Page 19 of Rain or Shine
My phone vibrates in my pocket for the third time, annoying the shit out of me while I finish twisting the last of the wire in place. Garrett had gotten this area fixed up just days ago, and it’s already damaged again. I’ll be happy once the heavy-duty steel fencing sections we ordered for the bison come in. The regular fence isn’t working out too well for these guys. They damage the pasture more often than not. Once we get the new one in place, we can finally get more work done around here besides constantly fixing the fence line.
“Almost done, Onyx,” I tell him while gathering my tools. It’s a good thing I carry a few things with me at all times while we’re out riding. My saddlebags are always carrying random shit, but I keep a tool bag with me to make fence repairs at any time. It’s not as fast as using the drill chuck wire twister, but it does the trick.Tossing the tools back into my bag, I yank out a bottle of water and chug half the bottle.
The sun is too bright today. I thought the hottest part of the summer was over, but it seems I was wrong. The heat of theday, mixed with the dry humidity, has the sweat rolling off me. I know I’m going to have to pull out the baby powder again. Chafing isn’t something I play around with. No man with half a brain wants raw balls.
When my phone vibrates again, I yank it out of my pocket to see who the hell is blowing me up to find two text messages and a missed call. First, I check the messages, finding one from Lexy, another from an unknown number. I open Lexy’s first.
Lexy: Do you want me to pick up Dash for you today?
Fuck.
I check the time, seeing that it’s nearly three already. There’s no way I’ll make it in time to get him. At this point, Lexy’s closer than I am.
I ignore the second message and check the missed call to see it was Lexy. I hit the call symbol and hold the phone to my ear.
“Don’t worry, I’m already here waiting to go in,” she says when she answers the phone.
“You’re the best.” I don’t know what I’d do without my sister having my back.
“It’s not a problem. I was in town anyway to get the groceries for the house,” she says with a hint of a laugh in her voice. “Oh, by the way, I checked the mail on the way out. You have another letter from the prison.”
“What does this one say?” I demand, clenching my jaw.
I hear the ripping of her opening the envelope, and a second later, she curses. “It’s a letter from Megan.”
Fuck me. The bitch just never stops.
“She says it’s her last letter as she’s probably out by the time you get it. Claims she’s hoping to make things right with you andcan’t wait to get to know her son.” The hatred in Lexy’s voice is nowhere close to what I’m feeling.
“That bitch isn’t getting anywhere near Dash.” I wasn’t going to let her. I’ll kill her first. “I need to call Barnes and let him know about this.”
“I’ll call him for you,” Lexy offers. “She can’t get anywhere near him. Not just because of the TPO, Tyler. Remember, you have full custody, and the judge stripped her of her rights when she went down for what she did.”
“Doesn’t mean she won’t try and get them back.” My ex could be vindictive, and the letters she sent, though rare, were always hateful toward me for ruining her life. She blamed me for her getting pregnant and refusing to allow her to get rid of the baby when she could.
The fact that she’s getting out early for overcrowding doesn’t sit well with me. I don’t care what kind of inmate she was. The bitch is manipulative as can be. I’ve seen it firsthand and know how she is. There’s no changing who she is. “Don’t just call Barnes, Lexy, do me a solid and take that letter to him, please.”
“I can do that,” she agrees.
Over the past years, I’ve made sure to give my uncle every letter Megan sent my way for safekeeping. This one will just have to be added to the rest. Barnes can use these when we go before the judge for the permanent protective order.
“I hate to say it, Tyler, but you need to make sure those who are around Dash know that she’s not to be near him. The school needs to know in case she tries to go up there and take him from school.”
“I’ll talk to Maddox and the others today. I’ll take Dash to school on Monday, go to the office and give them a copy of the TPO for the time being, and explain to the principal that in no way is he to leave the premises with Megan.” I tell her, nodding to myself, silently agreeing to my plans for Dash’s school.Dashneeds protection from the woman who birthed him at all costs. With her getting out, who knows what the hell she will do next.
Making a mental list of things to do, I finish the call with Lexy and pull the phone from my ear. Before I put it up, I check the other message that I have, my chest tightening as I do.
Unknown: This is Delaney Knox. This first week of school, all the kids were wonderful. I hope they enjoy the weekend and are ready to come in on Monday to learn even more.I wanted to reach out and give this number to each of you, as I find it’s important for parents always to be able to reach me in case of an emergency, and not just through the app, as sometimes those things can glitch. Have a great weekend.
Fuck me.
It was nice that she was caring enough to reach out to all of the parents, but her doing that is a damn temptation I don’t need. Especially now with all the shit I have going on. Since seeing her again and knowing she’s Dash’s teacher, I can’t stop thinking about her. It’s like she’s everywhere, even when she’s not. She’s on my mind when I wake up in the morning. Haunting my dreams at night, pops into my head throughout the day. She’s everywhere. Worse than it had been before.
It’s definitely not something I need to be dealing with. Not when the past is being brought up as it is.
However, I do need to apologize for being an ass toward her after fucking her the way I did. It had been the best damn sex I could remember having, and Idid her wrong. I know I fucked up.
Saving her number on my phone, I decide to send a text of my own.
