She waves her finger in front of her with clear fury apparent and her chest rising and falling from her emotions taking over. “What the fuck did you expect to happen when you light a fire? This flame between us.Weare what happened. Willingly crossing the line between fucking and having something more. And you…” She tries to gather her words because her lips quiver from the pure destruction that I’ve caused her.
“Lexi.” I want to comfort her, calm her, selfishly make sure she’ll be alright to make me feel less of an ass who blew up our bliss.
She steps back with her palm up to indicate that I shouldn’t step in her direction. “Don’t you dare get close to me,” she barks. “You know, I’ve also never had this connection with someone. At least I didn’t get scared and ruin a good thing.”
“You don’t understand my situation, you don’t have kids. You still have life to experience.” My tone is weak. I rub my hand across my jaw, trying my best not to look at the image before me.
“Do. Not. Throw that card at me,” she grits out.
At this point, I’m waiting for her to slap me because I deserve it. Lexi can be feisty, but right now she’s shattered.
Her hand lands on her waist. She looks like she’s going to pounce on me, but she has a point to make. I scratch my cheek, waiting for her revelation. “I’m going right now, and the most fucked-up thing about this entire situation is that I’m going to inform you of the obvious. Work out your shit, Holden. Because even though I should be the one to run…” Her strong tone begins to diminish. “I’ll still be waiting.”
Our eyes can’t part, and the air cuts around us. I’m sure I even gasp because I know she’s speaking the truth.
Watching her walk away and turn the corner, I slam the wall with my hand and scream to myself.
* * *
It’s notbecause of my witch of an ex-wife, it’s because a stone hit me to slow down. Which means, Lexi will never get what she deserves. Cutting her loose is the only way.
“You look like shit.”
My eyes snap up to my daughter due to her brazen tone, as she just slid into the front seat after I picked her up from skating. “Aren’t we honest,” I say, my tone flippant.
“Well, you do,” she justifies. “It’s like one day without Lexi and you’ve turned into a grumpy old man.” My kids haven’t heard the news about Lexi and me yet, only noticed that she wasn’t at breakfast.
I don’t bother turning the engine back on; instead, I decide it’s time to bite the bullet. Harry is at a friend’s house, and Lori will probably comprehend the news of her mother in a different way.
Swallowing, I nibble on my bottom lip, wanting to be tactful. “There is something I kind of want to talk to you about.”
“No,” Lori exclaims, with her face falling. “You and Lexi? Did something happen? She’s really cool, Dad.”
My head falls back to the seat while I curse to myself internally. Which bombshell do I deliver first? I slant my body to face Lori better. I’m dreading every second of this conversation.
“It’s your mom.” I wait for Lori to react, but she just stares blankly, blinking a few times. “I wanted to talk to you first before Harry. You’re more of an adult than I would like right now.”
“What about her?” I almost can’t hear because she speaks so softly. Suddenly my child with a strong personality looks like a ghost.
I sigh. “Hypothetically, what would you do if she showed up wanting to see you and Harry?”
Lori takes a moment to digest my sentence, but then something snaps in her mind, and she immediately shakes her head repeatedly. “I wouldn’t want to see her. And I don’t think this is hypothetical at all.”
Closing my eyes, I gather my strength yet again. “I understand your feeling, but she’s also your mother, and maybe it matters to Harry. She says she wants to be serious.”
“Do you really believe what you just said?”
My head drops low. “I don’t think I have much of a choice.” Legal action is not something my daughter needs to know. “Maybe one day you will look back and wish you saw her.”
Lori crosses her arms. “Well, I don’t want to see her. I barely remember her, and I’ve forgotten her.” She’s adamant, and as much as a parent sometimes needs to guide their child on the future, I’m not going to push this. Right now, Lori and Harry are carefree children who deserve to stay that way.
I bite the corner of my lip while I sit as fragile as Lori right now. “And what do you think Harry would want?”
She sneers. “She’s probably as good as dead to him. He never even knew her.”
Sighing, I pause for a few seconds. “Do you think I should ask him? You two have a strong bond.”
Lori shakes her head no, just as she did before. “I don’t think you should ask because I don’t even call her Mom, and Harry barely mentions her… ever. I want her to go away.”
