Page 72 of Beyond Oblivion

“Sorry, princess,” I said, hooking my arm around her shoulders and pulling her close. “I’ve missed you and your ability to turn joy into depressing TEDtalks. What’s it called this time? ‘You’re Forgettable: Why Your Legacy Won’t Last’? Or did you decide to go with ‘The Earth is Dying: Here’s What We Can’t Do About It’? Either way, can’t wait.”

She rolled her eyes but couldn’t fight the small grin turning up the corners of her mouth.

Despite Liis’s stoicism, it was Falyn who had always been less patient with us Maddox boys compared to the other wives, but she reminded me so much of Olive that it was hard to care. I squeezed her tiny frame to my side, feeling that familiar mix of annoyance and affection.

“Thanks for grabbing us at such late notice,” she said. “It wasn’t my idea.”

“We don’t mind at all, you know that,” I insisted, grabbing the first booster seat and buckling it in the back. It made me feel a little nostalgic. “Ya know, I used to fight with Olive’s all the time. It’s crazy, but now I miss it.”

Falyn and Taylor traded glances, but I knew better than to ask why.

“It’s nice to have someone else to fasten in the seats for once,” Falyn said, her tone carrying a subtle bite.

Taylor didn’t defend himself, instead carrying Hollis’s seat to the other side and then buckling it in. His gaze met mine. We didn’t even have to say it; Tyler might’ve been his twin, but with just one look, I understood that Taylor wanted me to forgive any subtle digs Falyn shot his way. Abby and Camille wouldn’t pretend, though—especially Abby. She was the youngest, but as the first wife, she was our sister before anyone else came along, and she was sometimes viciously protective, whether we wanted her to be or not.

Once the booster seats were secure, Falyn fastened in the kids while Taylor and I played Tetris with the bags in the truck bed.

Falyn climbed into the back to sit between Hollis and Hadley, and Taylor sat up front with me, sighing like he’d just summited Mt. Everest after buckling his seat belt.

“You all good back there, baby?” Taylor asked.

“Yep,” Falyn said, staring out the window.

Her platinum hair was still long, but it was a tangled mess, twisted up in a clip that couldn’t quite hold it together. She wore a comfy sweatshirt and leggings, the kind of outfit that said she didn’t have the energy to care. The exhaustion etched on her face and the frustration in her eyes made it clear she was struggling. Whatever had happened between Taylor and her had drained the glow I remembered from their wedding. I wasn’t sure if it was the conflicted emotions of raising Hollis, the son Taylor had fathered with another woman, having two children so close together, or just that her feelings for Taylor had changed. Maybe it was none of those things, but the burden of whatever she was going through was heavy, visible, and impossible to deny.

I reached behind me and patted her knee. “I really have missed you, sis. Glad you’re home.”

I watched for her reaction in the rearview mirror, seeing that she kept her gaze on the landscape passing by her window. The corners of her mouth barely offered a ghost of a smile. “The kids have been looking forward to it.”

I couldn’t help but glance at my brother. Despite the calm exterior, I knew him well enough to see he was hiding sheer panic and desperation. At least, that’s what I would’ve been feeling in that moment. Falyn was devoid of emotion, just a shell of the woman Taylor had married.

Most people think the opposite of love is hate, but they’re wrong. It’s indifference. For any man desperately in love, to see detachment in a woman’s eyes when she stares back at you?

… goddamn. It’s the end of the world. Like the universe itself just gave you the finger and told you to pack it in.

“I know we talked about you staying with us, but Camille hasn’t been feeling well, so I’m going to get you set up at Dad’s.”

“We can get a hotel room if we need to,” Taylor said.

“It’s not in the budget,” Falyn replied, her words clipped, carrying an undertone she tried to smooth over.

Taylor cleared his throat. “Dad’s it is.” He reached down and unfastened his ball cap from the strap of his backpack and pulled it low over his brow.

The tension in the truck was fucking suffocating. I wasn’t buying that they were keeping their problems hidden from the kids, and I wasn’t sure how they’d convinced themselves otherwise. It made me wonder how bad things had been for them at home. Taylor was in insurance, traveled a lot for work, and that probably just made everything worse. Getting used to living together again when their relationship was already hanging by a thread had to be a damn nightmare. Anger simmered in the air between them, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that it was only a matter of time before Taylor’s world went up in flames, and he’d already tried everything to save it.

“How are James and Jessica? How’s Olive?” Falyn asked. For the first time, light had returned to her eyes.

“They’re good. Ornery as hell, but good,” I said.

“Olive is liking school? Making lots of friends?” she asked.

“Yeah, she’s like the fu… freakin’ homecoming queen everywhere she goes. Everyone loves her. It’s been pretty cool to watch.”

Falyn settled back into her seat, finally a genuine grin spreading across her face. Taylor glanced back quickly then looked forward, relief relaxing his entire body. Whatever it was, he’d been hoping for it.

I dropped them off at Dad’s, helped them unload, and then returned to my truck, feeling an overwhelming sense of urgency to see my wife. The drive back to Skin Deep took too long, but the moment I pushed through the glass doors and saw her behind the counter, I couldn’t help but pull her into my arms.

“Get them all settled in?” she asked, her voice muffled as she spoke into my wool shirt jacket.

---