of the way. I know you’re with Luke now. It’ll kill me, but I’ll be respectful and give you two you’re privacy. But please don’t keep me from Davis.”
Surprise spreads over her face. “I’m not with Luke, Reed. I never have been. He’s still my best friend and Godfather to Davis.”
“Then why were you vacationing with him? You two looked pretty close.” The statement comes out harsher than I meant it to.
She squints her eyes at me and my blood chills. She’s mad.
“Not that it’s any of your business, but he invited us along to his company retreat. It was a family function and we’re family.”
“Bullshit! He’s always had a thing for you.”
“No, Reed, he hasn’t! He’s dating a co-worker of mine. They’re coming over tonight together. You were just always jealous.”
There’s no use in trying to argue back she’s right—I was always jealous of her relationship with Luke. I’m of the opinion that men and women can’t be friends. I knew how important he was to her and slowly started to understand their bond. But all my acceptance disappeared when I saw them together on campus that day.
“You’re right. I was jealous of him and now that I know he got to experience the most important moments in our sons life, I’m resentful.” I say through gritted teeth.
“Are we going to rehash that now? After a really good day? You know why I went to him. You should be thanking him. If it wasn’t for him and Soph, Davis and I may not be here right now. That’s how bad I was, Reed, I could have died!”
Hearing her say the words breaks something in me. A world, my world without Arianna, would be dark. I’ve lived the past few years fast and free, but only in the past few hours, have I felt alive.
“You’re right, I’m sorry. But shit, Ari, all I’ve thought about the last three and a half days is you and Davis. I’m pissed at the world and at the same time, I’m thanking God. Someone conspired to keep us apart. I want to fucking kill them.”
“You may think that, but maybe it was meant to be.”
“What? I didn’t lie to you. I wanted you with me every second of every day. When I was injured last season, the first face that floated into my head was yours. I’ve never forgotten how much I loved you.”
“ Stop! This isn’t about you and me anymore. We’re over. This is about the little boy in the other room who deserves to know his father. I can do this Reed. I can allow you to be a part of his life. But what I can’t do is allow myself to feel anything again for you. It broke me.”
Her statement sparks a drive in me. I see it in her eyes and feel it in the room around us. There’s still a chance for us. She’s given up, but I haven’t.
“Okay, Angel. We’ll put that conversation aside for now. Send me an email with your normal schedule and we’ll set up a routine of me stopping by. I was thinking maybe that I could take y’all to dinner on Monday night. I’m moving my clothes into the new place tomorrow.”
“Okay, I can do that. And Monday is fine, but we need to invite Grandma.”
Shit! This woman may chop off my balls. I’m sure her opinion of me is a piece of trash.
“Don’t look so scared. She’s calmed down in the years. Davis and she are really close and it’ll help if he thinks she likes you. She won’t be ugly in front of him.”
“Let me know what time to be here. I’d like to ride together. Maybe I could come back and you could teach me how to get Davis ready for bed afterwards.”
“Sure.”
There’s nothing really left to say so I get out my keys and make my way to the door. She follows me, and her arm brushes up against mine. The tingling returns.
Taking her by surprise, I pull her into a hug and kiss her temple before leaving. She grins at me sadly.
When I get into my car, I vow a few things. Number one, I will find out who worked to break us up all those years ago and why. Number two, I am going after my family. Ari will be mine
Surprise spreads over her face. “I’m not with Luke, Reed. I never have been. He’s still my best friend and Godfather to Davis.”
“Then why were you vacationing with him? You two looked pretty close.” The statement comes out harsher than I meant it to.
She squints her eyes at me and my blood chills. She’s mad.
“Not that it’s any of your business, but he invited us along to his company retreat. It was a family function and we’re family.”
“Bullshit! He’s always had a thing for you.”
“No, Reed, he hasn’t! He’s dating a co-worker of mine. They’re coming over tonight together. You were just always jealous.”
There’s no use in trying to argue back she’s right—I was always jealous of her relationship with Luke. I’m of the opinion that men and women can’t be friends. I knew how important he was to her and slowly started to understand their bond. But all my acceptance disappeared when I saw them together on campus that day.
“You’re right. I was jealous of him and now that I know he got to experience the most important moments in our sons life, I’m resentful.” I say through gritted teeth.
“Are we going to rehash that now? After a really good day? You know why I went to him. You should be thanking him. If it wasn’t for him and Soph, Davis and I may not be here right now. That’s how bad I was, Reed, I could have died!”
Hearing her say the words breaks something in me. A world, my world without Arianna, would be dark. I’ve lived the past few years fast and free, but only in the past few hours, have I felt alive.
“You’re right, I’m sorry. But shit, Ari, all I’ve thought about the last three and a half days is you and Davis. I’m pissed at the world and at the same time, I’m thanking God. Someone conspired to keep us apart. I want to fucking kill them.”
“You may think that, but maybe it was meant to be.”
“What? I didn’t lie to you. I wanted you with me every second of every day. When I was injured last season, the first face that floated into my head was yours. I’ve never forgotten how much I loved you.”
“ Stop! This isn’t about you and me anymore. We’re over. This is about the little boy in the other room who deserves to know his father. I can do this Reed. I can allow you to be a part of his life. But what I can’t do is allow myself to feel anything again for you. It broke me.”
Her statement sparks a drive in me. I see it in her eyes and feel it in the room around us. There’s still a chance for us. She’s given up, but I haven’t.
“Okay, Angel. We’ll put that conversation aside for now. Send me an email with your normal schedule and we’ll set up a routine of me stopping by. I was thinking maybe that I could take y’all to dinner on Monday night. I’m moving my clothes into the new place tomorrow.”
“Okay, I can do that. And Monday is fine, but we need to invite Grandma.”
Shit! This woman may chop off my balls. I’m sure her opinion of me is a piece of trash.
“Don’t look so scared. She’s calmed down in the years. Davis and she are really close and it’ll help if he thinks she likes you. She won’t be ugly in front of him.”
“Let me know what time to be here. I’d like to ride together. Maybe I could come back and you could teach me how to get Davis ready for bed afterwards.”
“Sure.”
There’s nothing really left to say so I get out my keys and make my way to the door. She follows me, and her arm brushes up against mine. The tingling returns.
Taking her by surprise, I pull her into a hug and kiss her temple before leaving. She grins at me sadly.
When I get into my car, I vow a few things. Number one, I will find out who worked to break us up all those years ago and why. Number two, I am going after my family. Ari will be mine
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