Page 129 of Your Second Chance
Aunt Mae and her boyfriend had left earlier in the afternoon after spending the morning with us. They’d helped set up the tree—because better late than never—and the house was filled with the scent of pine and the glow of twinkling lights. Scarlette had been at the center of it all, chattering away as she hung ornaments, sharing every detail of her museum trip.
“Mydadshowed me how to build this huge block tower,” she’d told Aunt Mae earlier, her eyes wide with excitement. “It was so tall! And then it fell over, but he said it was thebest tower ever!”
Aunt Mae had smiled warmly, pausing as she strung lights around the tree. “Sounds like you had a great time, sweetheart.”
I’d stayed quiet, letting her excitement take over the room, but inside, my emotions churned. Hearing her talk about him so openly—so happily—was something I hadn’t prepared myself for. It was good. It was what I wanted for her. It was also new and fragile, and I was protective.
With the house quiet again, I stood in the living room, staring at the tree while Scarlette played on the floor with her new craft kit.
“We have to FaceTime with Granny and Pops when they wake up, Scar,” I called out to her, and she nodded.
“Daddy Luna is home,” Luna shouted as she slammed open the door and came bounding in.
“It’s freezing outside. Close the door.”
“Hey, Nova,” a masculine voice said from behind her, and my head whipped in the direction of the sound.
It was Dirks.
I blinked, caught off guard. Before I could say anything, Luna breezed past me, her voice dropping to a sharp whisper. “It’s Christmas. He’s here. Shut up.”
I stared at her, my mouth opening to protest, but she was already making a beeline toward Scarlette.
She looked up, her face lighting up when she saw Luna. “I think I’m gonna start calling you Luna now,” she said thoughtfully, “ ’cause I met my other daddy.”
Luna gasped dramatically, scooping Scarlette into her arms and planting loud kisses on her cheeks. “Never,” she declared, her voice filled with mock horror. “I am Daddy Luna for life.”
Scarlette giggled, throwing her arms around Luna’s neck. “Okay, Daddy Luna,” she said with a grin, clearly delighted.
My emotions were a tangled mess of amusement, irritation, and the ever-present undercurrent of uncertainty that came with everything these days.
Hovering in the doorway, Dirks gave me a small, awkward smile, clearly waiting for a reaction. Shifting awkwardly, he cleared his throat. “Merry Christmas,” he said, his voice a little too cheerful, clearly trying to break the ice.
“Merry Christmas,” I replied cautiously, still trying to figure out how I felt about his unexpected presence.
He stepped forward and handed me a plate covered in foil. “I, uh, made some stuffing and green beans for dinner.”
“Thank you.” I managed a small smile.
Before I could say anything more, Luna poured herself a glass of wine, took a long sip, and then, without preamble, turned to me.
“So, what did Ollie think about the meeting with Austin?” she asked, her tone casual, as if we weren’t standing in the middle of the kitchen with Dirks right there.
My stomach flipped, and I bit back a sharp response as I darted my eyes to Dirks, who was now studying the floor like it held the secrets to the universe.
“Luna,” I hissed.
She shrugged, utterly unbothered, and leaned against the counter. “He’s my boyfriend now, so we can talk about these things in front of him,” she said breezily. Then, lowering her voice to a conspiratorial whisper, she added, “Besides, he knows I’d chop his dick off if he said anything to Austin.”
Wait . . . boyfriend? Since . . . when?
This was too much to process. My mind was already spinning from everything that had happened with Austin, and Luna was droppingthisbombshell like it was nothing.
“Boyfriend?” I asked, my voice tinged with disbelief. “Sincewhen?”
Luna grinned, completely unfazed. “Today.” She shrugged as if that explained everything.
I stared at her, then at Dirks, who was trying to look as small and unassuming as possible.
