Page 34 of Whiskey and Regret

“Excuse me, what?” She chuckled.

“I said ex. You called Evander your husband. I wanted to make sure you remembered he’s your ex-husband and you had to drop Frankie off at his house because he has full custody. You know, in case you needed a reminder of your current situation. You sounded a little delusional.” I made sure to angle my face so that she could see me smiling and showing off both pot-hole dimples.

“God, the mouths they install on whores these days. Out of control,” she sighed.

“Mom! Why would you say that to her?” Frankie’s trembling voice startled me since I had no idea where she’d been hiding or if she heard me rip her mother a new asshole. Alexis’s eyes drifted upward. Frankie must have been on the loft.

“Frankie…I…you need to be in your room like I told you! Not eavesdropping!”

“Fine because I don’t want to talk to you or look at you right now.” Heavy footsteps sounded above my head and I waited silently until I heard her bedroom door slam. I was going to have to do damage control after the bitch left.

“Are you happy now? You goaded me into an immature argument and now Francesca is upset. Van will hear about your disrespectful little mouth.”

“He already knows about my mouth,” I said before she left. I realized how fucked up that sounded but it was true. He knew I had a smart ass mouth.

Once I had the wings roasting in the oven, I went to check on Frankie. It took a little coaxing to get her to open the door but I made sure to wrap her in a hug when she did open it. I didn’t know what the uncomfortable feeling in my chest was when I noticed her red-rimmed eyes but it made me want to fuck Alexis up.

We sat on her bed and she drew her knees up to her chest. “I’m so embarrassed,” she muttered, looking down at the comforter.

“Why? Because of your mother?” I smoothed her puff a little then slid close enough to put my arm around her shoulders.

“Yeah. I’m so sorry she said that to you. If you don’t want to work here anymore, I get it.” She tried to swipe at her tears discreetly but there was no hiding it.

“Girl, nothing is going to stop me from being your nanny unless you don’t want me here anymore. I honestly thought we were becoming friends. I was excited to hang out with you every day and piss your father off.” She didn’t laugh but at least her eyes weren’t as sad anymore.

“I want you to stay. Sometimes it feels like it’s not up to me though. Especially with Mom. Daddy is tough but he listens to me when it counts.”

“Then we’ll talk to him together. Anything you’re too nervous to say, tell me and I’ll say it.”

“You promise?” She quizzed, blinking up at me. The uncomfortable feeling I had when I saw her crying subsided and gave way to the need to protect her and make her happy.

“I promise. Now, let me grab something to change into since I’m in the kitchen wearing cream Gucci like I can afford to get this dirty.” I shook my head at my own audacity and dug through my overnight bag. I took out an IVY PARK t-shirt and a pair of black leggings.

“Can I do my homework in the kitchen with you? Or is my mom still down there?”

“She left. Bring your books and I’ll help you while I cook. Please tell me you like chicken wings.”

“Flats?” She lifted a brow at me.

“Of course. I’m not a barbarian.”

“Then yes, I love chicken wings.”

“A girl after my own heart.” We slapped hands and made our way downstairs. While I finished dinner and helped Frankie with her homework, I played Brandy’sNever Say NeverCD.

When The Boy Is Mine came on, the strings at the beginning grabbed me and wouldn’t let go. I kept repeating the sequence in my mind over and over while I mashed sweet potatoes and chopped veggies for the salad.

“Xari, hello…” Frankie waved her hand in front of my face a few times until I snapped back to reality.

“Oh, shit. Sorry, Frank. How much homework did I miss?”

“Just one question. Where were you? You looked like you were somewhere else completely.”

“I was,” I rubbed my forehead and watched the notes pile up on the staff in my mind. “I have a song stuck in my head and now I have to play it on the harp or I won’t be able to sleep.”

“Are you obsessed with the harp or music in general?”

“Both,” I laughed. “Music is home for me. But being able to create pure music from thin air is something that will always take my breath away.” My fingers ached to strum Sunshine’s strings.