Page 23 of The Summer I Loved

You need air and distance, like blocks and miles away from him.

“You have a sec? I wanted to talk about plans moving forward.”

She shook her head. “Huh? What plans?”

He shrugged. "Well, I was talking to my lawyer about something and when I brought up Bronwyn, he asked if I wanted him to start getting together the paperwork to change her last name and add mine to her birth certificate."

She tensed, the heat rising all over her face. He said it so calmly that she wanted to punch him. She took a deep breath and pushed the words through her teeth. "You talked to a lawyer about changing her name? Without telling me?"

"It just came up when I brought up her name, Adrianna. It’s not like I'm going behind your back."

"That kind of stuff doesn't just come up. The test results have not come back yet. Why did you even bring her name up?"

He sighed, "I was dealing with some acquisition deals and eventually, I want to put some things in Bron’s name."

"Without consulting me?"

"I don't have to ask your permission for every gift I give my daughter! You already have an opinion on all the small things we give her." His voice rose, his face taking a familiar dark turn.

She was more than ready for him. "Are you fuc—"

"Why are you guys fighting?" Bronwyn asked from behind her.

Adrianna shoved her fury into her back pocket. The last thing she wanted was to scare Bron. Arguments with Cam had always ended in one of two ways, all-out combat with words sharp enough to cut flesh…or clothes ripping and bodies sweating. There would be no chance of the second, so she needed to diffuse the first.

She rubbed a hand over her daughter’s head. "We're just having a disagreement. No need for you to worry. You know I yell a lot."

Bronwyn nodded and peeked at Cam. He was shell shocked.

"Cam sometimes gets like your Aunt Lo in the morning when she gets no sleep."

"Ohhhh," Bron nodded. "Let's get you some coffee. That would fix you right up." She reached for his hand and began to drag him.

“Go ahead. We'll talk later," she said to Cam.

"You're in a lot of trouble," Bron whispered loudly when they were a few feet away.

Adrianna laughed as soon as she closed the door to her room. She filled the soaking tub and sank into it. She wished she had a tub this big at home.

She was happy that Cam and his siblings accepted Bronwyn, but things were moving way too quickly for her. It was downright scary to think about. She wasn’t trying to control Bron’s relationship with her father, but she didn’t want her daughter to become spoiled.

Adrianna needed to get in the right mindset. A little alone time might just do the trick. She rose from the tub, got dressed, and made a list of places she wanted to go.

She was reaching for her purse when her phone rang.

"Start spreading the newsssss, Adri Bear," the teasing voice on the other side of the phone made her smile.

“Thank God, Lo. I’m losing my damned mind.”

“Oh? I’m guessing you and Cam didn’t shed your clothes yet.”

“Shut up,loca.” As if Adrianna needed to picture him naked, anymore than she did. “He just ticked me off so bad.”

•••

"And who is this?" Cam asked, trying to keep his voice light despite the urge to fling his daughter’s new tablet into a wall.

She was showing him her photos and they came to one of Adrianna and Bronwyn with a tall, muscular man. All three smiled and the man's arm was around Adrianna, his other hand on Bronwyn's shoulder. They looked like a happy family, which made the bile in Cam’s stomach churn.

---