When Parker looks up at me, I still. His eyes; pale green. It’s like looking into a mirror. For a moment I wonder whether I have slept with Keira before now. Maybe I didn’t remember? Surely not; Keira would have mentioned it. It hits me how f**ked up it is that I have to question whether I’d slept with someone or not. There have been so many women that I might not even remember.
I’m so messed up.
“So, how are your families?” I ask, trying to be smooth. Two pairs of eyes snap to mine. I guess that didn’t come out as I’d hoped
“I’m guessing you mean Giselle,” Gage says with his eyebrow raised. “She went home; she was just here.”
“How is she these days?” I ask, not bothering to deny it. Gage smiles fondly. He always did have a soft spot for his little sister.
“She’s good, man. She works at the library when she’s not with Parker.” So she must take care of him often, then. No wonder he’s such a cool little kid.
“Man, it’s been years since I spoke to her,” I say. I’m technically not lying. I did say “spoke to” not “saw”.
“Well you probably wouldn’t recognise her. She’s changed a lot over the years,” Levi says, rubbing his thumb and index finger over his chin. Gage slaps him on the back of his head. I mentally agree with him. Giselle didn’t look anything like I remembered. Hell, I almost didn’t recognize her.
“What? She’s beautiful,” Levi defends himself adamantly, rubbing where Gage had hit. I bite my lip, not liking the way his eyes twinkle when he talks about her.
“She’s always been beautiful,” I blurt out. I clear my throat and ignore their pointed looks. “Is she married?”
Gage stares me down. “No, she’s not married.”
Levi gives me a searching look. Am I being that obvious?
“She’ll be here tomorrow morning. Where are you staying?” Gage asks, pulling me from my thoughts.
“I’ve bought a house near the beach,” I tell them. I’d considered renting, but I had the money and my financial advisors said a house in Perth would be a decent investment.
“Sweet, man, that’s cool,” Gage says, nodding.
“Can we play PS4?” Parker interrupts.
“Sure, buddy, what do you wanna play?” Levi asks.
“A shooting game,” he says cheerfully.
“You want your mum to kill us?” Gage asks with a chuckle. Somehow I can’t imagine Keira caring about whether the games the kid played were child-appropriate.
“I won’t tell! I’m no snitch!” Parker insists, his eyes huge on his small face. I can’t stop the laugh that escapes me. I can’t remember the last time I’ve laughed. This kid is a riot.
“You gonna stay and play, Tane?”
“Sure,” I answer. “Why not.”
I’m playing my second game with Parker when I notice Gage staring at me with a weird look on his face. His eyes flicker between Parker and me. I wonder if I’ve done something wrong. They seem pretty casual around the kid, but maybe I said something inappropriate.
“Everything cool, man?” I ask.
He shakes his head, as if clearing it. “Yep. Prepare to get your ass, ah, I mean butt, kicked.”
I smile, game-face on. “Yeah, we’ll see.”
Parker beats us all.
Once Parker goes to sleep, Gage, Levi and I chill out. It gets late, so Gage tells me to crash in the guest room so I don’t have to drive all the way home. I take him up on his offer, feeling too tired to drive.
For the first time in ages, I go to sleep thinking things just might get better for me.
Chapter Three
Giselle
I open the door with my key, pausing to pick my handbag up from the floor. I just finished my kickboxing class. I started doing it after I gave birth to Parker, to lose the extra baby weight, and it had become addictive. I’ve gone every week since then.
“Parker?” I call out, heading straight to the kitchen. I come to a stop when I take in the scene before me.
Tane Miller is making breakfast. For my son. Two identical pairs of pale-green eyes raise when they see me enter. Parker gives me a huge grin. I force a smile, blinking slowly a few times. This was not something I’d ever thought I’d see: Parker and his father, standing side by side. It’s so obvious that Parker is his son; did Gage and Levi notice? I look around the room before my eyes find Tane again. Feeling a little unsure, I take a step closer, wondering how much Tane knows.
“Giselle,” Tane says almost reverently.
So now he addresses me. Why not before when we were at Keira’s? Did he not recognise me? Maybe he’s trying to play that night off like it never happened.
“Tane,” I say sharply, in what I supposed was a greeting. I see his forehead wrinkle in confusion, most likely surprised by my dismissiveness. I realise he probably wasn’t used to women who didn’t fawn over his every movement.
“I’m sorry about yesterday, Giselle, I had no idea that …”
“Don’t worry about it, Tane. What you do isn’t my business,” I say, cutting him off. He thinks I’m upset because I saw him about to have sex with Keira? And while yes, that hurt badly, it’s nothing compared to what he’s done before. My whole body tenses when I see his gaze trail over the tattoos on my arms, his eyes widening.
Is it possible that he doesn’t remember that night between us?