I should be concentrating on Theresa right now. She’s talking about a problem student in her class, and my entire attention should be on her, but it’s not. I can’t stop wondering where Palmer has been going when she disappears. I was with Matt this morning for training, and he asked me about her, so I know she’s not spending her entire day with him. It makes her disappearances more of a mystery, though. Could she be seeing someone else?
Could the writing be coming naturally at some other guy’s place?
If so, I can’t believe Buzz Wheel hasn’t reported anything. A Bailey finding love is always a priority on that stupid app.
“Hudson!” Theresa waves her hand in front of my face. “Where are you? Because you sure aren’t at this table.”
“Sorry.” I pick up my beer and take a sip. “Go on.”
“No, it’s just getting me all riled up anyway. Is something going on?” She picks up her fork and stabs some lettuce onto it. We went out for pizza, but she demanded we get a salad too, for nutrition’s sake, but she’s only eating salad, and I’m only eating pizza.
“Nothing’s going on.” I would never tell her I’m hung up on who Palmer is spending her time with unless I wanted us to have a fight.
“You’re lying.”
“I’m not.”
She gives me a look that clearly says she doesn’t believe me and continues to eat her salad. “How is Adley doing?”
“Good,” I say, not wanting to broach that topic either.
“And Matt? Training?”
“Good.”
She puts her fork down, lifts her napkin from her lap, and wipes her mouth. She replaces the napkin, leans back in her chair, folds her hands together in her lap, and stares at me. She’s mad. “Is that the only word in your vocabulary tonight? It’s Friday night, and finally, neither of us has our children, and instead of having an actual conversation when we’ve barely talked these last three days, you’re answering everything with one-word answers.”
She has a point. I wish I was into tonight, but I’m not. I’m not sure I can be honest about all of Adley’s questions without causing a fight. Theresa is so sensitive these days, though it wasn’t like that when we first started dating. Then again, she’s divorced and surely her daughter has had questions of her own. Maybe she’s the perfect person to talk to about this.
“Adley is questioning Palmer’s and my relationship.” There.
Theresa shrugs. “Well, it is unusual.”
Fucking hell. I should have kept my mouth shut.
“Theresa.” I sigh.
She raises her hand. “Sorry, okay, okay. She’s in preschool now, and other kids are sharing stories about their home lives. She’s going to think she’s different.”
“Are you kidding me? Only a third of marriages work in this country now. There has to be parents who live separately in her class.” I pick up another piece of pizza.
“Yeah, but they’re divorced. You and Palmer were never married, and you get along like…well, I mean, you’re friends.”
“Which should be a good thing, no?”
She nods. “It is, but all Adley understands is it’s different. Either parents are married and live together, or they’re divorced and live apart.”
“Palmer and I live apart.”
Her head rocks back and forth. “Yes, but you stop by each other’s houses all the time. I guarantee you’re over there or she’s at your house on days that aren’t your days. There’s probably been times you’ve eaten together when one of you didn’t have to be there.”
I shake my head in frustration. “I see all that as a good thing.”
She chuckles. “You’re confusing what’s good for Adley and what is making her feel different from the other kids. I mean, when Riley is at my ex’s, I talk to her once or if she needs to talk to me. Otherwise she’s with him, and I see her when we exchange back.”
My stomach twists at the thought of Palmer and me being like that. We’ve never had papers drawn up. We just talk to each other and make plans. “God, it sounds like…”
“That’s divorce, Hudson. Most divorced people don’t like each other.”
I think she’s wrong. I’ve met plenty of divorced people who can be civil for the kid’s sake. “I don’t plan on changing anything with our arrangement.”
She sighs and picks up her fork as if it bothers her. “I’m well aware.”
Silence. Neither of us say anything until we finish our meal, and the waiter asks us if we want a box for the pizza. I pay the bill, pick up the box of pizza, and lead Theresa back to my truck.
“Whose house are we going to stay at tonight?” she asks.
I hate the fact that I want to drop her off at her house and go home alone. It’s not her fault my head is a mess right now. Excuses fill my brain, but she’ll see through each one. We haven’t had any alone time lately and haven’t had sex in weeks.
“Mine?” I ask because then I can find out if Palmer asked her mom to watch Adley again. Shit. That’s none of my business. I shake my head. “Never mind, let’s go to yours.”
A wide smile forms on her face. “Great.”
“If you wanted to go to your place, why did you give me a choice?”
She shrugs, putting on her seat belt. “You always want to be at your house, and this way I have you all to myself.” She leans over the center console and puckers her lips.
I bend forward, give her a chaste kiss, then face forward and start the truck.
She grabs my hand. This is what I need. A night with Theresa will clear my head, take it off whatever Palmer is doing and back to where it should be. We drive through the streets of Lake Starlight to the downtown residential area and pull up at Theresa’s small white house with black shutters. I park in her small driveway and remove my seat belt. I’m about to turn off the ignition when my phone rings over the Bluetooth in my car.
Palmer’s name flashes on the screen.
Theresa stares at me, but I press accept. “Hey, what’s up?”
“Hudson.” Her voice is panicked, and it’s clear she’s upset. “It’s Adley. She was at that indoor park place with my mom, and she fell off the platform.”
“Is she okay?” I put the truck in reverse and strap my seat belt back on as I’m moving backward.
“She’s at the hospital. I’m driving there right now. Thank God my aunt Stella’s best friend, Allie, is working.”
“Are you sure you can drive? I’ll come get you,” I say, hearing her crying. I do not need her to get into an accident.
She’s quiet for a moment, then a deep voice speaks. “I’m driving. She’s good. We’ll meet you there.”
Matt.
So, she was with Matt. She had her mom watch Adley so she could go on a date.
“Good. We’ll see you in a few minutes,” Theresa says and clicks the end call button because I’m stunned.
I’m not sure if that’s the first time Theresa’s ever heard Palmer speak, but if it is, she doesn’t remark on it. I’m surprised Palmer was speaking in front of Matt. Either she’s comfortable enough with him that she hasn’t been using sign language all night, or she was so panicked she didn’t think to text me rather than calling.
I drive to the hospital on autopilot and fly into a parking spot, turning off the ignition and rushing toward the emergency room entrance.
Theresa walks fast beside me, trying to keep up with my strides.
We run into Palmer and Matt at the nurses’ station. She’s already informing them who we are.
The nurse looks up at us. “All four of you can’t go back. I’ll allow two.” She puts up her fingers.
There’s no question, it’s Palmer and me. She buzzes us in and tells us which room to go to.
“I don’t understand, why was she with your mom?” I ask as soon as we’re on the other side of the doors.
Palmer glances at me. “Excuse me?”
“I’m just saying, this was your night. She should’ve been with you, not your mom.”
She stops in the hallway for a moment and tugs on my jacket sleeve. “What the fuck, Hudson? You’re giving me shit about going on a date?”
“I’m not giving you shit about going on a date. It’s that we’re here when she should’ve been with you. Schedule your dates on your days off parenting Adley.”
She makes this sound as though I’m unbelievable and stomps forward.
“I’m just saying.” I walk beside her.
Her head whips in my direction. “You know how many times over the years I’ve taken your nights so you could go out?”
“If you wanted to go out with Matt, why didn’t you ask me?”
She shakes her head. “This was an accident, Hudson. That’s all. It has nothing to do with who was watching her. So what if I wanted to go out, and my parents wanted some time with their granddaughter?”
I shake my head. “Your parents always want to take her somewhere fun.”
“Sue them. They’re her grandparents!”
We reach the room, and Palmer walks through the door before me. Her mom stands from the chair next to the bed Adley’s little body is tucked into. Her dad stops pacing to look at us.
“Mommy! Daddy! Cherry!” Adley is all smiles and holds up a popsicle as her red lips grin. The first thing I notice are the stitches along her forehead and the side of her head.
“Hey, kiddo, how are you?” I walk to the side of the bed and kiss the part of her forehead that isn’t injured.
“What happened?” Palmer grabs Adley’s hand and looks at her mom.
“She was playing with some other kids at that indoor park at the mall. One kid went down the fire pole, and she followed. I was screaming for her not to, but I couldn’t get to her in time.” Sedona, Palmer’s mom, starts to cry, and Palmer’s dad, Jamison, puts his arm around his wife.
“It was just an accident,” he says.
“Gran’ma!” Adley says. “Don’t cry.”
“Mom, Dad’s right, it was just an accident.” Palmer stares at me when she says it.
“Yeah, Sedona. Coulda happened to anyone,” Jamison says.
Allie Greene walks into the room and puts on hand sanitizer. She’s Palmer’s aunt’s best friend and works as a nurse here at the hospital. “Oh good, you guys are here. The doctor was looking at the scans, and he’ll be in shortly.” She stands at the end of the bed. “I’m glad I was here.”
“I’m so happy you are too.” Palmer smiles.
“As long as the scans are clear, Adley here is good to go.”
Just then a doctor walks into the room, and Palmer’s eyebrows raise because the guy is good-looking and young.
“Hello, I’m Dr. Michaels.”
Palmer smiles and waves.
“I assume you’re the parents?”
Palmer nods.
“Yes,” I say.
“Well, Adley’s scans came back, and it all looks good. She did have to get a number of stitches, which will need to be taken out in a week or two depending on how she’s healing. And Allie is going to give you some information on things to look out for over the next couple of days. If you notice any of them, bring her right back.”
Palmer nods. Even Sedona can’t stop staring at this guy.
“Thanks,” I say with a nod.
“Any questions?” he asks, looking around the group of us.
“No,” I say, annoyed by both Palmer and her mom’s reaction to this guy.
“Okay then. Allie will get Adley’s discharge papers. Good to meet you guys.” He walks out.
“Wow,” Palmer says.
Allie laughs. “Yeah, he tends to get that kind of reaction. He’s new here. Fisher hates when I work with him.” She rolls her eyes and chuckles.
“Let’s get her home,” I say, wanting to be done with this hot doctor business.
“Let me get her discharge papers and the info the doctor mentioned, and I’ll be right back.”
“We’ll give you some privacy,” Sedona says, still with tears in her eyes.
Adley’s grandparents kiss her goodbye and leave the room. Palmer and I hold Adley’s hands, thankful it’s nothing more than some stitches.
“That must have been quite a fall,” I say, eyeing Adley’s stitches.
Palmer stares across the bed at me with a pissed-off expression. “And you see how guilty my mom already feels, so I don’t want to hear it.”
Guilt racks me. How many times has something almost happened to Adley on my watch? I’m letting my feelings about Palmer and Matt get mixed up with the fact that Adley had an accident, and that’s not fair to Palmer or her mom.
“I’m sorry. I was just scared and worried about Adley.” And not at all pissed off that Palmer was on a date with Matt. What is wrong with me? “Honestly, Palm, I’m sorry. I should have never said anything.”
Her shoulders sink, and she nods. “Okay.”
I grab her hand. A tear trickles down her cheek, and I round the bed, pulling her into my body, acutely aware that Adley is watching us closely. Palmer wraps her arms around my torso, and her back shakes as she sobs. I run my hands down her back. The smell of her shampoo floats up to my nose, taking me back to the night we conceived Adley.
What the hell?
But I keep holding her, not wanting to let her go.
“Hey!” I turn to see Theresa walk through the door. She stops in her tracks when she sees Palmer in my arms. “Oh.”
Well, shit.