As Tears Go By (36 page)

“In the
hall.”

She
followed his voice and a strange scraping sound coming from that direction. Her
steps halted when she spotted the small bucket filled with plaster in his hand.
“What are you doing?”

“Fixing
some of these holes.”

It was
jarring, her husband dressed down and spackling dents in her home. Kevin didn’t
perform manual labor. Was he fixing the holes to help her sell the house or—no,
she wasn’t going there.

“You’re
home early.” He smiled, throwing her off again. She couldn’t recall the last
time he grinned at her like that, without malice or narrowed eyes.

“How
long have you been here?” He shouldn’t be able to enter her home when she
wasn’t there. Sure, it used to be his home, but now the house belonged to her.
He only had a key for emergencies with Hunter.

“About
an hour. I also put a new trap in the kitchen sink.”

She’d
nagged him about that trap for close to a year. Funny, when he left she’d never
got around to fixing it. She should have said thank you, but the words wouldn’t
come.

Dumping
the putty blade into the bucket he stood and faced her. “You don’t look so good,
Rebecca. Are you okay?”

She
rubbed her forehead. “I have a migraine.”

“Oh.”
His expression turned concerned.

She
used to get migraines all the time, but hadn’t had one in a while. Kevin was
never very sympathetic to how torturous these types of headaches could be.

His
hand lightly touched her arm and she stilled. “Why don’t you go upstairs and
lie down. I’ll get you some medicine and a cold cloth for your head.”

Taken
off guard, she nodded slowly. Her temples pounded, speaking was becoming
difficult, and she’d seemed to be in some Twilight Zone where Kevin was
considerate. The fact that Kevin was suddenly offering her some much-needed aid
threw her for a major loop. “Okay.”

When
she reached her room, she slipped out of her work clothes and changed into soft
cotton pants and a shirt. Removing the hairpins that felt like daggers, she
sifted her fingers through the strands and loosened a bit of the tension
gripping her scalp.

Kevin
entered the room quietly. “Here you go, sweetheart.”

Sweetheart?
Sliding two white pills into her palm, he passed her a cool glass of water. She
gratefully swallowed the pills. “Thanks.”

“Lie
down. I’ll close the curtains.”

She
wondered if he noticed that she’d moved the furniture in the bedroom. Was he
imagining her in their bed with someone else? She knew what that was like.
Closing her eyes, she settled into the pillows as the room dimmed.

Her
body flinched as he gently placed a damp cloth over her head. His palm slowly
cupped the side of her face and she held her breath, silently freaking out at
the unexpected contact.
He shouldn’t be
touching me like that.
She casually turned her face away from his touch.

“Get
some sleep. I’ll pick up Hunter, so don’t worry about when you have to wake.”

She
remained silent as he exited the room, but her mind was reeling. This was not
the Kevin she knew.

As she drifted in and out of sleep, she vaguely heard the
soft vibration of her phone nearby, but couldn’t recall where she dropped her
purse. Sleep pulled her into a painless cocoon and she gladly let go of all
other thoughts aside from resting and feeling better.

* * * *

“Hi.
This is Becca Stevens. Leave a message.”

“Hey,
it’s me. I popped over to your office to see how your day was going, but Nikki
said you went home because you weren’t feeling good. Maybe you’re sleeping.
Give me a call when you get this.”

Hanging
up the phone, Braydon left Becca’s place of employment and headed back to his
office. If she wasn’t feeling good, he should go over there after work and help
with Hunter. He’d never thought about how difficult being a single parent could
be when the parent was sick and the child needed care, but he was glad to have
the opportunity to help.

When he
returned to his office he made a list of things he favored when he felt under
the weather. It was a shame his mum was so far away, because her soup was like
gold penicillin. He searched online for restaurants rumored to make good
chicken noodle and placed an order.

After
work he stopped at a drug store and stocked up on everything from tissues, to
stomach medicine, to antihistamines. He also grabbed her and Hunter a pint of
chocolate ice cream, just in case.

Becca’s
van wasn’t parked inside the garage like it usually was, so he parked along the
curb. Gathering his bag of remedies, he hefted them into one arm and rang the
bell, smiling as the locks disengaged on the other side.

His
smile fell the second Kevin opened the door. What the fuck was he doing there?
“Uh, is Becca home?” Weird. This was weird.

The man
shifted, blocking Braydon’s view of the interior. “Rebecca’s not feeling well.”

“I
know. That’s why I’m here.”

The
other man frowned. “Did she call you?”

No, but
he wasn’t telling this goober that. “I brought her some things.”

“She’s
resting.”

Oh,
hell no. Pressing his way inside, he said, “I’ll just put this stuff in the
kitchen and check on her then.”

Kevin
stepped aside, which was wise. Braydon placed the bag on the counter and put
the ice cream in the freezer. He went to the den, but she wasn’t there. He
greeted Hunter and the boy smiled. “Hey, bud. Where’s your mum?”

“Mom’s
sick.” He went back to making some sort of origami bird. Several littered the
floor.

Picking
a small green bird off the carpet, Braydon said, “These are neat. Did you make
them?”

“You
can have it.”

Braydon
smiled. “Thanks, bud. I’ll put it in my office at work.”

Carefully
tucking the bird in his pocket, he turned and came face to face with Kevin.
Braydon’s eyes narrowed as he spoke with constrained politeness. “I’m here now,
so you can go.”

“I have
to make Hunter dinner.”

“I
brought soup. Dinner’s covered.”

The
man’s gaze drifted to Hunter then back to Bray. “I think I’ll stay.”

They
appeared to share a mutual animosity. Braydon wasn’t going to get into some
pissing match with Becca’s ex, no matter how much his interference pissed him
off. Out of respect for Hunter he buttoned up and stepped around the man to
search for Becca.

He
found her curled on her side in bed, sound asleep. The room was dark, so he
turned on the bathroom light, illuminating the space enough to make out her
features. Gingerly, he sat on the edge of the bed. His fingers brushed a wave
of blonde hair off of her face and he softly kissed her temple.

She
drew in a slow, waking breath. “Hey.” He loved the rasp of her voice when she
woke.

“Hey. I
heard you’re sick.”

Blinking
sluggishly, she grumbled. “Word gets around fast.”

“I
stopped by your office. Nikki told me you took a half-day. I brought you soup.”

She
grinned. “You’re sweet.”

“Not
that sweet. Kevin’s here and I want him to go.”

“He
picked up Hunter for me.”

“You
could have asked me to do that.”

“I
didn’t ask. He offered. He was here when I got home.”

Braydon
frowned. “Why?”

She
shrugged. It seemed like that was all the explanation he was getting. He had a
thousand questions running through his head, but held them back until she was
feeling better.

Changing
the subject he asked, “So what’s the matter? I have a bag full of medicines and
remedies downstairs. Tell me what ails the patient and I’ll doctor you up. I
can treat anything from a runny nose to explosive diarrhea.”

She
snorted. “Ew.”

Chuckling,
loving her laugh, he said in mock seriousness, “It’s okay. I’m a professional.”

“I had
a migraine, but it’s gone now. Kevin gave me some medicine.”

“Ah.
Well, thank God for Kevin.” His tone dripped with sarcasm.

She
tsked. “Don’t be mad.”

“I’m
not,” he lied and stood. “How about I bring you some soup?”

“I
should get up.”

“No,
you rest. I’ll go set Hunter up with dinner—I’ll even give Kevin a bowl—and
I’ll be right back with yours.”

She
smiled and he left the room. When he returned downstairs the acidic sensation
in his gut doubled. Kevin was sitting beside Hunter reading a book. Hunter
didn’t seem fazed that both he and Kevin were at the house at the same time,
which he guessed was a good thing.

Braydon
cleared his throat. “I’m gonna dish out some soup and take some up to Becca.
Can you make sure Hunter eats?”

“I
think I can handle it,” Kevin said with a touch of derision.

He
really had an aversion to this man. Heading to the kitchen, he located three
bowls, deciding to feed himself last. He placed Hunter’s on the table beside
his Velcro board, a napkin, and a spoon. The soup had cooled, so there was no
need to add a cube of ice.

He left
Kevin’s bowl by the container. Let him scoop his own.

When he
carried Becca’s bowl upstairs, she was in the bathroom. Braydon placed the soup
on the nightstand and returned downstairs to refill her water. Shutting off the
spigot, he turned and nearly crashed into Kevin. Stealthy creeper.

“I
assume Becca’s informed you of my intensions by now.”

Braydon
stilled. Out of his peripheral he assessed Hunter. He was busy eating and
Kevin, apparently, thought this was the appropriate time to have an adult
discussion. “She mentioned something about your regrets.”

“I
don’t believe in regret. I believe in correcting mistakes and fixing things.”

“That
must be a new approach.”

“Look,
Brandon—”

“Braydon.”

“Braydon,”
he amended. “I understand you care for my wife—”

“She’s
not your wife anymore.”

“Regardless,
I understand you care for Rebecca, but we have a history you can’t compete
with. Hunter belongs with us.”

That
was all he could stomach. He placed the glass on the counter and faced the
other man. “That’s where you’re confused,
Keith
.”

“Kevin.”

“Right.
That’s where you’re confused. There is no competition. What you have with Becca
is history. I’m her future. So while we appreciate you helping out with Hunter,
you’re no longer necessary in her personal affairs. Stop filling her head with
promises you and I both know you don’t intend you keep.”

The
other man was silent for a moment, his eyes smoldering with resentment. “Who do
you think you are? We’re a family. Do you really want to be the man that
destroys a family?”

“I’m
afraid that man was you.”

In a
low and threatening tone, he growled, “Get out of my house.”

“I’m
not in your house. But you’re welcome to leave at any time. Excuse me.” He
casually grabbed the water and stepped around Kevin to return to Becca.

Unfortunately,
he followed Braydon to the hall. “Did she tell you she’s considering it?”

He
stilled, refusing to consider the other man’s bluff and pivoted slowly, holding
hard to his temper. “Excuse me?”

“I
didn’t think so. You may be new and fun and a vacation from reality, but I
am
her reality. Don’t think for a second she wouldn’t give up everything to
have her family back together. I know my wife.”

He
ground his molars together. If this dickwad referred to Becca as his wife one
more time… “You’re not the reality. You’re the ugly truth. She wants to move,
but she’s being patient because it would be best for everyone if you gave her
your blessing instead of burdening her with more undeserved guilt. You wanna do
something nice for Becca? Let her be happy. I’m telling you how, because it’s
clear you’ve never been able to figure it out on your own. Let her move on
without the mind games and let her finally live the life she deserves. Unless
something involves Hunter, stay out of it. You
owe
her that much.”

With
that he took the stairs and ended the discussion. It took a great deal of effort
to remain calm when he entered Becca’s room. She was pulling her hair up in a
bun, so he placed the glass on the table and kissed her exposed neck. “Do you
need anything else?”

“No.
The soup was delicious. Thank you.”

“You’re
welcome.” He glanced at his watch. “It’s almost Hunter’s bedtime. How long do
you expect your ex-husband to stick around?”

She
sent him a sidelong glance. “Be nice.”

“Oh, I
am.” She had no idea how close he was to freaking out and throwing that son of
a bitch across the lawn. He deserved points for keeping his voice calm. Having
Hunter present helped, but if Hunter went to bed and the man stuck around,
Braydon wasn’t sure what would happen.