Seeing as the unhappy vibes were not gone, I wondered about this decision but I didn’t say anything since they weren’t my kids.

What I did do was follow Mike after he muttered, “I’m goin’ upstairs to change.”

Layla was at his heels, I was not far behind.

I hit the bedroom to see Mike throwing his blazer on the bed and he had his phone in his hand. His attention was to it and my attention was on my clothes all over the floor. I made a mental note to pick them up (eventually), when I heard him beeping buttons on his phone.

I closed him, Layla and me in by shutting the double doors as Mike turned to me and put the phone to his ear.

One look in his eyes and I knew he was not happy as in, at all.

“Audrey? Yeah, Mike,” he said into his phone. “I’m callin’ about No’s birthday.”

Oh boy, he was growling.

Mike went on growling, “No’s explained you’ve expressed the desire to go with us. It hasn’t escaped my notice that you’ve been makin’ an effort lately with the kids. No’s been tellin’ me their weekends with you are goin’ better and I appreciate your interest in Rees’s situation, emailin’ me schools you’ve looked into. You probably got it from the kids but should hear it from me that Dusty moved in on Friday. You understand I’ve moved on, you’ve said so yourself. Both the kids are tight with Dusty, we’re buildin’ somethin’ here, it’s good and Dusty and I are committed to keepin’ it good and makin’ it better. If you wanted us to have a different kind of separation and divorce, you could have made that decision any time in the last four years. You didn’t. Now it’s too late. You won’t be goin’ to dinner with us for No’s birthday.”

Mike paused, she might have said something but whatever it was didn’t take very long or Mike cut her off because he kept talking.

“If you’re learnin’ about yourself and tryin’ to be a better Mom, I suggest you take No and Reesee and do somethin’ special with them another time. I’ll also take this opportunity to make it clear that whatever you’re attemptin’ to do, it does not involve me or my time or the life I share with our children. As I’m sure you haven’t forgotten, I’ve extended that opportunity to you more than once the last four years and you refused to take advantage of it. I would have preferred that we get along and offer some family cohesiveness to our kids but you repeatedly declined. That offer is no longer open to you. So what I’m sayin’ to you is, I got home and Rees and No were fightin’ and upset because of this shit. And what I’m tellin’ you is, whatever you’re doin’, you need to think about the way it’ll affect our kids because they’re good kids. They care about all the players in this situation and they don’t want anyone hurt. To get wherever you wanna be in your life and with them, don’t make them anxious, upset, force them to play games or to make difficult decisions where someone will have to eat shit. Because in that kind of scenario, the people eatin’ shit will be our kids. And I’ll not have that. Are we clear?”

I thought it was cool he was growly, clearly pissed and firm but still not ugly as I watched him pause.

Then he said, “Good. Take care of yourself.”

Then he hit a button on his phone, twisted his torso and tossed it on the bed.

“You okay?” I asked.

He stared at me.

Then he said, “I will be, you get your ass over here and kiss me.”

I grinned. Then I got my ass over there and kissed him.”

It didn’t last long but that didn’t mean it wasn’t good before he broke it off, set me gently away, bent to put his long fingered hands to Layla’s head and give her a belated greeting rubdown. She clearly bore no grudge that it took her Dad a while to do this and I knew it when her body started vibrating with the force of her tail wags.

Mike stopped giving attention to his dog and wandered to the closet. Mike wore jeans to work but he put nice belts, killer buttoned shirts and attractive blazers with them so he still looked authoritative and professional but he was comfortable. When he came home, the blazer and belt were gone and the shirt was changed to a t-shirt or sweater depending on his mood.

I’d know his mood that night when he muttered, “Grab me a tee, will you, Angel?”

I went to the dresser to grab him a tee then went to the door of the closet to see him shrugging off his shirt and throwing it into the hamper.

I approached with the tee as he turned to me.

“Doesn’t have a top or anything,” he stated bizarrely. My head cocked to the side as I handed him his tee trying to ignore his chest, the hotness of which I still hadn’t gotten used to.

He scrunched up his tee in preparation for tugging it on when he explained, “The hamper. It’s open. You don’t have to lift a top off or anything. Just throw your clothes right in.”

I got it then, grinned and murmured, “Smartass.”

He grinned back. Then he pulled the tee over his head and down his torso hiding his chest which, obviously, was a disappointment.

Then we heard Rees shout, “We’re havin’ hamburgers!”

Mike’s eyes moved over my shoulder and he muttered, “Fuck, she’s in a mood.” Then he started walking my way.

“A mood?” I asked, turning and moving out of the closet, Mike following me.

“Yeah.” He was still muttering. “A once a month mood.”

“Uh-oh,” I mumbled.

“Yep,” Mike agreed.

We moved out of the hall, down the stairs, Layla trailing while we listened to the fight raging on.

“We had hamburgers, like, two days ago,” No returned loudly.

“We did not!” Rees shot back hotly.

“Okay, then, last week. Still, that wasn’t too long ago and I don’t want hamburgers,” No countered.

“Well I do and so does Fin,” Rees retorted.

“The world doesn’t revolve around Fin for anyone but you, Rees,” No unwisely stated.

I bit my lip as I hit the hall and entered the kitchen. The combatants were now in a faceoff by the kitchen counter. Fin was sitting at the table, his books already out. His eyes came to me and he shook his head.

Mike entered behind me.

Before either of us could get a word in, Rees continued.

“That was a jacked thing to say! Five people have to eat and two of those five people want hamburgers!” she screeched the last word, leaning in toward her brother. I knew this was a monthly mood considering the force of her declaration and the fact it was not about a woman’s right to chose but about hamburgers.