Page 165 of Rule Breakers Fall Hardest

His answering giggles make my heart hurt in the best kind of way.

“What do you want to wear?” she asks. “What about this little overall set? It’s cute.” She holds it up for his inspection.

He claps his hands, his arms flailing.

“I’ll take that as a yes too.”

She changes him easily, not having to wrestle him into the clothes like I normally have to. It’s safe to say that Sammy has already chosen Rosie as his favorite person. I can’t even be mad about it. She’s my favorite person too.

When he’s all clean and changed, she holds him against her chest and faces me.

“I guess I can’t stall any longer.”

“No,” I agree, a lump lodged in my throat. “We can’t leave him waiting forever.”

She straightens her spine and nods, preparing herself to face what’s to come. Fuck, he better be here to apologize and make amends. He should have done it monthsago. Hell, the whole thing should’ve never happened in the first place. I couldn’t ever imagine myself saying the things he did to my own daughter.

I follow her down the stairs, and then we face Chandler together, as a family.

He stands the moment he sees Rosie and rubs his hand awkwardly over his shirt. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this man nervous, but it’s clear that he is right now.

He clears his throat. “It’s good to see you, Rosie.”

She looks him up and down. “Hi, Dad. You could have called. You didn’t need to waste your time coming all the way here.”

It’s not what I was expecting her to say. And from the way Chandler flinches, he wasn’t expecting it either. Her tone matches the words—chilly, distant. The meaning behind that comment, that a call would have sufficed, shows how deeply he hurt her.

By the anguish in his eyes, it looks like, in this moment, he realizes that he’s going to have to put a lot more work into repairing this relationship than he thought.

Rosie hasn’t talked to me much about her feelings when it comes to her dad, and I haven’t pushed her. Maybe I should have.

“I know,” he nods, swallowing thickly. “I felt like it was better to talk in person.”

She presses her lips together, looking away, clearly struggling to keep it together. Fuck, it kills me that she feels this way.

I put a hand on her waist, offering her as much comfort as I can.

“Better for you or me?”

Chandler flinches again. “For both of us, I hope.”

Rosie sets Sammy down, his little legs working quickly as he crawls over to the corner where we keep his toys.

“A little warning would’ve been nice.”

He hangs his head and lets out a defeated sigh. “I know, but I didn’t want to wait.”

“Dad.” The pain in that single word feels like a stab to the gut. “You’ve hadmonths.” I think that’s what bothers her the most about him being here. He’s had a long time to get his head out of his ass. Why is now different? “Did Mom make you do this?”

He shakes his head, scrubbing a hand over his jaw. “No. I mean, she’s told me I’m being ridiculous, but no, she’s not why I’m here.”

Rosie’s hands shake at her sides. I reach for one and squeeze, silently willing her to take strength from me.

“Let’s… uh… sit down and talk,” I say. I hate seeing her like this, the pain she’s trying to hold back to keep him from having the power to hurt her any more.

From the toy corner, Sammy tosses his soft blocks, babbling away. He gives us a toothy grin, happy and completely oblivious to the tension swirling the air between the three of us.

Chandler sits on the ottoman directly in front of Rosie. By the way her grip on my hand tightens, it’s clear she doesn’t care for this proximity. Even so, she doesn’t tell him to move.

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