Page 45 of Succeeding Love

“Damn it,” Nick cursed, looking down at his clothes in frustration.

I tried not to roll my eyes, or voice that this is Kevin’s home and not his, so he shouldn’t get mad at my dog. I smiled apologetically at Vin, thankful for his help to make this a little less chaotic by getting my dog, then walked out of the pool towards the towels. I wrapped one around my body, then went to hand another to Nick.

“Here.” I pushed the towel out towards him, but he didn’t move right away to get it. His eyes were on me. There was such a deep sadness in them, it caught me off guard for a second.

“Thank you,” he said in a defeated tone, gently taking the towel from my hands.

“Yep,” I murmured. After giving him a minute to wipe the mess away, I asked him again, “What are you doing here, Nick? Is Jessie okay?”

He sighed, and his shoulders fell. He looked down at the crumpled towel in his hands for a long time before looking back at me. “It’s nothing. Really.” His eyes looked tired, with faint bags underneath. He looked skinnier, too. I guess that is to be expected. He has been dating a woman who religiously works out, and I wouldn’t be surprised if she motivated him to get in shape too.

“So, Jessie is fine?”

“Um, yeah. But, I just moved into the new place and can’t find anything yet. Boxes everywhere. Could I get clothes for her for the weekend in case we can’t find any?”

“Oh,” I had forgotten while getting ready for this evening about Nick moving today. Jessie and I texted a little after she got out of school either. She just let me know her dad picked her up. She usually packs clothes on Fridays though. I understand the boxes, but what she left the house with this morning shouldn’t be packed away. Oh, well. Maybe she just can’t find her backpack in the mess. Moving can be chaotic. “Yeah, sure. I’ll be right back.”

I looked back at Vin, and he gave me one of his lazy smiles that makes my heart race. If Nick’s presence still annoyed him,he was hiding it well. He was still holding onto Kevin and petting his neck to keep him still.

I sent up a silent prayer, hoping that leaving them alone for a few minutes would be alright as I walked away to get what he needed.

~

Vin

This asshole. Out of all the nights for this guy to show up, of course, it was tonight.

Annoyance, like a burning itch, spread over my skin when his eyes followed her every movement, lingering on her bare legs and the water dripping down her smooth skin. It hasn’t even been ten minutes since I decided beyond any doubt that this woman was mine, but I don’t know if my cheery little Lynn would be okay with me asserting that here.

When she was out of sight, gone into the house, he let out a heavy sigh and looked around at the setup for our date. His expression got more and more cross as he took everything in.

I couldn’t help myself.

“She planned all of this.” I let go of Kevin, who was much calmer now, and pulled my body up to get out of the pool. Lynn looked all cute stepping out of the pool the way she did, but cute wasn’t what I was going for here.

The guy had a distasteful expression as he glanced at me. “Excuse me?”

“Lynn. She planned this whole get up. She teased me all week about it. It was fucking adorable. I was just as surprisedas you when she brought me back here. Well,” I huffed and smirked, “I’m sure the surprise was a little different.”

He wasn’t even trying to hide his hostility. Seeing the raw anger on his face made me smile more.

“Is there something you want to say to me?” he asked, his knicker clearly in a twist.

I shook my head, grabbing a towel and swinging it around my neck. “Not at all. Is there something you wish to tell me?” I couldn’t stop myself from grabbing a fork and taking a big bit of Feighlynn’s delicious enchiladas right out of the pan, smiling widely with a mouth full of food.

His eyes followed the action. “Actually, there is.” He squared his shoulders. “I don’t know what this is you two have going on, but Fay isn’t someone you can take advantage of, even if she’s living on her own. I will not let some thug exploit or hurt my wife.”

“Ex,” I reminded him, crossing my arms over my chest. “You keep forgetting that ‘ex’ right there. She’s your ex-wife, and I’m not exploiting anything. Well,” I smirked, looking down at the leftovers from dinner, “maybe her cooking skills, but I think she knows that.”

His fists clenched at his sides as he tossed away the dirty towel onto the pile of clean ones. “She is the mother of my children, and the woman I spent most of my adult life with. Two letters will not change my love or concern for her.”

“No?” I should probably keep my mouth shut and not escalate this further, but my possessiveness is blooming, as well as this desire for justice and the need to protect her from this scumbag. “Your cheating and leaving her for another woman sure changed her love for you.” I’m assuming that, but I’m sureI’m right. My Lynn didn’t look too pleased to see him here again tonight.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” he sneered.

“Maybe so,” I shrugged. “What I know is, that woman is fucking amazing, and there is nothing you can do that can scare me away from her. But, hey, I’m not one to do the same as what you are trying to do, so if you think your cheating love is enough to win her back, I won’t try to stop you. Just know I’m not going anywhere unless she wants me to.”

~

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