Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 82214 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 411(@200wpm)___ 329(@250wpm)___ 274(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82214 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 411(@200wpm)___ 329(@250wpm)___ 274(@300wpm)
“My son. He’s my main priority. The reason I do what I do.”
“Is that a bad thing?”
I shook my head quickly. “Hell no. I just wish I knew how to handle things now.”
“Just be there for him, Ryan. That’s all. Delegate your tasks, hire who you need to, just be there for your kid.”
“But it’s not that simple.”
Her brow furrowed in confusion, and I decided just to say it.
“I’m scared Darlene might try to take him from me.” This wasn’t a first-date conversation. It really wasn’t. In fact, it wasn’t even a second, third, or tenth date conversation. But I felt the connection I thought existed at the airport.
Looking up, I waited for that “I’m out” expression, that lost look that people had when they wondered what they got themselves into, but instead, I saw sympathy. Her soft expression warmed me to my core, and everything felt like it would be okay.
“I don’t think Darlene wants to take him from you, Ryan.”
For some reason, I almost believed her. That’s what I wanted to think. I wasn’t sure what it was about her words, but I felt she might be right. I wasn’t sure how ready I was to believe her entirely, but I at least wanted to share her optimism.
We talked more about it but not for long before we moved on to other things. I really did need to give Darlene and James my best to show them I was in the game. Christie had said misunderstandings were often two-sided, which was true since she and I had been on different ends of the spectrum. And we had connected so easily the first time.
I made fun of her for having such a nosy mom, and she demanded I tell her everything her mom said. It wasn’t something I’d tried hard to remember but teasing her about it was fun. Really, her mom had called a lot, but I’d ignored most of them after she’d asked for my first and last name and home address. She was protecting her girl, which was cool, but it didn’t mean I cared to be on her radar.
When we finally left the diner, I felt more alive than I had in a good while. I wanted to do everything I had planned. It took an effort to avoid asking Christie to look at houses with me. I didn’t need to leap forward ten more steps after already doing that with our conversation, but I didn’t really want her to leave, either.
I couldn’t remember when I’d felt like that around Darlene and wondered if things would be easier had I any ability to feel like this around her. It would probably make all this easier, and maybe it still could. Christie and Darlene weren’t the same people, but it didn’t mean I couldn’t adapt.
Chapter 15
Christie
“No, Mom, it wasn’t a date.”
“Oh, come on, Christie. Don’t try to tell me that. Was he a gentleman? Did he kiss you? Did y’all—”
“We talked about his ex-wife.” That would get her to stop.
“What about his ex-wife?”
I sighed, and the Uber driver glanced at me in the rearview mirror. “Just what he’s going through with her and how he’s worried she’s trying to take his son away.”
My mom hummed into the phone in her let-me-think tone. “Baby, I don’t know that you should be putting yourself in these situations. You don’t want to get in the middle of someone’s family.”
I fought the urge to slam my head against the window. “Right. That’s what I’m telling you. It wasn’t a date. He had a hard day and had made my weekend here rough, so he was just treating me to lunch. No flirting, no nothing.” Well, a little flirting. Until he brought up Darlene.
“Oh, Christie, I gotta call you back. Someone’s at the door.”
“’Kay. Don’t talk to strangers.”
“Love you, sweetie.”
“Bye, Mom.”
I let her hang up and kept drumming my fingers, hoping the driver had made the right turn. I couldn’t remember this street, but everything looked different in reverse.
I smirked and shook my head. It was always a red flag if a man came to another woman with woman problems, but at the same time, these woman problems were ongoing. Issues with an ex would never go away.
“She wouldn’t do that,” I murmured, trying to imagine the laid-back, chatty Darlene I’d met ruining Ryan’s life and taking away his son. Come to think about it, though, she had mentioned the idea of moving. Did she intend to move far?
Ryan didn’t seem as stressed after lunch, and part of me hoped he didn’t go straight to Darlene’s. I didn’t want to be part of their problems. I was typically a good listener, earning me the therapist badge in high school. Might have in college if I’d had any friends. Friends I could have had if I’d felt this similar urge not to worry about finding a job and just enjoy my time in Dallas. I almost wanted to ask Ryan what he was doing for the rest of the day to see if he’d invite me, but I wasn’t sure how he’d interpret it.