Page 73 of Sunshine & Sinful

That knot in my chest aches when he spares me a final chin lift and a sad smile and turns onto the road opposite home, headed to his salvation.

Watching his taillight glow in the distance, a single tear trickles down my cheek, and my nose stings with the urge to cry. But I won’t…can’t do it. This isn’t a sad moment. This is freedom for us both.

Parenthood, being a single father, raising a boy into a man, is brutal. You fuck up. It’s inevitable. You watch yourchild fail. You watch them succeed. You watch them go. It’s beautifully heartbreaking. It’s life.

While I understand I added to Dark’s pain by loving his now former wife, I know it’s the best. Kali’s not meant for my son. She’s mine. I know it. She knows it… and eventually, he’ll know it, too.

Clearing my throat, I swipe the dampness from my face with the back of my hand and roll out onto the asphalt, eager to spend time with the one person in the world I’ll forever bow to.

My queen.

I can’t wait to be home.

NINETEEN

Sneaking out of bed before Kali wakes, I throw on a pair of black sweats and a Harley t-shirt before I stuff my feet into my black Nikes by the front door and steal my woman’s car keys for a quick trip to the store. Knowing a certain someone will be up for school, I drift down to Lily’s house and knock on the door. It swings wide a moment later with a bubbly kiddo ready to take on the day.

“Want a ride to school, Lily Pad?” I hitch my thumb toward Kali’s driveway.

Eyes wide, bouncing on the balls of her feet, Lily rushes back inside, her dark hair swaying in a high ponytail as she leaves me on the porch to ask her mom if she can hitch a ride to school with Grandpa. She’s back a second later, yelling goodbye to Abby and racing outta the house.

On the sidewalk, she holds my hand on the short stroll to Kali’s SUV. “I love not having to ride the bus,” Lilycrows when I open the backseat for her to literally jump in and buckle up.

Belly chuckling at her enthusiasm, I round the rear and climb into the driver’s seat. “Donuts before school?” I ask as I turn over the engine. Because I don’t trust backup cameras, I hook an arm around the passenger seat to check everything’s clear. Not that I have anythin’ to worry about.

“Yes!” I catch Lily’s silly dance in the rearview mirror.

“You wanna run with me to pick some stuff up for Kali, too?”

Settling down, Lily folds her hands in her lap. “What kinda stuff?”

“A new plant? Flowers? Tea? Something she’ll like?” Something to make her morning and take her mind off all the drama goin’ on.

“Yes!” My little one claps like it’s the best idea she’s heard all week. “But can we get Mom something, too? She’s really sad. Dad left yesterday and said he didn’t know when he’d be back. But he promised to call me a lot.”

“Sure. We can get Mom whatever you want,” I reply, winking at my granddaughter in the rearview mirror.

“Can you take it to her since I have school?”

This adorable kid has a heart of gold.

“I sure can. I’ll tell her it’s from you.”

A smile splits her face in two. “Thank you!”

On the short ride to the local twenty-four-hour grocery store, Lily chatters away in the backseat, and I listen. Johnny from class pushed another boy around on the playground, and she didn’t like it. She told him howshe felt, and now she’s sad because Johnny wasn’t nice to her. Little kids can be assholes. No.Peoplecan be assholes.

Parking outside the front of the store, Lily scrambles out of her side and meets me on the sidewalk.

The electronic doors slide open, and we share a grin as we both opt for a basket instead of a cart. I haven’t been here in ages. Not since Dark’s cheating anniversary. Well, the anniversary of the day he returned with Lily and Abby in tow.

With an eye for all things Kali and her mom, Lily places a bouquet into her basket and a small bamboo tree in mine.

“That’s the one you think Kali would want?” I point to the white pot nestled in the corner.

Lily nods enthusiastically and selects a succulent inside a pot shaped like a generic blackbird. “Can she have two?”

“She can have as many as you want.”

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