Soon, maybe once a week will be enough.
And after that… nothing.
She can’t keep working this close to me. I need to speak to Teodora about it. Maya’s attempts to lure me over when I refuse have become more insistent, more brazen. Every time she touches me, it feels like she’s trying to leave her mark, as if proximity alone could stake a claim.
It doesn’t matter.
I belong to only one woman.
And that’s Ceci.
Ceci’s been spending more time away from home this week. If I didn’t know she was with her parents or one of her friends, I might almost think…
No. Not my Ceci. She would never.
Still, she buries herself in work at night, pouring hours into something we don’t even need financially. I can’t make sense of it. I hate watching her exhaust herself for nothing, but she doesn’t listen when I tell her to slow down.
Ethan, meanwhile, has slipped back into his ignoring-me routine. I can’t even pinpoint what set it off this time. It’s always the same, one wrong word, one misstep, and suddenly I’m the villain in his version of events.
I run a hand over my face, irritation tightening my jaw. Ever since Maya left my office earlier, after once again trying to convince me to come over tonight, I haven’t been able to focus on work.
Tomorrow we fly out early to San Jose, back late Saturday night. I even considered keeping the return flight for Sunday, as originally planned. But not now. Not with the way things feel at home.
I decide to call it a day and head out early. Take Ceci and the kids to dinner. Maybe if we go early enough, I can steal a little time alone with her afterward.
I’d suggested a date night, just the two of us, but Ceci insisted we bring the kids. Something we haven’t done in a while.
Perhaps it’s for the best.
