This isn’t real. His sweetness is not real. He’s no longer yours, Sophia reminded herself.
“Daddy!” Collin squealed, obviously not expecting to find him still here. He squirmed out of Sophia’s arms and launched himself into Ty’s.
Sophia took Ty’s place at the stove while he tossed Collin in the air a few times before placing the giggling toddler on a chair and sitting next to him. She brought the eggs over and set them next to a plate of bacon and glasses of juice. She studied Ty with concern, knowing he was at his best but also knowing it wouldn’t last. What stung about that the most was that her smiling boy would be the one hurt again when Ty’s facade morphed into a darker form before he disappeared altogether.
With no appetite, Sophia pushed the eggs around her plate while watching Ty and Collin eat their breakfast with gusto, neither one of them noticing her. She watched as Collin fed his daddy a bite of egg and then Ty did the same to him in return. It was cute. It was what every breakfast should look like. But Sophia could count on one hand how many times it had actually occurred.
“What’s our plan for the day?” Ty asked, reaching over to run the back of his hand along Sophia’s cheek.
For Collin’s sake, she didn’t flinch from his touch but moved out of reach while feigning the excuse of needing to wipe up some spilled juice from the table. “Collin and I are going to go pay Papa and Grandma a visit. You need to spend the day finding yourself a place to stay.”
Ty’s shoulders slumped as he turned his puppy-dog eyes on her. “Babe, I understand you need some time. I’ll get my assistant on finding me a place, but you have to promise to give me a fair chance to prove myself.” He reached over and combed his fingers through Collin’s messy curls. “For the sake of our son.”
It was his go-to guilt-trip line, and in the past Sophia was quick to bend for the sake of their son, but Ty was always the only one to benefit from it. What Ty seemed not to understand was that she wouldn’t be bending in his favor ever again.
Sophia chose not to comment, letting him think he’d won the argument, and began gathering the dishes. While she cleaned the kitchen, Ty disappeared into the guest room and didn’t reemerge until she’d finished loading the dishwasher.
She sensed his formidable presence behind her just before his lips touched the shell of her ear. “No one’s perfect, Sophia. We all fall sometimes. Please give me a chance to stand tall again.”
Sophia knew she didn’t owe Ty that nor should she become so emotional over his words, but tears clogged her throat all the same. “I want you to stand tall for Collin,” she whispered, taking a side step to get away from him. He had added a T-shirt to go with the track pants and a shoe on his good foot, so she figured it was best to push him on out the door while he was standing. Blinking several times, she offered a smile in Collin’s direction where he was sorting through a pile of toy cars on the living room rug. “Okay, bub, it’s time to get dressed.”
Collin gathered a car into each of his fists and scurried down the hall.
Sophia turned to Ty. “Hurry up before he comes back out.”
“Why?” Ty scratched the dark-auburn scruff on his cheek.
“It’s easier this way.” She picked up a few toys and tossed them into the basket.
“On who?”
“You, clearly, because no matter what, that little boy will fall apart as soon as you’re gone.”
Ty huffed. “It doesn’t have to be this way.”
Sophia added a toy tractor to the lot before facing Ty. “Oh? So you’ll never leave him again for training camp or games? Or ad campaigns in California?” The last part of her remark had him wincing. Good, it was a painful memory for her as well.
Ty went to retrieve his duffel back from the guest room without another word, then gathered his wallet and keys from the coffee table, admitting defeat this round. “I’d like to see you tonight. Maybe take you out to dinner.”
“We already have plans for tonight.” Sophia and Collin normally spent their Saturdays at Opal’s house, and at some point in the evening she would sneak over and spend some time with Wes.
“What kind of plans?”
“Really, Ty?” She narrowed her eyes at him.
“You’re right. Sorry. I’ll see you soon.” He left with the least amount of theatrics ever.
It gave Sophia a sliver of confidence that perhaps she could stand strong this time and not give in to the intimidating man. She made her way into the bedroom to turn her phone back on, cringing when she found several missed calls from her mother. She tapped on the missed call notification to return the call.
Her mother answered right away and rushed into an apology. “Honey, your granddaddy fell at the nursing home and we needed to go to him last night. That’s the only reason why I left Collin with Ty. You know I wouldn’t leave him if I didn’t think he was safe. It was close to ten, so I knew you would be home soon. I tried to call you as soon as I could—”
“It’s okay. Is Granddaddy okay?” Ugh. Now Sophia felt like a heel for sending that terse text. The old man was entering his eighty-sixth year, and it had pained Sophia’s parents to place him in a home two years ago when Alzheimer’s overtook his mind and body.
“He’s bruised up, but luckily no broken bones.” Her mother sighed heavily. “Please forgive me for leaving Collin. Ty was going on and on about the counseling sessions, and he sounded so genuine about making changes—”
“I understand, Momma. I’m sorry I got upset.” Sophia sat on the edge of the bed as Collin wandered in wearing a pair of track pants that resembled Ty’s along with one of his daddy’s team-logo shirts. It made her chest burn, knowing he was going to be crushed to find Ty gone. “Are you still at the nursing home?” she asked her mother.
“Yes. I don’t want to leave him.” She sniffled.
“Collin and I are bringing y’all breakfast. Tell Granddaddy donuts are on the way.”
Her mother let out a watery laugh as Collin bounced up and down and sang out, “I love donuts!”
•••
Sunday morning showed up right along with a beaming Ty. He offered to drive them to church, and when Collin answered yes for the both of them, Sophia had no choice but to go along with her son’s decision. They looked picture-perfect walking into church together, but Sophia knew it was only a front. Her insides pinched with unease. Wes should have been sitting beside her during worship services instead of Ty with his arm wrapped around her possessively.
As the pastor spoke, the Sunday of Collin’s birthday with Wes by her side in this same pew flickered through her thoughts. She had pictured herself falling out of the pew and letting out all her distress in one momentous fit with limbs flailing and rage spewing from her mouth until someone showed up with a straitjacket. Sophia still wanted to have a conniption, but now she wanted to scream at the top of her lungs that the man sitting beside her wasn’t the right one! That Weston Sawyer was, wherever he might be!
Sophia continuously gazed around the congregation, expecting Wes to magically appear. He never did, and by the end of the service, she wondered if he had really ever been there in the first place.
Sunday dinner at her parents’ house was everything a Sunday dinner should be. A Southern spread consisting of country-fried steak and gravy, mashed potatoes, and butter beans, with peach cobbler served for dessert. The only thing wrong was Ty sitting in Wes’s place at the table. It was the first Sunday in a long time that was spent without his quiet strength by her side and that didn’t feel right. Ty in his place was even more wrong.