Page 119 of For Eva

“Sweetie, I told you, this isn’t that type of trip.” I sighed as I rummaged through my purse to confirm that my phone and wallet were located safely inside. The last thing I needed was to arrive at the airport without them; I was frazzled enough as it was, and Miles’s inability to accept the fact that he would not be going to California wasn’t helping. “I’ve got to go do some…mom stuff. But we’ll all go back out there together soon. Universal, Disneyland, whatever you want.”

“I don’t know why you wanna go on that ride, Miles,” Drew said. “All you did last time was close your eyes and hold on to Mom.”

“Shut up, Drew!” Miles hopped out of his seat and darted across the room, attempting to shove his brother. Drew grabbed his arm before it landed and laughed as Miles struggled to break free.

I ran my hands along my face. “Can we please not do this right now?”

Drew let go of Miles, who managed to sneak in a quick punch to Drew’s forearm before retreating back to his barstool.

Drew’s mouth flew open as he pointed at me. “Did you see that?”

I tightened my jaw and shot him a look to convey not only how fed up I was with the fighting but also how desperate I was for a mere five minutes of tranquility before I left for my trip. He threw his hands in the air, pleading innocence, but I sharpened my stare and motioned toward Miles.

He rolled his eyes, but nevertheless walked over to the island and mussed Miles’s hair. “Sorry, buddy. You were little. I would’ve been scared, too. I’ll make it up to you and playMario Kartwhen we get to Dad’s.”

Miles jerked his head away and narrowed his eyes as he looked up at his older brother. “Ten races.”

“Two,” Drew countered, kicking off the bargaining that concluded when they finally agreed on five.

“Okay, good, glad we’re all friends again,” I said. “But now we gotta go, so shove the rest of that in your mouth, Miles, and both of you go grab your stuff.”

“Fine. But I still wanna come,” Miles reminded me for the five hundredth time as he swiped his bagel off the counter and dragged himself out of the kitchen.

I clenched my fists and squeezed my eyes shut, pleading for a higher power to keep me from completely losing my shit.

“Sorry, Mom.”

I startled and opened my eyes to see Drew leaning against the counter beside me.

“I know things have been…I know you’ve been doing a lot. And maybe Dad hasn’t been the best dad. Sorry to cause more problems.”

I stared at him for a minute. So tall and grown up. But still needing his father so badly. He’d never been the affectionate kid, his arms remaining stick-straight whenever he sensed one of us might go in for a hug, but I wanted to wrap him up more than anything at that moment.

“You’re fine, sweetie. And your dad loves you, he just…” I paused, knowing damn well Drew was too old to buy any excuses I could come up with. “Well, just know he loves you.”

“I know. And thanks, Mom.” He threw his arms around me. I let out a tiny gasp, a smile slowly spreading across my face as I hugged him back. “For everything.”

“Bye, boys,” I called from the bottom of the porch steps as they filed into Aaron’s house. “Love you!”

“Hey, Eva, wait a sec.” Aaron hurried outside, shutting the door behind him.

I groaned. “What, Aaron? I have to get to the airport.”

“Did you see my text?”

“No, my phone’s in my purse.”

“I just wanted you to know I talked to my sister, and she might keep the boys a couple of days this week,” he said. “You know, with the new baby and everything, we’re kinda worn out, so—”

I cocked my head to the side. “You’re too worn out to raise your kids?”

He huffed. “I didn’t say that. We’re just so exhausted. The baby isn’t sleeping, and Olivia’s having to feed him all the time, and—”

“Oh, wow, you said her name.”

“Huh?”

“Never mind.” I sucked in a deep breath and clenched my fists before starting toward my car. “Fine. Send the kids to Laura’s house. They’ll probably have a better time there sincesheactually pays attention to them.”

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