“Just about done.”
“Awesome. When I get home, I’ll make the bed. Her stuff is in the dryer.”
“Sounds good, baby. See you in a few.”
“Be home soon.” I drop my phone back into my bag, then pay for the groceries, load up my car, and head to The Wedge to get our sandwiches. Halfway home, my phone rings, and I look at the screen on my dash and frown when I see my divorce lawyer’s number.
“Andy,” I answer, surprised to hear from him, since it’s been months since we last spoke, probably around the time I wrote him his last check.
“Aria.” His voice is somber, and unease makes my hands grip my steering wheel. Every time I’ve spoken to him in the past, he’s sounded reassuring; he’s never once sounded somber. “It seems your ex-husband has decided to file a claim with the courts, asking for more alimony.”
“What?” I breathe, not sure I heard him right, but knowing I did. What the hell?
“The good news is he doesn’t have a leg to stand on. The bad news is we are going to go back in front of the judge to prove he doesn’t deserve more than he’s receiving at this time.”
“You’re kidding, right?” He must be, because I’m already paying Josh more than is even justifiable, so it’s unbelievable he’s asking for more now.
“I wish I was.” I hear him shuffle some papers around. “But this isn’t something you need to be concerned with, Aria. He doesn’t have a case.”
“Right.” I shake my head, remembering him saying the exact same thing when he was representing me during my divorce and Josh’s lawyer brought up alimony. He was positive then that I wouldn’t have to pay my ex-husband, but he was wrong—so very, very wrong.
“As soon as the official documents are brought to me, I’ll call you, and we’ll discuss things further.”
“Sure,” I agree, with nothing else to say, and he hangs up after saying a quick goodbye. Part of me wants to call my mom to ask if she knew Josh was planning on doing this. To see what she thinks about it, if she didn’t know that her perfect Josh is trying to get more money out of me, all because I refused to get back with him. The only reason I don’t call her is because I don’t know what I will say if she makes it seem like I’m at fault.
When I reach my house, I pull around the driveway and back my car up so I don’t have to travel too far with the stuff in my trunk. I take a couple deep breaths, then get out and head to the trunk and carry the pumpkins to the porch, placing them next to the mums I have on the three steps. Then I grab as many shopping bags as I can, which is almost half the trunk. After maneuvering my way inside, I set the bags on the floor in the kitchen and head back out to get the rest of the stuff. As I lean into my trunk, I’m stopped when Tide steps up to my side and rids me of my burdens in one of his hands and carries them inside.
Needing another moment to myself to wrap my mind around what Andy just told me, I get back in my car and park it next to Tide’s truck in the driveway that isn’t really a driveway but a dirt patch in the yard. When I get out, Tide is waiting for me at the top of the steps, and I can tell just by the look on his face that he knows something is wrong.
I walk toward him, and he opens his arms as tears of frustration fill my eyes. “Baby,” he whispers, and I don’t say anything for a long time. I can’t; words are trapped in my throat, making it hard to breathe and impossible to speak. “What the fuck happened?”
“He wants more,” I finally get out, and his hold on me gets even tighter.
“What?”
“Josh…” I drag in a ragged breath before letting it out. “He wants more. He wants more money from me.” I press my face against his chest and shake my head. “I don’t get it. I don’t understand him. He’s already gotten more than he should have. How could be possibly want more?”
“Who told you this?” he asks, placing his fingers under my chin, and I tip my head back.
“My divorce attorney.” I admit with tears in my eyes, making his image blurry as I tell him about the phone call, and his expression fills with disbelief before morphing into rage.
“What the fuck?”
“I don’t know.” I pull in a breath, then let it out slowly. “I think I need to talk to a different lawyer though. I’m worried that if I stick with my divorce attorney, Josh will win like he did last time.”
“Then we will start looking at lawyers,” he says easily, giving me a squeeze. “I know there’s a few attorneys in town you could talk to, or you can ask your agent if she knows someone she’d recommend. Sometimes those fancy big-city lawyers are better at getting the job done. And who knows? You might get a judge who says that he doesn’t deserve anything at all from you.”
“Maybe,” I agree. “I’ll call Rachel after we have lunch and see if she knows anyone in LA. She never liked Josh, so I’m sure she will be happy to help me.”
“No matter what happens, I’ve got your back.” He cups my cheek, and I lock my eyes with his, realizing the fear I felt the last time I was in this situation isn’t there. Not that I’m not worried—I’m just not scared, because I’m not alone. I have people who care about me, so even if I lose, I still win. “It will be okay, no matter what it will be okay.” He kisses me softly before he tucks my face against his chest, and holds me tightly. After a few minutes he asks quietly. “Do you want to go with me to pick up Olivia from school after we eat?”
“I think I should take that time to call Rachel.” I tip my head and he nods.
“Let’s go eat, then while you call Rachel, I’ll go pick up Olivia from school, run by my place, pack her a bag, come back here pick you up and we’ll go out to dinner.”
“That works.” I agree and he bends to kiss my forehead, then takes my hand. After sandwiches he takes off, I don’t call Rachel right away. I put away groceries, make Olivia’s bed, then take the vacuum upstairs to go over the carpets Tide laid upstairs one last time. I want her to feel comfortable here, especially if this becomes a regular thing, which I really, really hope it does. Honestly, I wish Tide would move in officially, since he’s basically living with me already. I just don’t know if it’s too soon for me to bring up the topic of us living together, and I don’t want to rock the boat when things are going so well.
After running the vacuum over the unicorn-shaped rug in front of Olivia’s bed, I look around and smile. The room is cute and perfect for a little girl, with a stylish double bed with a tall headboard that has lights attached on either side of it that she can tap on anytime she needs them. Nightstands for her books and a dresser to match all of them are a very pretty gray that looks antique with the whitewash overlay. I didn’t want to go too overboard with pink, so I picked out a frilly white comforter set and floral curtains, along with a small doll house for her Barbies. There’s a nightlight for her dresser that is supposed to light up the ceiling like it’s covered with stars.
With one last look around, I carry the vacuum back downstairs, grab my cell, and go to my office, taking a seat at my desk as I dial Rachel’s number.
“Aria, is everything okay?” she answers, and I quickly tell her about what happened with Josh and ask if she knows a lawyer that might be able to help me out. “That guy.” There is no hiding the disgust in her tone. “A friend of mine who recently got divorced used a lawyer in New York City named Abby that is pretty well known for serving up justice. I don’t know if she can work on a case out of state, but I’ll send you her website, and you can give her a call to find out.”
“Thank you. I really appreciate this,” I say as a text comes through from her.
“No thanks needed, but I am curious if Josh has found out about your deal with Paramount or the publisher offering you another book deal.”
My heart sinks. “Do you think he knows about that?”
“It’s possible.” She sighs. “But even if that’s the case, he doesn’t deserve anything from you, darling.”
“I know.”
“Call the lawyer I sent you, and let me know what she
says.”
“I will.” We hang up after saying goodbye, and I click on the website for the lawyer. Honestly, she looks a little young in her pictures, but I have to admit the amount of cases she’s won is impressive.
With nothing to lose, I dial the number off the website, and a woman named Courtney answers. After explaining my situation, she puts me on hold for a few minutes before transferring me through to Abby, who seems pissed on my behalf. During our talk, asks for my lawyer’s contact information and assures me that she’ll be happy to take on my case, before transferring me back to Courtney. After agreeing to send all my court documents over so they can get to work immediately I hang up and turn to look out the window feeling hopeful.
________________
“THIS IS SO gross.” I make a funny face at Olivia, and she giggles as I pull out another handful of seeds and gunk from our pumpkin, dropping it on the table that we covered with trash bags.
“This isn’t gross. It’s awesome,” Tide says, dropping his own handful of pumpkin guts on the table. “Are you sure you don’t want to be on my team, angel?”
“Why would she want to be on the losing team?” I ask, and he laughs while she giggles again, the happy sound making my chest warm. The last four days with her have been good—better than good. I love having her around and understand more than I did before why Tide looks forward to his weeks with her and is a little bit of a grump the first few days after their week is over. She’s made this house feel like a home. From breakfast in the morning to homework after school and dinner together, we’ve settled into a routine, and I don’t know what I’m going to do when she has to go back to her mom. I do think I will be just as grumpy as Tide.
“Do you want to help me finish up?” I motion to the pumpkin with my chin, and her nose scrunches adorably.
“No, thank you.” She holds up her hands then looks down at her cute little floral top and matching bottoms. “I don’t want to get dirty.”
“Chicken,” Tide says, and she sticks her tongue out at him. “Oh really?” He walks around the side of the table with his hand covered in gunk, and she squeals, ducking behind me.
“Don’t you dare,” I warn when he gets a mischievous look in his eyes.
“Don’t what, babe?” He reaches for me, and without thinking, I toss the handful of gunk in my hand at him, and it lands against his chest with a splat.
“Oh no…” I cover my mouth with my hand as his eyes drop to his tee, and Olivia giggles. “I… I didn’t mean to do that.”
“Oh, now you’re in trouble.” He grabs a handful himself from the table, and I back away from him.
“Really, Tide, I didn’t mean to do that. I swear.” I reach for Olivia, who is still behind me, and pull her around in front of me, wrapping my arms around her to use her as a shield.
“Angel, look how quickly Aria has betrayed you.” Tide grins, makes a tsking sound before dumping the stuff in his hand onto her head and mine.
“I cannot believe you just did that,” I whisper in disbelief shaking the seeds out of my hair.
“Believe it, baby.” He reaches for more, but Olivia gets there before him and tosses a handful in his direction, hitting him on the side of his face and neck.
“Oh my God.” I start to laugh, but my laughter ends on a gasp when wet goo hits the side of my face. I look at Olivia, and she giggles before ducking under the side of the table. “Oh, now it’s on.” I dive for the pile of seeds, getting two handfuls before Tide drags me off to get his own ammunition. After that, there are no teams. The three of us end up in an all-out war, and we don’t stop until there is nothing left and we are all covered with gunk.
“I think I need to take a shower.” Olivia giggles, and I turn my head her way and laugh when I see what a mess she is, imagining I look much the same.
“I think we all need to shower,” I say, and she graces me with a beautiful smile before she ducks out from under the table, where we were both attempting to escape Tide, who was much faster than either of us. It takes me a couple seconds to get free, and when I do, I find her giving her dad a hug. Not wanting to interrupt their moment, I start to clean up but stop when little arms wrap around my waist.
“That was fun,” she tells me, and I look down at her and touch my hand to the top of her sticky hair.
“It was.” I smile, and she grins back before she lets me go. A second later, I hear her feet on the stairs. When I turn toward Tide, I brace when his gaze meets mine, unsure what the look in his eyes means, but I do know it makes me feel warm all over. “What?”
“How many kids do you want?”
The question catches me off guard, and my mouth opens and closes before I shake my head. “What?”
“I want at least two more,” he says, and my heart starts to pound. “Do you want more than that?”
“Two is good,” I reply quietly, and he nods while stepping toward me.
“Have I told you how much I fucking love you today?” He cups my cheek once he’s close, and I rest my hands against his chest, needing him to hold me up, because my legs are suddenly feeling weak.
“I love you too.”
“I know you do.” He bends down to kiss me, and when he pulls back, my lashes flutter open. “Every day, I fall a little deeper in love with you, and I imagine that’s gonna keep happening until the day I die.” His thumb sweeps the edge of my jaw. “I got a lot to look forward to, baby, and just a couple of them are making you my wife and putting my babies in you.”
“Tide,” I breathe. Leave it to him to take something I’ve been nervous to bring up with him and just put it out there like it’s not a big deal and make it sound inevitable.
“Don’t worry. This isn’t my proposal.” His hand covers mine and his thumb runs down my ring finger. “I’ll ask you to marry me properly, and not when we’re covered with pumpkin guts.”
“Okay.” I laugh, dropping my forehead to his chest “But you should know that even covered in pumpkin guts, the answer would still be yes.”
“Good to know.” He kisses the top of my head, and I squeeze my eyes shut, pretty sure I might pass out from happiness, something I didn’t even know was possible before him.
Chapter 19
Tide
“IT’S HALLOWEEN!” I hear Olivia shout, and I jolt awake right before the bed bounces, and she lands on my chest, making me grunt. “Did you hear me? It’s Halloween.”
“I heard you.” I smile at my beautiful girl and brush her hair off her cheek. “Good morning, angel.”
“Morning, Daddy.” She touches her nose to mine, something she’s never done before, then she looks to my side where Aria is curled up against me, and whispers, “It’s Halloween Aria.”
“I heard.” I feel Aria’s cheek move against my bicep and know she’s smiling as she reaches out to touch Olivia’s nose with the tip of her finger.
“Aren’t you excited we get to eat candy all day?” She rolls off my chest to her back, which places her between Aria and me, and I move to my side and rest my head in the palm of my hand. Since she was little, she’s loved Halloween more than any of the other holidays. I thought as she got older it would change, but it hasn’t, which is why I’ve given up Christmas Day most years. As much as I love seeing her open gifts Christmas morning, I know she really looks forward to today, eating junk and dressing up with me, and I want her to have that for as long as this time lasts.
“You don’t get to eat candy all day, angel.”
“I kind of do.” She holds up her small hand and ticks off one finger. “You always make me Reese’s chip pancakes on Halloween.” She holds up another finger. “Then we always go to Grandma’s, and she gives me lots of candy when I help her.” She holds up another finger. “And tonight when I get done trick-or-treating, I get to eat all the candy I won.”
“Right,” I mumble, and Aria laughs, then Olivia rolls her way and rests her hand against her cheek, the contact causing Aria’s expression to gentle and my heart to squeeze.
“Yes,” Aria says quietly, and Olivia crawls forward to touch their noses together like she did with me, then she pushes up to stand and begins jumping up and down.
“Why don’t you go brush your teeth, and when you’re done, we’ll head down to make breakfast.”
“Okay.” She bounces on to the edge of the bed, lands on her bottom, before dropping to the ground and running out of the room. With her gone, I reach out for Aria and drag her across the bed toward me.
“Morning, baby.” I burrow my face into the side of her neck, then kiss her shoulder and pull back to look at her.
“Morning.” She rests her palm against my chest, her expression the same as it was last night when I brought up us having kids and getting married. Two things I’m looking forward to doing with her. Two things she seemed surprised I wanted. How she hasn’t realized I’m obsessed with her is anyone’s guess. “I know I shouldn’t be thinking about tomorrow morning already, but I’m going to be bummed when Olivia goes back to her mom’s.”
“Me too.” I lean in to brush my mouth across hers, then tuck a piece of her hair behind her ear. “But we’ll have her back in a week.”
“I guess you’re right.” She tips her head to the side. “So Reese’s chip pancakes for breakfast?”
“It’s Halloween.” I grin, then ask, “Is Gia still meeting us at Mom’s?” With Colton working tonight, Aria invited Gia to spend Halloween with us, even with Gino too young to actually trick-or-treat she wanted to have photos of him dressed up.
“That’s the plan, and I told her that we will just get ready there. That way, we’re not trying to eat dinner in our costumes. What time is Anna picking up Olivia from your parents?”
“Around nine. She called yesterday to let me know she has a date, so she might be a little later.”
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