Page 20 of Mixed Motives

We freeze.

Kerrigan walks in, saying, “Hey, Dad?” But then he stops short. “What the hell are you doing here, Henry?” Kerrigan’s face morphs from a neutral expression to one of anger as he looks at us. “Wait, you two? What the actual … What?”

Swallowing, Henry goes to say something, but I feel like I need to explain more than he does. “We matched on Heart2Heart,” I say with a sheepish grin. “Surprise to both of us, I think.”

“You matched? What the hell, Dad?”

I step away from Henry, but I catch his eyes, wanting to know how he’s taking all this. I don’t want to go blustering in as if he can’t stand up for himself, but I also want to take care of him, and I don’t want him to feel like he’s all alone. “Yes,” I say simply. “We matched. We’re dating. We’ve been dating for almost a month.”

“A month? What? You went from me to my fucking dad?” Kerrigan says to Henry, his voice acidic.

Henry pauses, and that pause speaks volumes. Because no matter how well Henry and I get along, I can’t deny that his first attempt at getting together with me was driven in part by anger at Kerrigan. Henry wanted this confrontation.

“I don’t think you have any right to comment on what I do,” Henry finally says, and I’m proud of him for how straight his back is and how steady his voice sounds. “I’m with your dad. We’re the real thing. Not like you and me. You lost your chance with me, and now I’m with someone better. He happens to be your father, but it could have been anyone. Anyone is better than you for me.”

Kerrigan seems suspended between two points, not sure whether to start yelling or turn and leave. For my part, I’m angry at him for disrupting my perfect morning with Henry. I suppose that’s selfish—it’s no surprise that Kerrigan is shocked at our news—but he threw Henry away, and in my mind, that’s unforgivable. Henry deserves everything.

“You’re serious, Dad? You’re dating my ex?”

My voice is gravelly but strong. “Yes, I am. I like Henry very much.”

“Like” feels a little tame, but I’ll stick with it. Henry’s eyes flash toward me, and he gives me a grateful smile. I hold my arm out, feeling the need to physically support him, and he comes and tucks himself to me.

Kerrigan shakes his head a few times and spins on his heel. “Fucking unbelievable,” he mutters. “Abso-fucking-lutely unbelievable. My own father.”

The door slams behind him, and the silence in the room is nothing like the sleepy comfort Henry and I shared just a few moments ago. Now it’s awkward and embarrassing.

Because we both knew this would happen at some point. I suppose, on some level, I wanted my son to learn that he shouldn’t have hurt Henry. Shouldn’t hurt any partner, of course, but Henry’s my main concern.

“Are you okay?” Henry asks, his voice tentative.

I swallow hard and nod. “You?”

“I think so.” He grimaces. “Mostly, I’m wondering what I ever saw in him. No offense,” he adds quickly.

“None taken. My son did not deserve you.” I clear my throat. “But that doesn’t mean I want to sever relations with him, either.”

“So Thanksgiving is going to be awkward.”

I chuckle in spite of myself. “Always is.” Then I groan. “I should talk to him—though maybe it’s better if I give him some time to settle down first. It’s not fair to him that he came in unaware. I should’ve told him from the start. I know we said we’d wait a month, but …”

“Do you think you’ll be able to work things out?”

I sigh. “I think so, though it may take a little while. He needs to not act like a child. He can’t keep everyone else away from a toy just because he didn’t want it. Not that you’re a toy,” I clarify.

Henry gives me a saucy grin, although his eyes still look a little sad. “I’m happy to be your boy toy.”

“Is that so?” I whisper against his mouth. And we kiss, and my world seems to click back into place.

That evening, Henry is out with his friend Zayden, and I invited Wolfey over. He’s sitting on my recliner—the one Henry gave me a lap dance in, but I try not to think about that.

“What’s on your mind?” Wolfe says. “I know something’s up.”

“So.” I realize it’s been a while since he and I talked. “Last time we got together, you showed me a picture of your new man.”

“Yeah,” he says slowly, possibly concerned that he’s going to get some kind of lecture.

“Seeing you so happy made me realize I was super lonely, so I signed up for a date on the Heart2Heart app.”

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