Her head snapped up as she looked at me, her smile growing.
“Miles. It’ssogood to see you. Baby, you lookamazing.” Her warm, honeyed voice sounded like she was a long-lost lover who’d come home; its impact spun my brain around like a blender.
Baby?
She hadn’t called me that since she had walked out of the door and my life seven years ago, I thought, as her eyes wandered appreciatively over me.
Vicky took a hurried step toward the front entrance, her bathing suit in her hand, her head hung low.
“I, ah, I’ll grab my stuff and head out,” she said barely above a whisper. Her doe-like eyes were wide but not focused on me. They were locked on my ex-wife. “Have a good evening.” She smiled at MJ, who looked as confused and torn as I was.
“Bye, Vicky. Thanks for today,” my daughter said before looking up at her mother in awe.
Katy’s attention skated over to Vicky, her eyes scanning her body with unmasked disdain that made my anger rise swiftly.
“Vicky, hold on a second. I’ll walk you out,” I said, tossing the towel over a chair.
She began frantically picking up her laptop bag and purse, muttering about her shoes. When she darted for the door, I ran after her, catching her by the elbow as she got out of the house.
“Vicky, please, wait,” I begged. With a gentle tug, I pulled her to a stop and turned her to face me. Her eyes were brimming with tears that tore my heart out.
“Vicky,” I whispered.
Shaking her head, she swiped harshly at the tears that fell, but still wouldn’t look at me. “Miles, it’s fine. Go. She’s here to see you guys, and that’s a big deal from what you’ve said.”
“I have no idea why she’s here,” I admitted, my voice rough from emotions.
“You didn’t know she was coming?” she asked, her bottom lip quivering as she spoke.
“Vicky, no. I would have told you. I’d never let you be blindsided like that. I mean, she sent a cryptic text recently, but I never expected her to actually come,” I begged.
Lifting her head, she said, “You don’t owe me anything. I’m not.We’renot…”
“That’s what, I mean, we were going to talk tonight,” I said. My emotions were so mixed up in that moment, I didn’t want to say the wrong thing.
We had just spent an incredible afternoon together. Like family. Now Katy stood in my kitchen, and Vicky was ready to bolt off my front porch. Both women were in one place, messing with my addled brain.
“Again, you don’t owe me anything,” she said, her voice bringing me back to the moment.
“I have to go see about this. See why she’s here. But please. Can we talk later tonight?” I begged, my eyes taking in the sight of her. Waterdripped from the ends of her short hair, wetting the shoulders of my hoodie. Looking at her as she stood there in my clothes gave me the same visceral reaction it had when she’d worn them before.
Mine. She was mine.
“Sure.” Her short answer brought about anxiety that she didn’t really mean it. Without thinking, I brought her closer and held her. Her breath caught in her throat as she stiffened.
“Please say we can talk about all this. Don’t run away from me.”
My words made her relax into my arms. I’d never held her before. Not like this, anyway. My attempt at flirting the other day when I leaned in to her was as close as I’d gotten. Now that she was in my arms, I wanted to kiss her. Kiss away her tears and rage against anyone who’d caused it.
I hated the way Katy looked at her as if she were beneath her. I knew my ex-wife well enough to realize she was making it clear she didn’t like Vicky being in my home. Her calling me “baby” confirmed her jealousy.
I noticed Vicky might struggle with her body image based on how she handled food around me. When she hesitated to remove her cover-up at the beach, I wanted to tell her how gorgeous she was to me. But she didn’t need me to. As she took off the cover-up, revealing her beauty, I was stunned. There was a new confidence that left me speechless, only managing a "wow.” But in one fell swoop, Katy seemed to erase that.
I had no idea how to broach that conversation in this fraught moment. Right now, my first priority was to get back in there and protect MJ from Katy until I understood what this visit meant. The second was making sure Vicky didn’t run away. This wasn’t the time to talk about how I felt about her. She deserved better than a rushed confession of my growing feelings.
She pulled away, tears gone, and said, “I’m not running away, Miles. I’m giving you and MJ room. We’ll talk at some point. Tell MJ I said bye and thanks for the bracelet.”
“Tonight. I really need to talk to youtonight,” I insisted.
