Loving You

XII. Defensive

Wednesday, December 30th, 2015

I woke up ready for a fight.

Apparently, so did Bee.

It was one of those days when everything we did irritated the other person. While she and Duke played outside, I cooked a lavish breakfast of eggs, homemade waffles, sausage, and hash browns. It looked and smelled delicious.

But when I called Bexley inside she took one look and her face twisted up like it was the most disgusting thing she'd ever seen.

"I just want cereal." I could've screamed.

"Can you just take a couple bites, please?" I asked as I watched her climb onto her chair and sit in front of the plate I'd set out for her.

"No." She folded her arms and sat back, daring me to fight her. And because I was exhausted and fed up, I did.

"Fine. But you're not leaving that chair until you take at least one bite of everything." We had entered into a battle of wills and I was determined to win. Against my three-year-old.

An hour later, we both had tear-stained faces and messy hair as we sat at the table staring daggers at each other. The food had long since gone cold, but I'd be damned if I was going to concede to my child. And Bexley thought the same thing.

When the doorbell rang, we both breathed out a long sigh of relief. But I didn't move a muscle as I watched Bee and Duke squirm a little.

"Take one more bite of anything in front of you and you can go see who's at the door." I watched with way too much satisfaction as she snatched a small sausage link off her plate and stuffed it into her mouth, staring at me the entire time.

The second she swallowed, she bolted from her chair, racing her puppy toward the front door and skidding to a stop just before sliding into it. Glancing back, she let out an irritated huff, while the doorbell rang a second and third time.

Flinging the door open, with Bexley clinging to my legs, I instantly wished I had looked first.

Ari stood on the porch stiffly, surveying the property, and when I glanced around, it was crystal clear to any onlookers that my truck was the only car in front of our secluded house. We were totally alone.

Tucking Bee behind me, I stepped onto the porch, closing only the screen, so I could still see her. When he heard the sound, Ari jumped a little and whipped around so he was facing me. He scowled as he caught my gaze, and I figured he hadn't come around for a friendly chat.

"Who's that?" He gestured to the door where Bee was standing with her mouth and nose pressed up against the screen.

"My daughter. Bexley."

Ari's expression twisted into disgust. "So Casper wasn't mistaken. You want us to believe the two of you have a kid together? You're a b-"

"Get off my property. I won't let you speak to me that way in front of her. Besides, who her father is has nothing to do with you." I stood up straighter and adjusted my hat so I could stare right into his dark brown eyes.

He almost looked shocked. But anger quickly took its place. "We don't want you fucking with his head. Okay? If it weren't for you, he would be normal. You're the reason all this happened. So, don't act like you're innocent. If Benny and I had it our way, we'd be back in Arkhan writing the rest of this fucking album in our studio. Not in some backwoods farmhouse basement. With you. So, just don't expect anything from us."

"Why even bother coming here then?" I snarled back. "Why do you think I'll tolerate your crap? I didn't ask for any of this. Figure out what you want from me, but until then, back off."