Page 38 of Mom-Com
Damn, the second I walked away, he was back at it, flirting like he had no respect for the minors in listening range.
I glanced up and caught Lily-Marie blushing. Fuck. Right in front of me, she met a guy. He looked pretty strong, like he could totally sweep her off her feet. Just like she wanted.
“Hey, Jameson, can you help us show him how to play fetch?” Clark shoved something in my hand, a brand-new blue rubber ball, to match the dog’s collar, I’d bet.
Anger burned up my esophagus, Lily-Marie’s interest in other men creating the worst acid reflux known to humankind. But there were three eager kids looking at me to help them with their new four-legged family member and I couldn’t let them down.
“Sure, kiddo. It’s all about positive reinforcement. The leash isn’t that long, so let’s toss the ball to him and see if he’ll pick it up at least. If he does we’ll shower him with praise. Okay?” I scooted back and gestured for the kids to follow, crouching down to their level again.
Milly climbed on my back and wrapped her arms around my neck, wanting a higher vantage point for all the action. A bit of the fire burning through my system faded away at her ready acceptance. Her mother might not like me, but Milly sure did.
I tossed the ball right to the puppy and we all waited with bated breath while he sniffed it, pawed at it, and then hopped around while it lay there inert on the ground. Meanwhile, I could hear Mr. Sweaty Chest inviting Lily-Marie to join him on his next run. I snorted at the thought. Like she’d voluntarily go running. What an idiot.
Clark glanced over at me, probably wondering why I was snorting at nothing. I just smiled back, then stood up to go get the ball. Milly squealed in my ear, enjoying the piggyback ride. We stooped and I let Milly lean over my shoulder to be the one to pick up the ball. The puppy licked her hand and she giggled, the sound bringing another smile to my face.
Hustling back over to the boys, I had Milly chuck the ball at the dog, and this time, he sniffed at it and then picked it up in his mouth. When we all burst out cheering, he looked up, startled, and dropped the ball again. At our collective groan, Lily-Marie came over to see what was going on. Thankfully, marathon boy took the hint and took off, leaving Lily-Marie blessedly alone.
“What are you guys up to?”
She stood right next to me, her hand on Milly’s back, which put her breast pressed firmly against my arm. A waft of her perfume hit my nose and I nearly dropped Milly. I tried to swallow, but my throat felt too tight.
“We’re gonna teach him how to play fetch, Mom,” Clark explained.
I was watching the puppy, studiously ignoring Lily-Marie, but I could feel her breathing next to me. Hell, I could feel her gaze on the side of my head, her stare not leaving me once. I had no idea what she’d say to me or what she was feeling, but I couldn’t look at her. Not while the kids were there. I simply didn’t trust myself.
“If anyone can teach him, I’d bet on Jameson.” She almost whispered it, her mouth only a foot away from my ear.
A shiver ran down my spine at her intimate tone. I kept up a steady chant, reminding myself not to look at her. Not the time, nor the place. I had more self-control than that, I knew I did.
“Hey, Lily-Marie! You got a new dog there?” Mr. Stinebeck, from down the street, called over from the sidewalk, ripping Lily-Marie’s attention from the side of my head.
I winced. Good Lord, it was like the freakingBachelorshow around here. Every damn neighbor was a man and every single one of them wanted to talk to Lily-Marie. A flutter of something I didn’t recognize threatened to consume me, even as the kids went back to playing fetch with their dog.
As I watched Lily-Marie talk with Mr. Stinebeck, his hand patting her back far too intimately for my liking, I decided enough was enough. No need to torture myself further.
Lowering Milly to the ground, I stood back up and clapped my hands. “All right, guys. I gotta start making dinner. Good luck with the puppy.”
With that, I spun on my heel and marched back inside my house. Not one backward glance. An exit I could be proud of.
When I got inside and closed the front door—didn’t even slam it—I proceeded to slap two cans of soup down on the counter and took my anger out on the can opener. None of that electric can opener business for me. I did it the old-fashioned way with elbow grease and anger.
By the time the soup was boiling on the stovetop, I was rapidly running out of hope. Instead of debating when Lily-Marie would come to her senses and realize she loved me, I was contemplating moving yet again. How disruptive would that be for Stein?
I let out a sigh. “Dumbass...”
I couldn’t ask Stein to move again so soon. Simply because his father was an idiot and fell in love with the girl next door, too much of a nerd to figure out how to make her fall in love with him in return.
So that was it. I was destined to live out the rest of my life here in this house, watching the woman I loved flirt with everyone but me.
Unrequited love. My new friend.
* * *
Stein was in his pajamas, curled up on one end of the couch as we watched his favorite YouTube channel with two grown adults playing Minecraft and narrating their way through the adventure. He giggled when one of the narrators screamed and died a fiery death, the sound normally being enough to make even my most stressful days bright again. But even my son’s giggles couldn’t lighten the dark thoughts that pounded through my head.
Instead, I grabbed my journal and got busy scribbling into it while Stein was occupied. I needed to write out everything that had happened between Lily-Marie and me. The conclusion to the infamous experiment that had gone all wrong. As I wrote out how I felt watching her today, I realized I was jealous. I was wholly green with it, finally understanding that phrase for the first time.
I was so deep into my thoughts, a silent pity party for my single status, I didn’t hear Stein turn off the television. Only when he placed his hand on my arm, did I put the pen down and look up.
