Page 19 of Pretty Relentless

“All right, I’ll be to your place shortly.”

“Thanks, again, Mr. Pierson,” Ava says through the speaker.

“It’s Gavin, remember?”

I can hear the smile in her voice as she replies, “Gavin. Right. See you soon.”

I hang up the phone and release my seat belt. “Ready?”

“No, I’d rather go with you to Miss Rutledge’s house,” she grumbles from her seat behind me.

“Not this time. It’s a work call, and besides, your mom is expecting you. You’re going cosmic bowling later, right?”

She sighs dramatically and slowly gets out of the truck. “I know, but I like seeing Miss Rutledge.”

Me too.

I hold open the door while she climbs out and grabs her bag. “Maybe I can go with you for a little bit, and then Mom can pick me up?” she suggests, and I already know how that would go.

“Not this time, sweetheart. I could be pretty busy, if there’s a lot of damage to her roof,” I reason. It’s not Ava’s place to watch my kid while I work.

“But…she has a cat! I could help her watch Tabitha,” she states pointedly.

My head cocks to the side as I give her a look of sympathy. “Sorry, squirt, but not this time.”

She sighs. “Can’t blame a girl for trying.”

I follow behind as she walks to the front door of her mom’s house and twists the knob. “See you tomorrow?” she asks, stepping over the threshold and turning to face me.

“I’ll be here at noon,” I tell her.

This time of year can be especially wonky. Our custody schedule is shared, and even though we’ve tried just about every different option for splitting time, we settled on a seven-day schedule for rotation. Every Saturday morning at eight, the parent who just had Annabelle has to drop her off at the other’s house. It’s difficult to go an entire week without seeing my kid, but in the end, it was just the easiest way to do it. It’s way less moving and added stress of the back-and-forth as some of the other schedule options we’ve tried.

The biggest issue is the holidays.

Technically, since tomorrow is New Year’s Day andmyholiday, I should get her tonight and all day tomorrow. But I try not to be a jerk where my ex-wife is concerned. She’s taking Annabelle cosmic bowling tonight with friends and a fun New Year’s Eve celebration, and I want her to enjoy her evening without worrying about me. At the end of the day, making sure we’re both supportive for Annabelle is what’s best for her, so I suggested to Julia she keep her overnight to take advantage of as much fun with her friends as possible. I’m picking her up for lunch and taking her to our favorite pizza joint, which just so happens to be open on New Year’s Day.

Sure, I could raise a stink about the event Julia wanted to take Annabelle to cutting into the time I’m supposed to have her, but why? I’ve seen too many exes fight and bicker, hating on the other so much it just creates stress and uneasiness for the kid or kids involved.

It’s not worth it.

I’ll never put Annabelle through that.

Despite my feelings toward her mother, I will always put my daughter’s well-being first.

That doesn’t mean I haven’t had to stand my ground a time or two with Julia. You give an inch, she’ll take a mile, bat her overly made-up eyelashes, and not give two shits about my feelings on the matter. It’s happened plenty, especially in the early days of our split, but once we figured out a custody schedule that worked for everyone, things got a little easier.

“Love you, Dad,” Annabelle says, dropping her bag and throwing her arms around me.

I’m so grateful she’s not too cool yet to hug. “Love you too, Belle. See you tomorrow.”

“’Kay.”

“Have fun bowling tonight. Make sure Mom sends me pictures,” I add, hoping I’ll get at least one at some point during the night. When Annabelle asks for them to be sent to me, Julia does, but it’s not something she does out of the goodness of her heart. Not like I do. I want my ex to see our daughter’s experiences, even through photos.

“I will,” she replies before turning to hang up her coat and take off her boots. “Tell Miss Rutledge I said hello.”

“Will do. Bye, kid,” I state with a wave before turning and heading back to my truck.

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