Page 177 of The Bonus

I snatch my phone from her. “We are not having sex.” That came out louder than expected, and we both cringe as we both look around. An old lady gives us a judgy side eye.

“Seriously, though.” I lean into Deb and whisper, “What should I do now?”

“Go to the shop. Buy. Lube.”

4 p.m., and not a peep from Gabriel since I saw him at the game this morning.

The sky has turned red, and I’ve ranted and raved all damn day.

This isn’t okay, his behavior is totally unacceptable. He can’t just turn up here and be an arrogant prick to try to rattle my boyfriend. Well, he didn’t just try, he excelled at it. Poor Jack is rattled to the bone…and who could blame him?

Not that Jack and I are star-crossed lovers or anything…but Gabriel doesn’t know that. What if we were?

What if I loved Jack with all of my heart and Gabriel just planted a seed of poison into our relationship?

What then…huh?

I stir the chocolate brownie mix in the bowl as I mutter out loud to myself. “If he thinks my cooking was bad before, just wait until he tastes my next meal. I’m putting full-blown dog shit in it.” I stir the mix with vigor. “And if he thinks for one fucking second I’m putting up with his bullshit, he can think again.”

“What’s bullshit?” Dominic asks from the doorway.

Crap…can’t I even mutter to myself in peace?

“Nothing, bubba, sorry, that’s an inappropriate word.” I smile sweetly. “Just thinking about a show I’m watching on Netflix,” I lie. One thing I’ve learned over the last three weeks about this whole shared-parenting thing is to not let my feelings seep in and poison the kids. Once you say something in passing about the other parent, they hold on to it forever.

“Gabriel is here,” Lucia yells excitedly from upstairs. “Yay.” She comes screaming down the stairs and runs out the front door to greet him.

Dominic walks to the front window and peers through the side of the curtains, quietly watching.

“Why don’t you go out and meet him too, baby?” I tell him. “That would be nice.”

Dominic shrugs, unsure what to do.

He’s warming to him.

My anger momentarily dissipates and I smile. “It was nice he came to your game today, wasn’t it?”

He stays silent.

“Do you like Gabriel coming to see you all the time?”

He shrugs again.

I walk over and stand behind him as I put my hands on his shoulders, we both watch out the window as Lucia talks a million miles per minute, she’s being all animated and he’s laughing as he listens and talks to her. They’re getting something out of the trunk of his car and loading it onto the grass in a pile. I smile as I watch them, and then I remember something, something very important.

Gabriel Ferrara’s a fuckface…who I hate.

I go back to the kitchen to continue making my brownies. “They’re carrying something big in, Mom,” Dominic calls.

I hope it’s a coffin, he’s going to need it.

“Why don’t you go and help them?” I call back.

“I don’t know if…” He contemplates.

Ugh, why is this child such an over thinker?

“They’re walking around the side of the house with the stuff,” Dominic calls as he runs to the back door.

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