An Unexpected Attraction (Love Unexpected Book 3) by Delaney Diamond Page B

day with a single phone call. “Put her through.”
    The line went silent, and when the call was passed through, he greeted his ex-wife. “Hello, Jenna.”
    “I hope you don’t mind my calling,” she said.
    “How can I help you?” His tone was scrap-the-bullshit sharp. She knew how much he disliked taking personal calls at work, yet she frequently called during business hours. That was typical of her, though. She didn’t care if her desire to have or do something inconvenienced other people. He supposed such behavior was the result of being doted on by an indulgent father.
    “Marco’s been acting up in summer camp,” she said, sounding tired and frustrated. “Could you call him later and talk to him about his behavior?”
    Jay’s eyes found the framed picture of Arturo and Marco on his desk, a year-old shot taken at a studio and sent to him for Father’s Day last year. They both wore suits and playful expressions. Arturo had dark hair and swarthy skin like Jay and most members of their southern Italian family. Marco, on the other hand, was a paler-skinned, towheaded youngster who took after his mother.
    “What did he do?”
    “He mouthed off to one of the counselors a few days ago and was excluded from activities for the rest of the day. Then today the director called to say he was in a fight with another boy.”
    Jay frowned. That didn’t sound like his son. For the most part, Marco was a gentle kid. “Why was he fighting?”
    “The boy called him fat, and your son punched him. The director said the next thing she knew, they were rolling around on the ground. Marco claims the boy threw the first punch, but the boy said Marco hit him first. None of the other kids actually saw the fight start. If Marco acts up again, they’re kicking him out of the program.”
    Jay rubbed his bristled jaw. “It’s tough with him going though that chubby phase. I told him he’ll outgrow it, but he wants to look more like Arturo.” On top of the insecurities about his body, Marco struggled with colorblindness. The inability to see shades of red and green was a disability that added to his son’s misery.
    “I understand, but we can’t tolerate this type of behavior. I don’t know what to do with him anymore,” Jenna said.
    If he was standing up for himself when bullied, Jay found it hard to be angry.
    “Are you there?” Jenna asked, sounding even more frustrated.
    “Yes, I’m here. I’ll talk to him.”
    “Tonight? They’re allowed to get phone calls at the end of the day.”
    “I’ll call him before I leave work,” he promised.
    “Don’t forget.”
    Jay gritted his teeth. She took such pleasure in schooling him about being a parent, yet whenever she felt out of her depth with the boys, she didn’t hesitate to call.
    “I won’t. Anything else?”
    Silence.
    Impatiently, Jay tapped the pen on a stack of papers. He didn’t have time to dawdle on the phone with Jenna. He had to finish reading and signing these contracts. Then he had to write a memo to the account executives on revisions to the company’s best practices for handling problem clients. All this plus drive thirty miles to a client’s pre-opening restaurant party they’d begged him to attend.
    “Are you doing okay?” Jenna asked.
    Jay stopped tapping. She seldom expressed concern about his well-being. There were times he wondered if she’d ever loved him at all. “I’m fine.”
    “Good.”
    She fell quiet again, and while the silence was nerve-wracking enough to want to get off the phone, he didn’t speak until she did.
    “I’m seeing someone. It’s kind of serious and…I thought I’d mention it.”
    He hadn’t expected her to divulge that type of information and wasn’t sure how he felt. “Oh?”
    “I told the boys about him and I’m introducing them to each other this weekend. We’re all going out to dinner.”
    Jay didn’t begrudge his ex-wife the opportunity to date. He certainly did—all manner of women from all walks