“Don’t you have a party to go to?” Evander asked.
“I’m not going anywhere until I know my daughter is safe. I feel like her wellbeing is threatened in this house.” She tipped her altered nose in the air and I pushed out a long breath before I railed into her.
“You’re so fucking pathetic, Alexis. I’m tired of being nice and biting my tongue because now you’re disrespecting me and for what? I did nothing to you. You have a problem with me and Evander being together, fine. You can have that problem all to yourself because it’s not going to change anything. It won’t change the fact that he divorced you. It won’t change the fact that this is no longer your house and it won’t change the fact that you missed out on a great guy. Those are things you have to deal with. Don’t bring your bitterness in here and please for the love of God don’t pass it down to Frankie.”
“Alexis, you can go. You have no reason to be here,” Evander said, barely restraining his anger.
“She does,” I interjected. Evander glanced at me and nodded his understanding.
“You know what, Xari, you’re right. She does need to be here. No time like the present to introduce you to my new girlfriend.” He draped his arm around my shoulder. “Alexis, this is Xari. Xari, this is my ex-wife, Alexis,” he said.
“Can’t say it’s a pleasure so I’ll say this…it’s unfortunate to meet you,” Alexis snapped.
“This is ridiculous,” Frankie huffed before storming out of the kitchen and up the steps. Tears made her voice wobble. The emotional sound sank my heart to my feet. I looked at Evander and he nodded. I went after Frankie and caught her just before she slammed her bedroom door in a fit of true preteen angst.
“Hey,” I said, sticking my arm through the almost closed door. I didn’t wait for an invitation, I walked in. “We need to talk about this, Frankie.”
“I don’t want to talk to you. You’re only here for Dad. Go talk to him.” My eyebrows lifted at the barbed sass coming from this little twelve-year-old flopping on her bed.
She’s a kid, Xari. No need for the big guns.
I took a calming breath and sat on the bed beside her. “I’m not only here for your dad. Is that why you’re so pissed? You think I’ve been plotting on him all along?”
“Isn’t that the truth?” She finally looked at me and this time I didn’t see anger and ice. I saw hope and pleading. I shook my head and touched her soft curly hair.
“No. That’s not the truth. I didn’t take this job because I secretly wanted to get next to Evander. When I took this job, I thought your dad was a stick in the mud. In my mind, we couldn’t have been more different.”
“Then why are you two…”
“Together?” I didn’t want to give her an opportunity to use any other word she had stored in her brain.
“Is that what’s going on? You’re actually his girlfriend?” She sat up and faced me instead of talking to me while she laid on her stomach.
“Yes, Frankie.” I stroked her hair. I hoped she knew I was being truthful. “At first we were just…messing around. It wasn’t something you needed to know about because as much as I love you and as mature as you are for your age, you don’t need to know everything.” She wrapped her arms around herself and looked down at her hands.
I heard the door downstairs close with a little more force than usual and I knew Alexis must have been gone. Evander’s footfalls grew closer to Frankie’s room then he appeared. He was weary. Annoyance tightened his features.
“Frankie, your attitude is out of control,” he said immediately. “Now, I understand your feelings being hurt over finding out about Xari and me the way you did. We’ll take full responsibility for that, but we talk things out in this family. We don’t run from them and we damn sure don’t take passive-aggressive swipes at each other.”
There’s something about the way a real father addresses his daughter that can unravel her. I know because I’ve been in that situation before in my life. It’s how I knew I’d made a shit show of my own life after getting my car repossessed. When Dad didn’t budge or offer to help, I knew I’d fucked up.
Frankie had a look on her face that said she knew she took things too far.
“I’m sorry, Dad. I was upset and…I didn’t know what to do about it.” She shrugged her shoulders and finally lifted her gaze to meet Evander’s.
“You made poor decisions but so did Xari and I. We planned to tell you that we were together as soon as we mapped things out. We should have been more careful about when we spent time together.” He loosened his tie even more, sliding the knot down to his chest. “Now, I will take full responsibility for you walking in on us. I’m so sorry you had to see that, Frankie. I know it was insanely awkward.”
“Understatement of the year,” I muttered, tucking hair behind my ear.
“It was,” Frankie agreed, nodding. “I was mad at you and Xari because it felt like you guys were doing it behind my back. It felt like you thought I was a stupid kid. Like the promises you both made didn’t mean anything.”
I squeezed her shoulder and said, “Frankie, that’s not it at all. You know your father and I care about what we promise you.” Did I just say your father and I? That felt way too parental. What was my life? “Sometimes unexpected things happen and trust me nobody was blindsided by our relationship more than me.” Evander shot me a warning look and I grinned at him. I knew he’d melt over my dimples.
“You promised you wouldn’t be one of those women though, Xari.”
“One of what women?” Evander asked, lifting a dark brow.
“One of the women who trip over you. I’ve seen the way all the women in the world look at you, Dad.” She folded her arms tight across her chest.
“Well, I mean, can you blame them?” He chuckled. He was definitely in classic dad mode.
“Cringe,” Frankie said, scrunching her face into an embarrassed frown.
“I am not tripping over your father,” I blurted with my finger in the air.
“You’re tripping a little bit,” Evander countered. He held his thumb and pointer finger centimeters apart and I sucked my teeth.
“No. I don’t trip over anyone.” With that bold declaration, Evander bit his bottom lip and eyed me knowingly. My clothes wanted to surrender at his feet and my thighs throbbed. I cleared my throat and tore my eyes away from him.
“Okay, maybe a little. The point is,” I continued, “Being in love and tripping over a guy are two different things and I’m very much in love with your dad, Frankie.”
“The feeling is mutual,” Evander said. All traces of playfulness left his voice.
“This is so weird. Ugh.” Frankie hid behind her hands and shook her head full of kinky curls. “You two are in love?” She peeked from between her fingers and looked at me, then at her dad. We both nodded. “You’re boyfriend and girlfriend? Like in a real relationship?”
“Yes, sweetheart. It’s the real deal.”
“But…” Frankie turned to me and scanned my face then the rest of me. “You’re so pretty. You seriously want to be with Dad? Like on purpose? You’re not clout-chasing?”