“That’s good,” her daughter said.
“What’s for dinner?” Xander asked.
Jax pointed to the family room. “Let’s sit down and talk first.”
The kids exchanged a glance but did as she requested. She saw that they sat on the sofa, close to each other. Because for all the bickering between them, when something was wrong, they were there for each other.
“Everyone is fine,” she began. “Your dad and I love you very much.”
Xander reached for Gentry’s hand.
“It’s never good when you start a sentence that way,” her daughter told her, scooching closer to Xander.
“I’m sorry. You’re right. That was a silly thing to say, although we do love you and we—”
“Mom!”
“Right. The point.” She drew in a breath. “Your dad and Shawna broke up.”
Her children stared at her as if they didn’t understand. “They’re not together anymore and they’re not getting married.”
“But what about the wedding?” Gentry wailed. “There has to be a wedding. I want to be a bridesmaid.”
“We like Shawna,” Xander said, looking confused and hurt. “You mean she’s not his girlfriend anymore?”
“No, she’s not. You’ll still see her at school, but your dad and Shawna aren’t a couple.”
“But why?” Gentry asked. “They were getting married. Is this like a divorce before they even have the wedding?”
“No. It’s a breakup. Sometimes people realize that marriage isn’t a good idea.”
“So we won’t see her at the house? She won’t be here on the weekends?” Xander swallowed. “But I’ll miss her. She had a lot of rules and stuff, but she could be fun. Plus she cooked a whole lot better than Dad ever did.”
Gentry looked stricken. “We were going to play with makeup and stuff. She was going to talk to you and tell you I’m old enough to start wearing mascara. What about dress shopping?”
“I know.”
Jax held open her arms. Both kids rushed to her and hung on. She held them. Xander started to cry.
“I miss her.”
“Me, too,” Jax lied, thinking it was better to say that for the greater good.
Xander sank onto her lap. “I just don’t understand grown-ups. First we had to have a family meeting about Shawna coming into our lives and now we have to have a family meeting because she’s gone. It’s confusing.”
“For me, too.” Jax smoothed her daughter’s hair. “I’m sorry you’re disappointed about the wedding.”
“I am! I didn’t even get to try on dresses. It’s not fair.”
Jax thought about pointing out that Shawna was suffering, too, but didn’t think that would make Gentry feel better.
“Is Dad mad at her?” Xander asked.
“I don’t think so. You can ask him when he comes over.” She wasn’t going to try to explain Harris’s decision to them—that was on him. She’d done enough of his dirty work today.
He stood up. “I love you, Mom, but don’t get a boyfriend and then break up, okay? It’s too hard on the kids.”
She thought about her relationship with Marcus and was once again glad neither of them knew she was dating.
