Page 78 of Mr. Almost

I think about it for a moment. “That could work.”

“You trust the woman who asked if I was a serial killer to watch your daughter, but not me?” Brantley asks, sounding offended.

“I don’t trust her more. Olivia does. With good reason. Next to Olivia, no one knows our daughter better than her. I wish I could say it was me, but it’s her.”

Both men fall silent as they realize I’m right.

“That’s kind of fucked up that she knows more about Ari than you do,” Eli says after a minute.

Brantley shrugs. “Fuck it. Invite the little weirdo to make the kid feel comfortable. I can still woo Ari with her there.”

“Not if I win her over first,” Eli says, egging him on.

I love this about the two of them. Brantley gets worked up easily, and Eli plays into it when the truth is he doesn’t care nearly as much as he makes it sound. He would give up the title of best uncle to Brantley just to make him happy. Even if he really wanted it for himself.

“Are you sure?” I press.

“Positive,” both men say.

“Little Bit, do you want to go to a hockey game?” Brantley yells out.

Ari turns around and comes running back to us. “What’s hockey?” she asks.

Brantley groans. “You wound me, kid. Wound me.”

“Do you want to go?” Eli asks her again.

Ari shrugs. “As long as Mommy and Daddy say it’s okay.”

All three of them look at me, and I raise my hands. “I’ll text Livvy and see what she says.”

“Sweet,” Brantley says, rubbing his hands together.

“She might say no,” I point out as I text her.

Me

I don’t know if you remember, but Brantley owns a hockey team. They have a home game this weekend. Brantley invited Chloe and Arianna to go. Eli will be there, and probably Max. They figured we could have a date night. You can say no if you aren’t comfortable with it. Or he can get us in too, if you prefer.

The longer it takes for her to respond, the more nervous I become. What if I just fucked up everything I’ve been working toward? As we continue along the path, Eli and Brantley banter back and forth, vying for Ari’s attention. I’m glad I have them. Ari will never say she doesn’t have a whole team behind her.

Finally, my phone buzzes in my hand.

Livvy

Chloe says she’s game, and if you trust them, then I do too. A date would be nice.

“She said yes,” I tell them, making them cheer.

It looks like I have a date to plan.

Chapter

Fifteen

OLIVIA

“Bye Mommy, bye Daddy.”Ari waves over her shoulder as she walks down Mason’s driveway, holding Chloe’s hand and surrounded by Max, Eli, and Brantley.

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