Page 44 of Playing the Neutral Zone

I slid my shorts on and then left the bedroom, closing the door behind me, and went straight into Mia’s room.

“What is it, pumpkin?”I asked.

“I had a bad dream,” she cried, rubbing her eyes.

I walked over and picked her up, grabbing her blanket and Potato from her bed, carrying her into the living room where I flopped down in the corner of the couch, pulling her against me.

She rested her head on my chest and hugged Potato, while I covered her up with her favorite blanket before wrapping my arms around her.

“It’s okay.It was just a dream.Close your eyes,” I whispered, kissing her forehead.

Within minutes, Mia was back to sleeping soundly, and I carefully slid her off my chest down to the couch, got up, and went into the kitchen and started making some coffee.

I grabbed my pile of mail and carefully sorted through everything, one envelope, in particular, catching my eye.It was from a family law office in New York addressed to me.Frowning, I ripped open the envelope and pulled out the letter inside just as I heard my bedroom door open.Not knowing what was on the letter, I quickly shoved it back into the envelope and shoved it into a drawer just as Scarlett came around the corner.

“Morning.”She smiled.

“Morning.You ready for a full day?”I questioned.

We were getting together for lunch with Dylan and Aurora and Knox and Lorelai.They’d asked to meet Scarlett last night just before we left the club, and I’d reluctantly agreed, without even speaking with Scarlett until we got home.

Scarlett nodded and gave me a small smile.

“A little nervous.Is it okay if I go jump in the shower?”

“Of course.When you come back, I’ll have your coffee ready.”I winked, watching as she made her way down the hall.

The moment she was gone, I pulled out the letter and started reading it, a sick feeling forming in the pit of my stomach.

“Uncle Colty!”Mia yelled as Colton entered the backyard where we were all sitting.

Colton bent down and picked Mia up, throwing her up into the air as she laughed.

“Hey, Mia!”he said, tickling her once she was back safely in his arms.

Scarlett sat with Aurora and Lorelai, talking, each of them getting to know her and her them.Occasionally, she’d look over at me and give me a nervous smile.It wasn’t a secret that the girls were on edge, but as always, they were doing their best to make Scarlett feel welcome, which I appreciated.

“Want another beer?”Dylan questioned, pulling me out of my own thoughts.

“Uh, yeah, I guess,” I said, leaning forward to take the bottle from his hand.

“You guys are going to get it from Thompkins if you keep drinking this way during the season,” Aurora called over.

She was right.We’d been hitting it a little hard, but right now, I didn’t care.I needed to unwind today, especially after the letter I’d received this morning.

“Last weekend, promise,” Knox called out, reaching into the cooler for another bottle just as Colton came over and grabbed one for himself.

“Glad you could make it,” Dylan said, flipping the burgers on the barbeque.

“He isn’t going to turn down free food.”Knox chuckled.

“I see you aren’t either,” Colton responded, punching Knox in the bicep.

The guys laughed, but I just sat there, staring at the ground, lost deep in my own thoughts.I heard nothing around me, because all I could think about was that stupid letter stating that Skylar was coming for Mia.The sound of fingers snapping pulled me out of my head and I glanced up to see Dylan staring at me.

“What?”

“You going to answer Mia?”he asked, nodding over in her direction.“Before she has a full-on meltdown.”

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