Page 14 of Man Advantage

“Not one I can have before driving home,” Bryan gritted out.

Cam just shook his head.

We took our seats. Cam was on one end of the couch. I was on the other, a whole cushion between us. Bryan sat stiffly in one of the recliners, looking like he wanted to be anywhere but here.

“I can relate,”I didn’t say out loud.“So how about we just be civil and get this over with?”

I cleared my throat, but my ex-husband spoke first.

“So, Cam, what were you doing before?” Bryan sounded bored. “Trev never mentioned you working as a nanny.”

Cam fidgeted. “I’m a personal trainer.”

“Yeah?” My ex’s eyes flicked toward me. “Not exactly a childcare job, is it?”

“Bryan,” I growled.

“What?” He put up his hands. “It’s a reasonable question!”

“I’ve never done full-time childcare,” Cam said. “But I worked with kids at the gym sometimes, and I’ve done plenty of babysitting since I was a teenager.”

“That’s not the same as?—”

“They’re not newborns,” I said. “They don’t need someone who has a Ph.D. in nannying.” I paused. “And it wasn’t like you or I had much experience when we brought them home.”

Bryan scowled and rolled his eyes.

“Is it just me?”he’d asked, exhausted and threadbare on the third or fourth day at home with the twins.“Or are we in way over our heads?”

“I’m pretty sure we are.”I’d scrubbed my hand over my face and sighed.“But our parents figured it out. We will too.”

And we had. Little by little, sleepless night after sleepless night, we’d figured it out. Now, despite plenty of mistakes alongthe way, not to mention all the upheaval from our divorce, the boys were thriving.

Cam shifted with obvious discomfort, which made anger surge in my chest. It reminded me of that sleep-deprived, frustrated feeling like I was about to snap at the slightest provocation. I hated it, and I couldn’t wait for this conversation to beover.

“Look,” I said to Bryan, “Cam is and always has been responsible. Being a personal trainer is exactly the kind of career I’d expect for him because it requires someone to be conscientious, detail-oriented, and focused on an individual’s specific needs.” I inclined my head. “All the things you raved about with your last trainer?” I gestured at Cam.

Bryan pressed his lips into a thin line.

“And at the end of the day,” I went on, “IknowCam. Have for most of my life. I can hire a nanny with a stack of references, but I won’t know them. Not like I know Cam.”

My ex huffed an ugly laugh. “Well, I should hope you don’t know a new nanny like you know him.”

The last remaining tether on my temperalmostsnapped.Almost. Especially as I watched the confusion, realization, and embarrassment flicker across Cam’s face.

Heat rushed into my own face as I growled, “Are you done, Bryan? Can we do this like civil adults, or what?”

He glared right back at me. “I mean, how civil do you want me to be about you hiring your ex to watch our kids?”

“That was high school,” I ground out. “Cam and I were friends a lot longer than we were a couple. And, again, it washigh school.” I narrowed my eyes. “Or do we need to talk about the man you allegedly didn’t start screwing until after we separated? Because if he’s okay around the kids, then?—”

“Tim’s job isn’t to watch the kids,” Bryan threw back. “He’s my partner. You brought Cam here specifically to watch our boys, so I think I’m well within my rights to?—”

“You’re well within your rights to ask him about his experience with kids. Not disrespect him and act like something from when we wereteenagersis relevant here.”

I hated how utterly uncomfortable Cam looked as I exchanged barbs with my ex-husband. I fucking hated everything about this conversation.

And I could tell from Bryan’s eyes that this would absolutely escalate into the kind of screaming match that had been the soundtrack of our last year as a married couple.

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