Page 3 of Blinding Lights
“I’ll hire a nanny part-time. Or maybe my sister can do it.”
“She’s an alco—”
“Relax, I was kidding. She’s not allowed near Ava until she’s sober. She knows that. I’m going to protect Ava with my life, Lil. But I’m going to do it here. If you’re worried, the offer still stands for me to buy you an apartment in New York. You can come with Ava, so you’re close by.”
“It’s not that simple. I run my own business.”
“The bookstore?” Travis laughs as he speaks, not even bothering to hide his amusement. “Let Henley run it. I’m sure she can handle a few customers here and there.”
“What?”
“It’s a small business, Lil. It’ll survive without you.”
I suck in a breath, stifling my anger before sinking my face into my hands, taking a moment to respond. Yelling isn’t helpful for any situation, and right now, I’d love to tell him to F right off.
“Lil?”
“How often?” I grit my teeth, repeating my earlier question.
“One weekend a month. And longer over the summer break. Maybe all of July. I can work from my Hamptons house; she’ll love it there.”
Dammit. She would love it there. I’d love it there. I’ve only seen one photo of his mansion, and it’s starred in many of my dreams since. Too bad that’s not the point.
“What about Ava’s music and swimming lessons? It’s going to completely disrupt her life."
“She’s three. She can—”
I clear my throat and Travis chuckles. “Okay. It’s important. So…move here. Permanently. I’ll help with everything. The house, the transit, money.”
“The dream, right?"
“What?”
“Isn’t that the dream? For a wealthy prince to swoop in and upend you from your modest life, transporting you into a world of luxury beyond your wildest imagination.”
“You think I’m a prince.”
“Did you not sense the sarcasm in my tone?”
“Yep, but I chose to ignore it.”
“Either way, how do I know you’re not going to run away again?”
“My life is in New York. I just told you that.”
“You can run and still be in the same city.”
Travis falls silent this time and I stop my pacing, only then realizing I was pacing in the first place. It seems I’m a lot more jaded than I let myself believe.
It’s not that I wanted him to stay and raise a family together. I just didn’t want to do it completely alone. Lucky for me, my best friend, Henley, and her mom helped in the early days, and after a year, my parents made the move to New Orleans. Without them and Mrs. Myers—Henley’s mom—I’m not sure I would have coped.
“I’ll always regret the way I treated you back then. But I’m not sure how many times I can say I’m sorry. What can I do to get you to trust me? I’ll do anything.”
“I need evidence.”
“Evidence?”
“I’m not making this hard for you because it’s fun. Ava is my number one priority. When you left, it hurt. I hurt. But that pain is nothing compared to how I’ll feel if you hurt Ava. You’ll shatter us both.”
