Page 32 of Better Daddy

Chapter 10

Sully

Sloane slips off the bed and moves over to her own. It creaks as she slips under the covers, though the sound is barely audible over the way my heart is pounding in my chest.

My wife just kissed me.

Willingly.

Yes, it was on the cheek, and yes, it was quick. But her lips were soft, and as she pulled away, I swear she sighed. Not a sigh of frustration but more like longing. Like she wished for more.

Hope once again races through me. Just like when I picked her up from work. When I told her she was the best part of my day and she teared up. And just like the moment I realized she was jealous of our intern.

Do I love that she was jealous? No. Does it kill me to know that she ever believed shewasn’tthe best part of my day? Yes. But both instances prove that somewhere, maybe buried under all the hurt I’ve caused, her feelings for me still exist.

I might be crammed into a small bed with my six-year-old in a room half the size of his at the penthouse, but tonight feels so much better than any night I spent there over the last year. Maybe more.

Because now I appreciate how amazing simple interactions likethis are. Because I see now that what’s important is that I’m lying herewithmy son.

In my flat.

And my wife just kissed me.

She’s here too. Just a few feet away. Close enough that I can hear her breathing.

My life may be a mess, but I’ve got the people I need here with me, and that makes it the best.

I refuse to let go of what we have again. It may take a lot of work and some patience, but I have faith that I can convince her that this life is what she wants. ThatI’mwhat she wants.

Chapter 11

Sloane

“What are you doing?”

I jackknife up from the floor, bleary-eyed and sore. Blinking, I pat my chest and arm. Shit. Am I naked? When my fingers brush against cotton, I sigh in relief. Nope. Still fully covered.

“Um, sleeping?”

“Yeah, I see that,” Lo says, looming over me. “But why are you on the bathroom floor?”

Oh. Right. I suppose it seems strange that I’d be curled up beneath a mountain of blankets on the floor of the handicap stall, using my new maternity pillow as a mattress. Honestly, it wasn’t the most uncomfortable night of sleep I’ve ever had.

I give her a sheepish smile. “Didn’t want to risk being naked.”

Lo’s shoulders sag. “Oh, I thought that was getting better. You know, because of all the layers.” She waves a hand.

I look down. Sure enough, I’m still wearing two sets of pajamas. That’s good news. The bad news is that there are three sets somewhere in this apartment.

Once I’ve brushed my teeth, I’ll search for them. Honestly, the naked thing isn’t really the reason I’m hiding in here. I’ve yet to stripall the way down since I moved in, so I think five really is my lucky number.

No, I crashed in here because of the kiss. The pathetic peck to my husband’s cheek. The brush of my lips against his stubble that, even the next morning, makes the butterflies in my stomach flutter.

I peer up at Lo. Did she feel this way when Cal kissed her on the cheek before they became official?

Not that Sully and I are heading toward anything official.

Other than officially divorced.