Hatch grabs the large cup, dunks it in the beads, pulls it back out and dumps it into the smaller cup. A scattering of beads roll in all directions and he laughs, proud of his accomplishment. He sits on his knees and buries his hands in the beads, waving them back and forth with an excited squeal.
“I think you picked a winner.”
Naomi beams at him and the look on her face is pure love. The same shines in his eyes when he looks back at her. I’m not happy about the way she lied to me, but I understand a little more now. Especially after learning she can’t have children. She loves him like a son, and he loves her like a mother. Whatever comes now, I’ll make sure that bond isn’t broken.
I just have to keep my hands off of her. All that anger I felt has faded, and I wasn’t prepared to find the feelings I had for her still there. Even if none of this had happened, if she hadn’t been deceiving me, I couldn’t have been with her. I know better than that. I’ve spent years keeping my distance from women, only having sex if it was paid for, because I know better. With her, something just overrode my common sense.
“Da-di!” Hatch shrieks.
“All right, dude.” The tarp crinkles as I sit between them and dunk my hands into the beads. They feel odd, like slippery, squishy rubber marbles. “They’re wet!”
Naomi snorts and rolls her eyes at me. “That’s why they’re called water beads.” My sideways look is met with a smirk that I want to kiss off her face. “They start out a lot smaller, then grow when they’re soaked for a few hours.”
Hatch grabs a handful and squeezes, making them spurt into the air, bounce across the floor and roll. His giggle is infectious. I stick my hand back in and let the beads run through my fingers.
We spend the next half hour playing with Hatch. He hands each of us a cup and scoops tiny handfuls of the beads, spilling part of them on the two steps back to us, and then dumping them in one of the cups.
“He’d do this all night,” I chuckle.
“I’m just happy he’s finally stopped putting everything in his m-o-u-t-h,” Naomi says. “These are non-toxic, but he could choke on them, so he has to be watched close.”
Hatch is saying more and more words, but also understanding more. There are certain things that are better spelled in front of him now. He yawns, and Naomi gets to her feet. “I should get him cleaned up and ready for bed.”
“Nuh!” Hatch cries, whipping his head around at the word bed.
She smiles and kneels down to talk to him. “I know you want to keep playing but it’s time for a bath. We’ll play again tomorrow.”
“Nuuuuh,” he screeches, throwing himself on the floor.
“Well, that’s new,” I remark, staring at him. He hasn’t had a tantrum since she came back.
Naomi grins, shaking her head. “And he isn’t even near the terrible twos yet. It’s best to just ignore it and keep him on task.” She glances around the room. “I’ll get this cleaned up after he’s down for the night.”
“Da-di!” he shouts, diving into my lap.
“You think he’s going to save you, huh?” Naomi chuckles, tossing some of the scattered beads back into the container. They’re everywhere.
“I’ll give him a bath and put him to bed,” I tell her, getting to my feet. “No escape, dude,” I whisper to Hatch as he struggles to get out of my arms.
Surprise is stamped on her face when she looks up at me. “Okay, yell if you need me. I mean, if you need something. If Caden needs something.”
Chapter Ten
Naomi
Another sip of wine slides down my throat, and I tuck my feet beneath me on the couch, smiling at the sound of Axton’s voice as he bathes Caden. There’s more playing than washing going on and Caden’s giggles spill down the hallway.
It’s been a long day, and I’ve just cleaned up the sunroom, and laid out Caden’s pajamas for the night in his room. Since Axton’s taking over, my plan is to relax in the sunroom with some music and a couple glasses of wine.
Things seem to be getting better, finally. Dani and I talk like friends again, and though I try not to spend too much time with Axton, I’m happy that he’s acting normal around me. It feels like there’s some hope we can get things back to how they were before. Well, before Axton and I slept together.
I’m not sure how I’m supposed to get over someone I see every day, but I’m doing my best. Dating would probably be a good idea, but I can’t imagine how that would work since I can’t even leave the house without security.
Oh well, I have Caden. I have Dani to talk to sometimes, and maybe once I’m traveling on the next tour, I’ll make some friends. There were some pretty cool people with us last time. For now, I can be happy how things are, even though there are times when loneliness creeps in.
The anxiety over the future that churns in my head all the time is exhausting. There’s just too much uncertainty to relax. I’m not a suspect anymore, but the trial is going to be awful, and I’ve already been warned I’ll be called to testify about what happened that night. It’s going to be horrible for Axton to relive it all as well.
One thing I’ve learned from Axton is that music helps. With the lights turned low, I put my earbuds in, sip my wine, and just let myself relax. It’s a good way to turn off my mind, hide from all the noise.
An hour ticks by, and stress slips out of me, replaced by the warm buzz of the wine. I close my eyes, just soaking it in. When I open them, Axton stares down at me. Jerking one earbud out, I sit up. “What?”
“I didn’t say anything.” He takes a seat on the armchair, a good distance away from me.
Okay then. “Caden asleep?”
“Before I got two pages through his book,” he chuckles. I expect to see alcohol in his hand since that’s when he tends to want to be around me, but he’s empty handed. “What are you listening to?”
“A new artist. Dermot Kennedy.”
“Cast it to the speakers.”
My initial instinct is to tell him to stop giving me orders and the smirk he’s trying to suppress says he knows it. I’m not going to let him get under my skin no matter what side of him I get tonight; bossy, charming, or aloof. Instead of arguing, I pick up my phone, switch the connection to the speakers, and start the album over.
He leans back in the chair, propping his foot on his knee. God, how can the way he sits be sexy? Because it isn’t the pose. It’s him.
After listening in silence through the first song, he nods. “Guy’s good.”
“There’s some beautiful piano in his acoustic versions.”
After a moment, he speaks up again. “Has Dani told you about the concert yet?” My blank look is all he needs to continue. “Next week. We’ll be going to Ohio to do a fundraising concert for the Institute for Missing Children. I want you and Caden with me. Backstage, not in the audience. The first public appearance is going to draw a lot of attention.”
“Maybe we should stay here.” I hold my breath hoping he’ll disagree. I want to go. I want to get out of this house and around some people, see the other performances, but whatever he thinks is safest for Caden is what I’ll do.