Page 37 of Tight Ends & Tiaras
Reaching for my essential oil dispenser on the coffee table, I take a whiff to calm down. To put things into perspective. To bite my tongue so I don’t add more tension to whatever is happening right now. If the situation with Cal taught me anything, it’s that adding fuel to the fire is probably never the best thing to do. Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet, I remind myself.
“What?” Janelle asks, her eyes narrowed.
Damn. Did I say that out loud?
“Nothing. Just thinking about this line by Aristotle from my classical lit course.” I wave it off. “It’s not important.” Focus, Sienna. Focus. How can you help Ben with his baby mama? “What, uh, what are your plans this summer?”
She shrugs. “Give Ernest some time to calm down. Head home in a few weeks and hope he hasn’t tossed all my shit onto the front yard.”
Oh, hey, I have some experience with that sort of thing. “Will you be leaving Lily with Ben then? Or... how do you guys plan to deal with custody?” I ask as I look between her and Ben.
Because after being with Cal, I know the football training camp later this summer will be tough.
Janelle roughly wipes Lily’s mouth, which has a red ring of tomato sauce. “Dallas is too far to swap off often. Maybe she could do four weeks here and four with me.”
Ben drops his head into his hands. “I’m not gonna sugarcoat this, but the next few months are probably the most important of my career. I’d be lying if I said I’ll have tons of time to spend with her. Sienna said she can help me, but I’ll be stretched thin. I know it’s doable because my buddy just survived a similar situation, but we have a new coach who’s known as a ballbuster whereas Sully, our coach last year, was pretty chill. More like a father figure.”
“Don’t tell that to Tío Julio,” she jokes, and Ben chuckles in agreement.
His eyes warm and crinkle at the corners as he smiles at her, and I’m instantly jealous. Which is freaking ridiculous! What Ben and I have isn’t even real.
I don’t understand why I’m so drawn to him. Sure, I had a huge crush on him freshman year, but he said himself he was checking in on me because his sister asked him to. I can’t let my imagination get carried away when it comes to this fake dating thing we’re doing.
I don’t get Janelle’s joke, but I don’t stop them to ask what they mean.
She licks her lips. “I know you said I couldn’t live with you this summer, but would it help if I moved down to Charming?”
God, no.
Choking down another sip of tea, I pray for some serious Zen vibes. Because while having Janelle closer would probably make life easier for Ben in a lot of ways, that means I’d have to see her too. At least if Ben wants to keep up this façade. And as things stand now, I’ll be needing a serious session of yoga and meditation to recover from tonight.
When Ben doesn’t say anything, Janelle adds, “Maybe just for the next year. So we could swap off with the baby when you need to. I was only taking a few community college classes in Dallas. It’s not a big deal to transfer here for a while.”
She suddenly sounds so rational. So reasonable.
And that makes me instantly suspicious.
“Could you swing that?” he asks slowly. “I could help you find a place. Pay for some of your rent. Maybe there’s something in the neighborhood.”
This is good,I tell myself as I surreptitiously take slow, deep breaths. They’re working things out. As our family shrink told my mother, it’s healthier for kids if their parents aren’t arguing constantly in front of them. And Lily will be able to see her mom and dad more often.
Then why do I feel like I need something stronger than tea?
