Page 20 of Nothing to This (Nothing to… #8)

The kids persuaded her to go to the batting cage with them in the afternoon.

Well, JD invited her to join them when the conversation came up over lunch.

She’d told the twins that was their quality time with their daddy.

JD chose that moment to explain to the kids how Mommy was scared she wouldn’t be able to do it.

Ha! A challenge. Didn’t take much to be goaded into it.

In the end, she wasn’t sorry she’d joined them. After an afternoon out with the kids, they’d gone for burgers, then come home to get ready for the week ahead. Both exhausted kids struggled through bath time and went to bed without a fight.

She got ready for bed, then returned to the hallway to peek around each of the kids’ bedroom doors. Both were already in slumber. Music drifted from elsewhere, so she drew Sky’s door over without actually closing it and went toward the sound.

In the living room, JD scrolled through the tracks in her digital library. “You’re quite the rock chick, Siren,” he said, leaving the stereo to go sit on the couch.

A glass of wine was on the table beside the rest of the bottle.

“I have to get up early for work tomorrow,” she said, sinking onto the couch and curling her legs underneath her. “I don’t want to be late.”

Sitting with her, JD handed over the wine and picked up his lemonade. Were they up for a repeat of last night?

“I promise not to dock your pay.”

“Do that and I’ll raise your rent,” she said, sipping the unknown wine, nice, light, sweet. “This is amazing.”

“Two thousand dollars a bottle, it better be.”

She almost choked on her next mouthful and barely managed to catch a drip of wine on the edge of the glass without spilling it. “Two thousand… what?”

He laughed. “I’m kidding, babe, relax.”

“Idiot,” she said, shoving his shoulder. “I could’ve choked to death.”

“Would it have been worth it if it had been two thousand dollars?”

“Maybe,” she said, holding her glass closer.

“It’s peanuts to us, babe, either way. If you’d let me, I’d show you.”

“My life is just fine as it is, thanks. My kids are happy.”

Which was the main aim of her existence.

She wouldn’t pass up another conversation with him.

Before their discussion the previous night, laughing was a distant dream.

Funny how people got stuck in their routines and forgot what they were missing.

Awake until the wee hours, they’d explored all kinds of topics together.

Trust between them was growing. She trusted him with the kids, but this was different, interesting, and unrelated to their offspring.

“Are we going to talk to the daycare tomorrow?”

To put him on the list?

A knock at the front door interrupted the chance of an answer.

Finishing her mouthful, she put down her glass and stood up. “Bren has this book she wants me to read.” She descended the stairs to the kitchen. “I thought she’d give it to me at lunch tomorrow. Guess she decided to bring it over.”

“What book?” he called after her, remaining on the couch.

Opening her arms, she lifted them above her head in an exaggerated shrug. Brenna was a law unto herself. Maybe JD’s sister wanted to see what they were doing since a text exchange earlier revealed she wasn’t staying with Baxter.

Brenna would be desperate to know what happened, though she hadn’t expected her friend to just show up.

Throwing her head forward, she laughed to herself when messing up her hair.

Just before reaching the door, she slid down the strap of her nightdress and chewed her lips a little.

If Brenna wanted to believe she’d interrupted something, she’d get a show, and, later, a ribbing for falling for the prank.

Deepening her breathing, she took a big gulp of air and pulled open the door with a panting breath. Except the moment she saw who was on the other side, all of her deflated.

“Baxter?”

From checking out the hallway, he turned, and did the same to her. Shit.

“Is he here?”

Getting with it, she stepped forward, holding the door close to her back. “You know better than to just show up here.”

“Things didn’t end right between us last night. I want us to deal with this as adults… I want to meet him.”

“You can’t meet him,” she whispered.

Heart racing, adrenaline drove her to panic. JD was in the apartment. If he thought his sister was there and not going away, he’d come to the door to either invite her in or scare her off.

“Why? Why not?” he asked, his eyes trailing down over her again. “Is he looking for his boxer shorts?”

“Don’t do that,” she said, scowling at him. “Do you think I’m more likely to let you in if you start that crap again? You’re not coming in because the kids are here. You know you’re not allowed inside when the kids are home.”

“You have to let me meet them sometime too,” he said. “What the hell is going on? We were fine before he showed up.”

Baxter must’ve come with good intentions; it hadn’t taken him long to become unreasonable. Though, she had to admit, answering the door in a rumpled state didn’t help matters. What an idiot. Her, she was the idiot.

Taking a deep breath, it was on her to deescalate the situation. “Bax, the family is going through a lot of changes. We’re trying to find our feet.”

“All I’m asking is to be part of that family, Ry. I want to be involved. I don’t want to be pushed out.”

What should she say? What could she say to make him feel better?

They’d been on completely different pages if he thought they were serious enough to—how could he think they were serious?

They only talked or texted to arrange dates and barely knew each other.

Had she misled him or was he making up their connection in his own mind?

“Babe, what’s taking so—”

When the door was yanked open, she stumbled backwards and came up against JD just learning his sister wasn’t their guest. To steady herself, she used his form, and, great, yeah, that was when her hand landed on skin.

Twisting, she gasped at the sight of him shirtless. “Shit.”

He’d probably seen her progress to the door, and figured he wanted to get in on the joke of teasing Brenna. Backfired on both of them. Now the joke was on them.

“What happened to your shirt?” Baxter said, cold and blank, with more menace hanging in the air around him than she’d ever seen.

Giving in to the inevitable, she closed her eyes and took a breath before speaking. “Jamison Dawes meet—”

“Baxter Ames,” JD said and put one hand on her hip before extending his arm around her to offer his hand. “Right?”

“Yes,” Baxter said, somewhat disarmed by JD’s indifference as they shook hands.

“It’s a pleasure.”

Once he’d let go, JD snagged one of his jackets from the hooks just inside the door to drape it over her.

“You’re covering her up?” Baxter asked, regaining some of his bristle. “What for? I’ve seen her in less.”

Baxter had a point. Seemed like an odd gesture given she was in a short cotton nightdress with straps of only an inch or two, she wasn’t near naked. She’d shown more skin on dates. Still, it gave her back just a sliver of dignity.

“Who hasn’t,” JD said. While she recognized his sense of humor, Baxter wouldn’t.

She jabbed an elbow back into JD’s stomach causing him to half laugh, half recoil.

“Right, uh, we won’t invite you in. Our kids are four, there is always a chance of them popping up any time.

We don’t have strangers in their home at night. ”

“Strangers?” Baxter said, scowling at her.

“Yes, strangers,” JD said.

Baxter still fixated on her. “I want to meet them.”

Though she opened her mouth, JD spoke first. “That’s not going to happen tonight,” he said.

“Sure won’t happen without a ring on her finger either.

” He shunted her forward, using force that was probably payback for her elbowing.

“Take Ry.” He prodded her once in the back.

“Finish your conversation here. I’ll put your wine in the fridge. Shout if you need me.”

With that, the door landed against her back and stopped without latching.

“Shout?” Baxter hissed. “And you’re drinking wine with him? Is he trying to get you drunk?”

“We have work tomorrow,” she said. “We were having a drink before going to bed… our own beds. He’s drinking lemonade. It’s not like we’re getting drunk together.”

“So he’s limbering you up?”

“No, it’s been a stressful weekend; he’s being a friend. Geez, Baxter, is this the way it’s going to be from now on? You’ve met him. What more do you want?”

“To meet the kids.”

“They’re asleep,” she said. “Even if they weren’t, it’s too late for them to think about new people… and JD has a point.”

“What point?”

She folded her arms. “Weren’t we talking about it being wrong to introduce random people into their lives? It can’t be one rule for their dad and a different one for me.”

Please say JD wasn’t eavesdropping.

“You’re saying you won’t introduce me until we’re engaged?”

That was a terrifying leap. “They don’t take to new people and there are going to be a lot of changes in their lives now JD’s identity is public.”

“I can’t believe this. One word from him and you shut me down… again!”

Stepping toward him, she lowered her voice. “Screaming in the hallway won’t endear you to anyone. If you wake the kids, you’ll scare them, piss me off, and make an enemy of JD. None of those things will work out for you.”

He sneered. “Are you threatening me?”

“Threatening? No,” she said. “But I am saying I’m too tired for this. If you want to meet JD properly and have a conversation, I’ll set it up, but honestly…”

“Honestly, what?”

“We should… take a step back.”

“A step back? You’re breaking up with me? Here on the doorstep?”

“You came here uninvited,” she said. “What we had worked great. We had great fun. But this is the first real hurdle we’ve faced and it’s putting us in perspective.

Our lives are too different. I can’t have fights like this all the time.

I can’t have my kids used as pawns, and I do not want you getting into a pissing contest with JD. ”

Up until then, she’d never had to deal with any boyfriend competing with JD. Would this kind of reaction and conversation be part of every relationship she ever had from then on?

“I can’t believe this… I can’t believe you—”

Moving back, she opened the door some more, ready to retreat inside. “Go home, Baxter.”

“No, I—”

“No.” He tried to move forward, but she planted a hand on his chest. “You can’t come in here. Go home.”

“Rylee—”

“Goodnight, Baxter.”

Going into the apartment, she closed the door and locked it before he could think about doing something stupid like rushing in after her.

She hadn’t intended to break up with him. In truth, in the long run, freeing him from her orbit was a kindness, whether he believed it or not.

Bed was close by and it called for her to rest. Maybe the world would be lighter and make more sense in the morning… Judging by past experience, that was a helluva wish.