Kristen Ashley - Games of the Heart

If he had no kids, I had no doubt the offer to move in would have been extended.

Since he did, and Mike was the kind of Dad Mike was, this was not going to happen for a while.

Which he clearly found a tad bit more than annoying.

Mike ended the silence with, “You want me to come over?”

“I’m good, honey,” I said softly.

This was again met with silence and this silence surprised me.

When it stretched, I called into it, “Mike?”

“Jesus, fuck you’re right next fuckin’ door.”

Right. Mike didn’t shy away from cussing but he sprinkled his curse words abundantly when he was seriously pissed. And he was pissed because I told him I’d been crying and he was too far away to do anything about it even though he was right next door.

“Honey, I’m good. Promise,” I whispered.

“Like to see that for myself, Dusty,” Mike replied.

Seriously, no kidding, I loved this man.

“Okay, then, give it half an hour. Fin gets back, I’ll head out,” I gave in.

“Why half an hour?”

“Um…” Shit! “Just wanna see if Kirb has got his homework done and is settling in for the night.”

Silence then, “Bullshit.”

I pressed my lips together.

More silence then, “Half an hour, Angel.”

He was such a good Dad.

“Half an hour, babe.”

There was even more silence then, “Wanna be face-to-face for this but can’t wait ‘cause, you cryin’, I gotta know. If you say yes, I’m not waitin’ half an hour. Fin can have the back gate, I’ll drive over.”

There it was. Mike knew the back gate ploy. Though, he was a guy. I wasn’t surprised.

Mike kept talking. “Today, did Denny come up for you?”

I drew in breath.

Then I said carefully, “Maybe a little.”

“Shit, I’m comin’ over.”

“Mike,” I said hurriedly. “Only a little. I’m okay.”

“You went somewhere today, sweetheart. I saw it. I’ve given you time. Time’s up.”

“I’ll be over in a half an hour.”

“Dusty –”

“Mike, honey, I’ll be fine and you can make it all okay in half an hour.”

Again I got silence.

Then he announced strangely, “Givin’ it two more weeks.”

“Giving what two more weeks?” I asked.

“Until I have a talk with the kids about them understanding Dad having Dusty for sleepovers.”

My stomach curled and it felt nice.

“You in?” he prompted.

“If they are,” I answered.

“They will be,” he muttered.

I grinned.

“Is now a time I’m allowed to go shopping for bribes for your kids?” I asked.

“No,” he answered and I chuckled.

“Right,” I murmured through my soft laughter.

“Half an hour, Dusty,” he ordered and my smile stayed in place.

“Half an hour, gorgeous.”

“Later.”

“’Bye.”

I touched the screen on my phone. Then smiled at the ceiling.

Then I heard my mother shout, “Kirby, honey, do you have your homework done?”

To which came an exasperated, “Yeah, Gram!”

Now Kirby had Fin, me and his grandmother asking every night if his homework done.

Obviously, from his tone, he was over it.

And I thought that was funny.

So I burst out laughing.

Mike stood leaning against the kitchen counter with his mug of coffee in his hand staring at his kids at the table, No eating breakfast, Rees’s hands moving on her phone and he was wondering how the fuck to say what he had to say.

Shit.

It had been two weeks since Fin’s fight. Two very long weeks.

He had to say it.

Shit.

“Kids, gotta have a word before you get to school,” he announced and No kept shoveling cereal in his face though he did spare Mike a glance before his eyes went back to his cereal.

Reesee had her head bent to her cell, texting Fin no doubt, and she muttered, “Yeah Dad?”

He opened his mouth.

Then he closed it.

Shit.

Fuck it.

“Tomorrow night, you’re goin’ to your Mom’s house. As you know, Dusty and I are adults. What you don’t know is that when you’re at your Mom’s, Dusty stays here with me. But this time, when you get back, Sunday night she’ll be spending the night. And from here on in, we’ll see, but a couple of nights a week she’ll be sleeping over.”

No shoved another spoonful of cereal in his mouth and to his bowl garbled, “She should just move in.”

Mike blinked and he did it slow.

Reesee’s phone binged in her hand and she mumbled, “Yeah, totally.”

No gave Mike his eyes and he informed him of something Mike already knew. “There’s like, a trillion people livin’ in that house and one bathroom.”

Rees looked at her brother. “They have a half bath downstairs,” she corrected.

No looked at his sister. “Yeah, but you can’t shower in a half bath. It would suck huge havin’ to share a shower with, like, a trillion people.”

“Totally,” Rees muttered, her eyes dropping back to her phone, her thumbs flying over the keypad, her ability to multitask coming apparent when she kept talking. “Fin’s like, totally over sharing his room with Kirby. Totally. He hates it.”

“I’m there,” No muttered to his bowl then shoveled more food in but still spoke through it. “I had my own space then wham! I didn’t, that would so suck.”

“And Dusty’s livin’ outta suitcases,” Rees stated then hit a button and looked at her Dad. “That’s gotta be old. It’s been weeks.”

No put his spoon down, picked up the bowl and looked to Mike. “She’s over here practically every night anyway. And your room is huge and you got your own bathroom. That would be a huge step up for Dusty.”

“And you have space in your closet,” Rees added. “When she was teachin’ me how to do my makeup, I saw all her clothes and she has a lot but you have a big closet. You barely use even half of it. They would so fit in there.” Her phone binged, her eyes went to it and she finished, “Though, most of them were on the floor. She’s kinda messy.”

Mike felt his lips twitch.

No was engaged in drinking the milk from his bowl and once he accomplished this, he looked back at his Dad and he smiled a slow, lazy smile. “She’s around, she’s on the rota and I only have to vacuum and dust every fourth week instead of every third.”

“That would rock,” Rees muttered, her thumbs moving over the keypad again. “Though, she doesn’t seem to be real hip on cleanin’.”

Mike felt his lips twitch again.

No got up with his bowl and spoon to take them to the sink, pointing out, “And it would be totally lame, her gettin’ an apartment somewhere when the farm is right next door. They already started working the fields. If she has to help with the plantin’ or she needs to do her pottery, she can just walk right over there if she lives here. She doesn’t have to drive from wherever.”

“And she finds someplace,” Rees added, “she moves there then when you guys get solid she only has to move back here.”

When they get solid?

Jesus.

No rinsed his bowl while muttering, “Jacked, total waste of time.”

“And money,” Rees stated and her phone binged again.

“Crap!” No exclaimed, opening the door on the dishwasher and shoving his bowl in. “I forgot my chemistry book.”

Rees was up and grabbing her book bag off the back of her chair. “I’ll meet you in the car.”

No shoved the dishwasher closed and replied, “Cool.” Then he hustled to the door saying, “Later, Dad.”

Rees came to Mike and got up on her toes to kiss his cheek, phone still in both hands, attention mostly on it, mouth muttering, “See you tonight, Daddy.”

She kissed his cheek and wandered out, thumbs going over the keypad.

Mike stood where he stood exactly as he stood for the last five minutes, silent, leaning against the counter with his coffee mug in his hand, eyes aimed at the kitchen table. He did this for a while. Long enough to hear Rees open the door to the garage. Long enough to hear No run up the stairs then down them. Long enough to hear No shout, “Outta here, Dad!” Long enough for No to be out of there and Mike to hear the garage door go up and No’s beat up, piece of shit car backing out, the garage door going down and the kids driving away.

His first thought was it was time to trade No’s car up. He’d been responsible. No tickets. No accidents. That thing was going on a wing and a prayer. How Mike would find the money for that and Reesee’s school, he had no clue. But it was time.

On his second thought, he burst out laughing.

Then he took a sip of his coffee as he pulled his phone out, scrolled to Dusty and hit go.

She answered on ring two.

“Hey, gorgeous.”

“Had the talk with the kids.”

Silence then, “Oh shit, really?”

She knew what he was saying. He’d told her last night he was going to do it.

“Yeah.”

More silence then, “Uh…you gonna clue me in or are you gonna make me have a nervous breakdown?”

“How do you feel about moving in?”

This got him a whispered, “What?”

It was a good whisper. A happy whisper. And Mike liked it a fuckuva lot.

“No’s idea,” Mike shared. “He’s concerned about the bathroom situation at the Holliday farm. Clarisse is worried about you living out of a suitcase.”

This bought him more silence then he heard her sweet, musical laughter.

When it started dying down, Mike gave it to her.

“Try-outs,” he said softly. “The kids did not blink when I mentioned you spending the night and like I said, you moving in was their idea. Still, it’s a big change for you, me and them. You move in this weekend, we try it out. Keep our finger on the pulse of where everyone is. We need to step back, we’ll reconsider and deal. You in?”

 “My freshman year, Debbie forced me to try out for the volleyball team. She said I needed focus and the discipline of athletics. I totally failed. I was ousted in the first cut.”

Mike said nothing.

“Bet I’ll be better at this,” she said softly.

Mike had no doubt.

“So you’re in,” he said softly back.

“Abso-freaking-lutely,” she replied.

“Pack your bags, Angel, this shit goes down tomorrow night,” Mike ordered.

“I’m all over it, honey.”

Mike smiled. It was a happy smile. And it felt fucking great.

“Mike?” Dusty called.

“Still here,” Mike told her.

“I love your kids,” she whispered.

Mike closed his eyes. No smile. But what he was feeling was still fucking happy.

He opened his eyes. “Good,” he whispered back. Then, “I gotta hit the road.”

“I gotta start packing.”

His smile came back.

“Later, darlin’.”

“Later, honey.”

Mike hit the button on his phone.

Then he walked to hall, gave his dog one last rubdown then he hit the garage still smiling.

* * *

I had my purse and a carryon over my shoulder, one of my smaller suitcases in my hand. Mike was following me with two of my big suitcases. Layla was dashing between the both of us, panting, clearly ecstatic. She was either happy because she was a dog and life in general was just plain good or she understood the concept of suitcases and she liked company. Whatever, she was excited so I was glad she was right there with me.

I barely started packing yesterday before Kirby started moving back into his room. He’d called his good-bye fifteen minutes ago from his bedroom.

When I left, Fin, who helped Mike, Dad and me with my suitcases and boxes, was standing in the foyer of our house grinning at me, his face knowing.

Mom and Dad were exchanging glances wishing I was twenty years younger so they could lecture me on moving in with a man out of wedlock because they knew at my age they absolutely could not.

Rhonda was biting her lip and giving me looks. I had no idea what this meant but then again, all the time I’d spent with her in my life and especially recently, I had no idea how Rhonda’s head worked.

Mike had shared with the kids when they got home last night this was happening. That meant today I received fourteen (yes, fourteen) excited texts from Rees about how she was happy another girl was moving in. Then about how we could share makeup. Then she asked if she could borrow my clothes. Then she asked if we were going to bake another cake because she wanted to make one for Fin. And this went on.