Page 102 of Blue

She was still his kids’ mother. Besides, the ink was barely dry on the fucking papers. Once they were officially and legally divorced, all bets would be off. If she pulled this shit when the papers were done and filed, then he could call. Now he’d have to deal with her.

How long had Nate said? Counting, he tapped his index finger against the thumb. Thirty to ninety days. Jesus-fucking-Christ.

Mooky scrubbed his hand over his face and took a deep breath. This would be a long three months.

Tucking the phone back into its spot, he nodded to himself. Time to man up. He charged toward the front entrance of his house. As he exited his house into the dark night, the door to the sedan opened.

Don’t take the bait. Don’t take any bait. He reminded himself.

Angela’s petite, waif-like form exited her car.

He marched toward the end of his driveway and crossed his arms over his chest. He’d show no weakness. Keeping his expression tight, he watched her rub her arms as though cold. She glanced around the street as though checking for someone while she approached him.

Suspiciously, he did the same. He didn’t need any more surprise cop boyfriends popping out of nowhere.

Keeping her distance, standing in the street at the mouth of his driveway, she peered him at him with wide, vulnerable eyes. At least in the lowlight of the night, lit only by the moon and the floodlight hung on his garage. She resembled that lost child he’d known years ago when they’d first met.

She didn’t tug at his heartstrings the way she had back then.

“You let her ride on the back of your bike,” she commented as her gaze drifted to the garage and then back to him.

The fuck did she know about that? Other than what she’d just seen? What did it matter?

Don’t take the bait.

Keeping his expression neutral, he didn’t respond. No need to play into her game. Any comment would be irrelevant, so he waited for her to get to her point.

Pursing her lips, she nodded. Shifting her weight from one foot to the other, her nervous tension came through clearly.

Angela once again glanced around, as though she couldn’t hold eye contact with him. “On some level, I know our marriage has been over for a long time.”

Some level? He did his best to stifle the knee-jerk balk. Instead, he arched his brows, curious about where she would go with it.

“But it doesn’t make it easy,” she snapped and brought her focus to him. “We’ve been together since we were kids,” she said, and made what sounded like a hiccup. “I just—I didn’t know how—I couldn’t think.” She paused and looked down at the ground while she picked at her fingernails.

Narrowing his eyes, he studied her while she regrouped.

He gave her the time to gather her thoughts. In all the years he’d been with Angela, he was aware feelings weren’t her strong suit. Putting up the ice queen facade was easy for her. This moment—actually being vulnerable to him was hard as fuck, and he would let her stew in it. He wouldn’t help her out.

He used to. He used to take her out of the awkward. Not anymore. Now she needed to be in that discomfort. He wanted to see what she’d do with it.

When she lifted her gaze, he didn’t expect to see eyes welled with tears. The raw emotion reflected at him, even in the shadowy night, jarred him. Compelled to look away, to offer her dignity, he cleared his throat and shifted his focus down the road.

She’d never been the crocodile tear type. Nah, she’d been the quick to anger type. She’d be more likely to key his car or something out of revenge before she’d use fake tears to emotionally manipulate him. She’d rather fake confidence than vulnerability. Crying wasn’t her style. Angela didn’t do helpless.

He didn’t know what to do or how to respond to this.

“You’ve been there forever,” she said in a shaky voice. “I’ve always had you. H-h-how am I supposed to—what am I—Whoam I withoutyou?”

This brought his attention back to her, slack-jawed.The hell did she say?

The tears fell as she stared at him as though he had the answer.

He didn’t. How could he? They’d existed separately for far longer than they’d been married. He hadn’t a clue who she waswithhim, let alone who she’d be without him.

“I know.” She sniffed before the nervous laugh kicked in. “I cheated on you first.” She wiped at the tears. “It’s my fault.” She blinked and lifted her face to the sky. “I just don’t know who I am or what the hell I am doing.” She covered her face before letting out what he would best describe as a combination of a soft roar and a loud huff. “I never have.”

He tilted his head, taking in the scene before him. His hands fell from their crossed position at first, dangling at his sides before he tucked them into his pockets. He’d been prepared for battle, but she wasn’t there to duel. She’d left the armor behind. Empathy welled within him. Odd. He’d hadn’t felt that in ages.

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