Page 89 of Let's Call a Truce
“I’m sorry, honey. I can’t have everyone over today. Since we didn’t plan it before, I don’t have any of the stuff we would need. Plus, I have some things I have to get done this weekend since I’ll be in Boston next weekend.”
“Oh, you’re going to Boston with Ben, too?” Stephanie tried to keep her tone casual, but I detected a note of hysteria.
I cringed, cursing Ben for forcing me into this uncomfortable situation.
“Yeah, Stephanie. I was the other lead on the internship project, and they requested both of us attend.”
“Wouldn’t it be fun if I came, too, honey?” He jerked when she placed her hand on his arm. “It’s been so long since we’ve explored Boston together.”
“It’s a work trip, Stephanie. Not a vacation. And I think this is a good opportunity for you to spend some time with Paris.” His eyes darted to his daughter. She looked up at her mother with large, hopeful eyes.
“Well,Ithink it’s a good opportunity for us to reconnect. To show Paris we’re trying to be family again, don’t you?”
Her daughter’s shoulders slumped, but she didn’t even offer her a second glance. Paris slipped her hand into Ben’s.
“And who is going to watch Paris?” Ben asked, his anger tightly leashed.
Stephanie laughed lightly, flicking her wrist like this problem was nothing more than a pesky fly. “That’s why we have a nanny. Or she stayed with your parents last time, right, Juliana? She’ll stay with them again.”
I knew my parents would love to have Paris with them and the girls. Over the couple months Ben and I dated, they got to know her well and had considered her a third granddaughter. That didn’t stop me from bristling at her entitled behavior.
“I think it’s time for you to warm up, angel,” Ben said, dropping a quick kiss to Paris’s head before towing Stephanie away from the field. His deep voice reached me, and even though I couldn’t hear what he said, the tone was enough to know he was pissed.
“Would they keep me, Miss Juliana? If my mom goes to Boston?” Paris asked, the light from earlier extinguished with onesentence. I kneeled down next to her in the grass so I was at her eye level.
“They would be so excited to have you with them. They’d yell at me for not including you in the first place.” I dropped my voice to an exaggerated whisper. “Don’t tell Sophie and Clara, but I think you’re their favorite.”
Paris giggled and twined her arms around my neck. I squeezed her, blinking back tears for the sweet girl who just wanted to be loved and seen. A second later, she sprinted off to her teammates.
Ben and Stephanie came back as I gathered my things. I sent a quick glance up. “Do I need to call my parents?”
“No,” Ben said firmly, his jaw so tight he probably broke a tooth. “She’s staying with Stephanie.”
Stephanie glared from her spot next to Ben, but said nothing.
“Okay,” I said, snagging up the last of my things and saying a quick goodbye to Asia.
I walked to the car, laden with folding chairs, water bottles, and twenty extra things I swear I didn’t even see my kids bring into the car, much less out onto the field. The sound of Ben’s running footsteps reached me before he did.
“Can I help?” He gestured to my mostly successful juggling act. I begrudgingly agreed.
“You can pick up anything I drop.”
“I’m sorry about Stephanie.” I opened the back of my car, haphazardly throwing things in as an outlet for my anger. “You intimidate her.”
“Honestly, Ben, I don’t give a shit what Stephanie thinks or how she treats me. While you were busy managing her, Paris was folding in on herself. She’s a beautiful and brilliant little girl, and Stephanie’s treatment of her is breaking her heart. Don’t waste your time trying to make me feel better. Go teach your ex-wife how to treat your daughter with respect.”
I pushed past him without waiting for a response, calling for my girls to join me and leaving him behind to think about what I said.
The anger I had toward both Ben and Stephanie propelled me an extra mile on my run, mind racing with all the things I would say to them if there were no consequences.
If you have to manipulate him into a relationship, you don’t have a relationship. You can insult me all you want, but that doesn’t change the fact that he would choose me. How could you leave such a beautiful soul behind so you can go find yourself?
You need to stand up for your daughter because her mother treats her like crap. Why are you letting her control your life like this, especially seeing how she hurts Paris? Is all this pain and anger worth it, Ben?
The heat and humidity were oppressive. It felt like running through water and being burned at the same time. The cicadas were singing, a sound I normally found comforting, but today made it seem like the world was closing in around me, too loud and too complicated for me to handle. I felt beaten down, each step a fight, but couldn’t seem to stop my legs. It was like if I ran one last mile, I’d outrun my life, outrun my pain and frustration. I’d reach the finish line to find Stephanie had never come back and Ben and I were still together. Our girls would be playing and calling each other sisters while we snuggled up on the couch watching them.
But when I finished the four miles, dripping from the July sun, I realized my life was exactly the same. No magical resolution to be found.
