Page 94 of All of Me

“Look, I’ve been busy,” he replied, his tone defensive. “I just moved into the new place, and things have been hectic.”

“What’s so hectic that you can’t see your kids?” I shot back, unable to hide the edge in my voice.

There’s a pause, and then he sighs. “I’ve been seeing someone. Her name’s Danielle. Things are... serious.”

I freeze, the phone pressed to my ear. “Serious?” I repeat, my voice sharp. “Serious enough that you can’t bother to see your daughters? You haven’t seen them since you and Katie broke up! What, were you just trying to find another woman to take care of them because you’re incapable of handling them on your own?”

“That’s not what I meant—” he starts, but I cut him off.

“Do you even hear yourself? You’ve missed three weekends, Adam. Three. Sara’s been asking for you every single day, and your excuse is that you’ve got a new girlfriend? Are you kidding me?”

His sigh is audible, and I can picture him pinching the bridge of his nose like he always does when he’s cornered. “I’m trying, Callie. Things have been hectic.”

“Hectic?” The word bursts out of me like a laugh, sharp and bitter. “You don’t think my life is hectic? I’m raising two kids, planning a wedding–”

“You’re WHAT?!” he all but roars.

“Planning. A. Wedding. You. Fucking. Asshole,” I seethe. “And somehow, I still make time to do your job because you can’t be bothered! God, I hope you and Danielle are at least using protection, because you already have two kids, and another on the way, that you’re not fucking present for.”

The words hang heavy in the air. There’s silence on the other end, and for a moment I think he’s hung up.

“It’s not my fault Katie took off,” he says finally, his voice low and defensive. “I can’t find her, Callie. She won’t answer my calls, my texts—nothing.”

Guilt flickers in my chest for a moment, but it’s short-lived.

“And whose fault is that, Adam? Katie didn’t just wake up one day and decide to leave. She was running from something. YOU! Maybe you should think about why the women you impregnate want to flee. What does that say about you?”

“That’s not fair,” he snaps. “I didn’t ask for her to leave.”

“No, but you sure as hell didn’t give her a reason to stay,” I fire back, my voice trembling with anger. “And now you’re bailing on Sara and Ruby. Do you even realize that? Now you’re with another new woman that you’re probably going to knock up and push away too!”

“Danielle can’t have kids,” he says abruptly, his tone bitter.

The statement knocks the wind out of me, and I can’t think of anything to say. My anger wars with a strange, unsettling sadness. Did he choose someone who couldn’t have kids so he wouldn’t have to feel guilty about ignoring his own? As fucked up as that is, it wouldn’t surprise me. Heaven forbid a guy like Adam just get a fucking vasectomy. Then he can screw around with anyone he wants and not worry about having twenty-seven baby mamas.

“I don’t even know what to say to that,” I whisper finally, my voice shaking.

“Don’t,” he mutters. “Just... don’t.”

The line goes dead before I can respond. I’m left standing there, the phone clutched in my hand, my heart pounding in my chest.

The thought of it makes my stomach churn as I sit at the kitchen table, staring at the growing list of wedding tasks. Venues, catering, flowers, music—it all blurs together in my mind like a tangled web I can’t unravel.

“Mommy?” Sara’s small voice pulls me back to the present, and I look up to see her holding out a crinkled piece of paper covered in wobbly crayon scribbles. She bounces on her toes, waving it eagerly. “Look it!”

I take the paper from her tiny hands, forcing a smile even as my chest tightens. “Did you make this for me?”

She nods, beaming. “Yeah!”

“It’s beautiful, sweet girl,” I murmur, brushing a stray curl from her face before pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “Thank you.”

Sara giggles, climbing into my lap with a little grunt, her small arms wrapping around me as she tucks her head against my chest. She’s warm, soft, completely unaware of the weight pressing down on me. And I don’t want her to be.

This should be a happy time—a celebration of love and family. But every time I start to feel even a flicker of excitement about the wedding, something drags me back down.

Usually, it’s Adam.

He’s been dodging his weekends with the girls for weeks now, and when I found out he’s been spending that time with his new girlfriend, it took everything in me not to throw something.

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