Page 12 of Make Me Trust Again
“Finished?”
Kyle nods, his eyes darting between the two of us, uncertainty written all over his face. I curse inwardly. Some days it’s hard to remember that he isn’t a baby anymore, and he understands more than I want him to.
I give him a reassuring smile.“Go and brush your teeth. We’ll be leaving soon.”I wait for him to leave the room before turning my attention back to my mother. “Dad said he was busy with meetings. You know he’s been talking about the construction of the new park.” Mom starts to open her mouth,but I stop her. “Don’t even go there. John and I aren’t together any longer, Mom.”
“Just because you don’t want to give him a chance. I’m sure?—”
“I gave him seven years’ worth of chances, Mom,” I snap before she can even go there. “The last one was a couple of months ago.”
Back in November, afterthatday, I left him and came to my parents’ house. I needed time to figure things out and regroup. To say my parents were surprised would be an understatement. Then again, how could they not be? I never told them how bad things were, and John made sure to keep up his image when we were with them out in public. Not that we did much of either because he was always busy.
However, the moment John figured out what happened, he came knocking on our door, demanding that we come back. He made such a spectacle that all of Bluebonnet knew what happened within hours, and we were the talk of the town.
Rose Hathaway left her poor husband after he was dropped by his agent.
He lost his family and his dream in the span of a few hours.
How could she do such a thing?
All she ever cared about was his career, being an NFL wag, the popularity and money, and now that it was gone, she was cutting her losses.
I’ve heard all the stories. In all of them, I was the villain. People were giving me nasty looks wherever I went, but nobody asked me once why I left. However, everybody made sure to tell me I should give him another chance.
Including my parents.
I managed to stand my ground for a while, but after weeks of listening to how amazing he was, and how much he was trying and how much he wanted to work on our marriage, I gave in.
A stupid mistake on my part.
I knew better.
Mom’s sigh breaks me out of my thoughts. “Marriage is hard, Rose.”
As if I didn’t know that. Didn’tlivethrough it. My whole marriage has been hard. Since day one. Yes, we had some good days. We were happy there, for a while, at least. However, sooner rather than later, something would always come up.
John was on the football team, and he was quite popular. I hated the attention he got from other girls, the way I’d catch him checking them out. He said I was paranoid, but I wasn’t blind. I know he loved being in the spotlight, and having my attention wasn’t cutting it. That was our main problem, and eventually it turned out I was right.
Then I got pregnant, and we got married, and things were good. John was excited to be a dad, especially when he found out we were having a boy. But then Kyle was born, and everything changed once again.
Would we have even gotten married if I hadn’t gotten pregnant? I wondered sometimes.
Mom places her hand over mine, snapping me out of my thoughts. “And Kyle needs his family together. He needs his dad.”
My son is a freaking retard that can’t speak… It would have been better if we had gotten rid of him when we had the chance. Then I wouldn’t be stuck with the two of you.
John’s hateful words flash in my mind, and that familiar anger is back in full force.
“John had a chance to be a dad for the last six years, and he blew it every single time. I won’t watch my son’s heart break over and over again when hisdadignores him or says he’ll show up only to break his promise.” I shake my head, taking a step back. “Having no dad is better than that.”
“Is that why you refused to share custody? I know he’s been a little… absent”—she says diplomatically—“but that was because he was focused on football, but now that he knows that’s not in the cards, I’m sure he will be more present in his life. Inyourlife. John is really trying, Rose.”
My fingers clench into a fist by my side, and it takes everything in me to hold back a snort. I don’t know how she already knew what happened yesterday. I didn’t tell anybody, so John must have. Did it even matter? It’s just one more thing to add to the gossip mill surrounding my failed marriage.
“Yes. I’ll be more than happy to let John into Kyle’s life once he shows me that he’s serious about being a good father, but we’re not getting back together.” I push back from the counter and place the dirty dishes into the dishwasher. “Now, if you’ll excuse me. I have to take my son to school.”
After dropping off Kyle at school, I go to Darrow’s so they can exchange my spare tire and give my truck a look while they’re at it. While I wait, I decide to stop at the Reading Nook and grab a coffee.
Should I be spending money on a coffee I can make at home? Not really. But I needed a little pick-me-up while I checked out any new job listings.
