I’m angry Kiki didn’t tell me the truth about our breakup.
Angry she felt like walking away was her only option.
Angry she didn’t trust me enough to let me in.
Angry Drake and his corrupt cop buddies are hell-bent on ruining her life.
Angry the town of Sparkwood doesn’t have the sense God gave a fucking goat to see Kiki hadnothingto do with Drake’s crimes. She’s just trying to survive.
And finally, I’m seeing red because my ex-wife was ready to drag me into court, all because I had theaudacityto stand beside an innocent woman.
You know the worst part?
It’s Theo’s birthday.
So I get to have a come-to-Jesus with Deirdre and then turn around and slap on a happy face, no matter how our chat goes, because I won’t ruin my son’s birthday.
Not for anything.
I pull into Deirdre’s driveway and grab Theo’s bag of gifts from the truck, the handles biting into my fingers as I lug it toward the house. The kid’s making out like a bandit, but that’s okay. He deserves it.
The door flies open before I can knock, and Theo barrels straight into my arms. “Daddy!”
“Hey, birthday boy.” I scoop him up and swing him around, his laughter filling the space between us. “Who’s the bestest kid ever?”
“Me!”
“That’s right.” I set him back on his feet, ruffling his hair. “You ready to kick some butt at laser tag?”
“Yeah!”
I bend at the waist, meeting his gaze with a fake glare. “Who’s gonna win?”
Theo points a finger in my direction. “Not you!”
I huff out a laugh. “We’ll see about that.”
I glance up and spy Deirdre in the doorway, watching us. She knows instinctively that we’re going to get into it, even if she doesn’t know what it is yet.
But I do.
Keep it calm, Eddie. No sense flying off the handle, no matter how much you want to… or how much she deserves it.
Kiki begged me to reconsider my anger toward Deirdre, that she was only protecting our son, and I get that aspect. What I don’t appreciate is her sneaking around behind my back, lining up lawyers to bully me into submission, as if I’m suddenly tainted by my association with Kiki.
I look at Theo and nod toward the house. “Hey, bud, can you give me a minute alone with your mom?”
But his attention is locked on something far more important—the bag in my hand. “Are those mine?”
“You know it. Give me five minutes and we’ll open them, okay?”
“But I want to open them now.” He juts out his lower lip, no doubt expecting me to cave to his whim.
I crouch so we’re eye level. “Five minutes, okay? I promise.”
Theo hesitates, clearly debating whether to argue me or not, before disappearing inside the house. The second he’s out of sight, the air changes.
Deirdre releases a long exhale as she leads me into the kitchen and sinks into a chair. “Why do I have a feeling this isn’t going to be a good conversation?”
