Alexis stood and text Cory as she walked toward the door. “Come on, buddy,” she coaxed, letting Mr. Dog inside, fingers on the keypad.
Alexis—How’s Kinley?
Of course dick-face couldn’t just be human and text her back. He still hadn’t texted by the time she’d gotten out of the shower. Screw that. This was bullshit and he was being an ass. Alexis stood in the door of her room, debating on what to do. She tilted her head, remembering all the work she’d already done, how much she loved the silver-gray walls, and the bedroom suit. Why would she change it? Screw that, too. She wasn’t changing it. It was hers, not his and she was done having a backache on the sofa.
Cory answered on the third ring. “She’s fine, Alexis. She was fine before we ever made it in the house. I gave her some Tylenol and she’s content in her highchair, eating cheese puffs.”
“And you couldn’t just message me that?”
“If there was something wrong, I would have called you. She’s fine. Are you fine?”
“What?”
“I don’t want you to cry, Alexis.”
“Oh, because you care? Don’t worry about me.”
“I’m taking the girls to Chicago for Thanksgiving. My sister is getting married that weekend.”
“Um, no you’re not. You’re not taking Kinley to Chicago.”
“We’re not doing this Alexis. Yes I am. She’s just as much mine as she is yours.”
“Kinley is spending Thanksgiving here with my family like she always does.”
“We’ll talk about it later. It’s two months away.”
“We don’t need to talk about it later. You’re not taking Kinley to Chicago without me.”
“Goodbye Alexis.”
The phone disconnected when she announced “I hate you.”
The words her mother spoke about letting go played over and over in her mind. Every minute you spend focusing on Cory is a minute that's holding you back. She didn’t want to be held back anymore. She wanted to move forward, she really did, and that was what she was going to focus on. Moving forward. Alexis slept in her own bed for the first time in weeks. She didn’t cry herself to sleep, she didn’t let Cory be the last thing on her mind, and she didn’t wake up thinking about him. She woke up refreshed, grateful for the full night of sleep. Hands above her head and flat on her back, Alexis stared up at the ceiling. That’s the first time she felt it and the sense of guilt washed over her again. Her eyes quickly darted to the movement in her stomach and she lifted her shirt. She wondered if Kinley moved around at four months in. The thought of her being past the first trimester crossed her mind and she knew this was going to happen. Another baby was going to be born in less than five short months. A sigh and then a smile was prominent when she placed her hand over the kick. This baby was cray active.
Determined to have a good day and forget Cory, Alexis got up and went to work. She was going to get through this, she was going to raise the three kids to the best of her ability, and she was done with Cory Baker except, she couldn’t take the ring off. Funny how it took her forever to accept it and put it on, but now couldn’t seem to get it off.
Paige had done a phenomenal job the day before in the studio. Alexis looked at the photos of the three kids Paige had rudely taken over, happy that she did. The girl had talent. The work in front of her was spent with intent, focused, and committed, all but one little thing. She had to check on Kinley before her mind would rest. She was doing it just like he would have and not with a text message. He could answer her questions without being a dick or he could be a dick. She didn’t much care.
Cory decided to answer after five rings. “How’s Kinley this morning?” Alexis asked while she squinted her eyes and covered a red patch on the little girl’s cheek on her screen.
“She’s fine, slept all night.”
“Good, goodbye.” Alexis smiled a satisfied smile and dropped her phone to the desk. “Taste your own medicine, Doc,” she said with a snort. It felt good, maybe she could be an ass too.
“Hey, girl. I’m surprised to see you here,” Bernie announced while she plopped to the chair in front of Alexis and propped her feet on her desk, biting into an apple. “How are you? You look better today.”
“I feel better. I think last night is the first night I’ve slept in weeks. Other than the fact that I haven’t had sex in a million days, I feel good.”
Bernie bit anther chunk of apple, talking around the crunching, “Buy a toy.”
“Get your feet off my desk. No, I don’t need a toy. I’m fine,” Alexis assured her with a shove to the bright white sneakers.
Bernie sat up determined, leaning over the desk. “Go to Amazon. Get the magic wand. It’s electric. You’ll forget all about Cory.”
“I’m not going to Amazon to buy a magic wand. Don’t you have a shoot?”
“No, we’re slow as hell. I hate September. Go to Amazon. I just want to show you.”
“You’ll be singing a different tune once the Christmas season kicks in.”
“Yeah, yeah, go to Amazon.”
“I’m not buying a sex toy. I’m fine.”
“No you’re not. Watch out. Just let me show you.” Bernie was like a cheetah, fast and sneaky. She slid Alexis out of the way and hovered the mouse over the search bar and within seconds had the strange looking device pulled up in front of them.
Alexis tilted her head to the right and scrunched her face. “What the hell do you do with it? It looks too big to go inside.”
“You don’t have to put it inside. Trust me. This is my go to when Travis is gone. Travis is gone a lot.” Bernie reminded Alexis with a serious nod.
“It’s cheap enough.” Oh lord. Was she really thinking about this? Her parents would have twin heart attacks if they ever found out.
Bernie clicked add to cart. “Now, if you want something that goes inside, I recommend this one.”
Alexis looked around the room, making sure they were alone and clicked off the real looking toy. “Let’s start with one. I can’t even look at that.”
“You’re too much like your folks.”
“No, I’ve just been blessed with not one, but two douchebags in my life.”
“Look, two day shipping,” Bernie said with a pointed finger. “You can be enjoying it by Tuesday.”
“Bernie!” Alexis yelled when her obnoxious friend clicked twice, once for buy it now, and once for confirm.
“Trust me, you’re going to love it.”
“I’m not telling you whether I do or not, so don’t ask me.”
“Whatever, I don’t have to ask. I know.”
Alexis shook her head with an eye roll and changed the subject. Too late now, Bernie had already ordered the dumb thing. Stupid one click. “Cory thinks he’s taking Kinley to Chicago for Thanksgiving.”
“Really? How do you feel about that?”
“I said no, absolutely not. There’s no way I’m letting him do that. I don’t even want him to take Riki,” Alexis explained while she clicked out of Amazon and back to her photos.
“You suck at this. You gotta play the game, too. It’s the only way. Men play games, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”
“What do you mean?” Alexis questioned as her elbows went to the desk and she studied Bernie. She didn’t know about this stuff like Bernie did. Bernie had been through at least twenty guys. Alexis was almost thirty and only had two.
“I’m going to my parents the first week in December. Come with me. Tell him fine, but you’re taking the girls and going to my parents’ with me.”
“Cory would never let me take the girls to Florida.”
“See, that’s what I mean. He wouldn’t let you, but he expects you to? Screw that. Come with me.”
“You really think we can both take a week off in December? You’re crazy. I couldn’t go, even if I wanted to.”
“Yes you could. Paige and Tawny can handle the studio and you can work from anywhere with Wi-Fi. You can go. Besides, you hate
winter. It would be a nice get away for you. You’ve got time. Just think about it.”
Alexis raised her eyebrows in thought. She would like that, but not enough for Cory to take the girls to Chicago. That wasn’t a tradeoff she would condone, not all the way to Chicago. “We’ll see.”
“What are you doing tonight? Travis and Taylor are doing some lockdown thing in the gym for cub scouts. Wanna do something?”
Alexis looked to Bernie with intent. Did she? “Like what. I can’t do much.”
“You’re pregnant, not dead. Johnny’s DJ-ing at the line tonight. Let’s go.”
“No, I’ll want to drink.”
“I’ll stay sober with you. We’ll eat a greasy cheeseburger and drink coke.”
Alexis belly laughed, tears and all. “You’re going to go into a bar and not drink. When hell freezes over.”
“What? I can do it.”
“No you can’t.”
“Bet me, let’s go,” Bernie held out her deal hand.
Alexis studied it for a second and shook twice, deciding if she was going to forget Cory she needed to start somewhere. “Twenty bucks says you drink?”
Bernie took the deal and let go of her hand. “Let’s go to April’s. I’m hungry.”
“You just gobbled an apple in three seconds, it’s only noon. Don’t you have work to do?”
“No, I told you, we’re slow as hell. I don’t have anything until two and that’s it for the day. Come on, It’s Saturday. Potato soup.”
Alexis stood to go along. This baby did make her hungrier than normal and April’s potato soup was the best, maybe even as good as her mothers. An audible gasp was heard when Alexis retrieved her phone, hitting buttons as quickly as she could. The desk chair rolled back when she practically fainted into it.
“What?” Bernie questioned, eyebrows turned to the bridge of her nose.
“Cory. Oh my God, Bernie. I called him right before you came in here. Twenty minutes ago!”
“So?”
“I didn’t hang up. The call says twenty two minutes. He heard everything.”
“Oh boy. Maybe he hung up.”
“You think?”
“I hope. You ordered a sex toy.”
“I fucking hate you!”
Bernie laughed the kind of laugh that brought tears to your eyes. Alexis didn’t really say that word, and for whatever reason every time she did, Bernie gut laughed. “Lex, you’re being too dramatic. Look at it in a positive way.”
“This isn’t funny. I just ordered a sex toy with Cory listening. No! You ordered the damn thing.”
“So use it to your advantage. That’s just one more reason not to need Cory, and you did call him a douchebag. Let’s hope he heard that too.”
Alexis stood again and followed Bernie out, mortified. She was never going to be able to look at him again. Thank God he took the girls to Sam’s and she didn’t have to. How was she ever supposed to face him again? Maybe Bernie was right. Maybe he hung up when she dropped the phone to her desk. One could only hope.
“You know what I really hate about all this, Bernie?” Alexis asked while locking up the studio for a while. Bernie answered with a hum as the two best friends walked the sidewalk, arm and arm. “That I can’t just call to check on them, or expect a picture or anything when he has them. Drives me crazy.”
“Does he expect you to do that, like does he text and call to check on them?”
“No, but I think things are different for men and women in that scene. Oh my God!” Alexis exclaimed with a fistful of Bernie’s shirt. She pulled her to the step, hiding at the door of Clayton’s old shoe store.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” Bernie yelled with flailing arms, straightening her shirt. That’s Cory. That’s his new truck.”
“Sweet. Bet that thing cost a pretty penny.”
“Shut up, I’m not talking about the truck. He’s got someone with him. A girl.”
Bernie squinted her eyes to see. Yup, sure enough there was a female in the passenger seat. “Oh my God. They’re going to Aprils.”
“Cool, now you can check on the girls. Let’s go.” Alexis stumbled a little when Bernie pulled her from the door, down the one step from their hiding cubbyhole.
Alexis pulled her right back. “No way. I’m not going to April’s. He’s with a girl. Wow.”
“Yes, you are going in there. This is exactly what I am talking about. You’re doing everything around Cory. Of course he’s with a girl. He’s a douchebag, remember. Now come on. This is your town.” Bernie took her hand that time and Alexis let her. She was too distraught to fight it. Cory was with a girl. Ouch, that stung a little.
“Slow down. I need to get a good look at her before we go in. I want to see if it’s a nurse from Canterville. It better not be someone I know.”
Bernie took an exasperated breath and stepped up to the bakery step where they watched Cory pull to the curb, get out, and retrieve Kinley. His new friend helped Riki, sending an instant red face right to Alexis. The man had nerve.
“What now?” Bernie asked when Alexis sucked in another surmising gasp.
“I do know her. That’s Ellen.”
“She’s a little old for him,” Bernie determined while her hand shielded the glare on the glass.
“No, it’s not a girl, girl. It’s Ellen from Chicago, Cory’s nanny, I love her.”
“Then let’s go say hi.”
“I can’t, Bernie. Let’s just go to Drakes Valley.”
“No way. I’m about to teach you a thing or two about break ups. No best friend of mine is going to cower away and give him the upper hand. Come on.”
Alexis felt a surge of adrenaline when Bernie slowed her pace, giving them time to get inside. “Bernie, I can’t.”
“Okay, this is what you’re going to do. You’re going to walk right up to the table and say hi to Ella.”
“Ellen, and Kinley’s going to want me.”
“Good, that’s rubbing it in a little more.”
Alexis stopped her by her shirt again. “Wait. What if he was on the phone that whole time?”
Bernie straightened her shirt again with a frown. “Get the hell off my shirt. Geesh. Who gives a shit? So what? If he says something, come back with something better.”
“But I’m not good at that like you are. My comebacks happen an hour too late.”
“Just say the first thing that comes to mind. Now come on.”
Alexis groaned and reluctantly followed. This was bad. This was so far out of her comfort zone and she didn’t like it. Not one bit.
The diner was fairly quiet, a lot of empty tables, but it was early for lunch yet. Riki saw them first and ran right to the door. Alexis’s eyes landed on Cory’s and held his gaze.
“Lexis! Aunt Bernie!” Riki called. Alexis broke the scrutiny by hugging Riki.
“Hi, baby. What are you doing here?”
“Ellen comed to visit us. We’re having lunch here.”
“Came, Ellen came,” Alexis corrected, not really knowing what else to say.
“Come on, let’s go say hi,” Bernie coaxed. Alexis pulled up her big girl panties and stood tall. She could do this.
“Alexis, hi. How are you?” Ellen greeted. She stood and hugged her tight.
Alexis hugged back. “I’m doing great, Ellen. How are you?”
“Much better since I got to see these little girls.”
Kinley whined while reaching for Alexis and twisting her body to get to her. Alexis didn’t even hesitate. She removed the tray and picked her up. “Hi, baby girl. Do you feel better? I presume you bought this outfit? It’s adorable,” Alexis questioned with a smile toward Ellen, trying like hell not to look at the smirk on Cory’s face.
“Yes, and Riki’s.”
“See,” Riki said with a twirl, showing off her new jeans with gems on the back pockets.
“I love them. You can wear them to school.”
“Do you need a few minutes?” Carole asked around Bernie.
“Is it possible to slide that table over?” Ellen questioned. Alexis’s heart dropped like she was going over a speed bump. It went up and floated down. She didn’t want to eat with Cory.
“That’s okay. We don’t have a lot of time,” Alexis explained. She tried to place Kinley back to her seat, but she wasn’t having it.
“Sure we do. I’ll help,” Bernie offered. Of course she sat by Ellen, leaving Alexis to sit beside Cory. That was probably better. At least she didn’t have to worry about the eye locking thing.
“Will this be two checks?” Carole questioned, pen in hand.
“Yes,” Cory replied at the same time Alexis responded with, no.
“Make it two,” Alexis ordered..
Once the orders were placed, the conversation consisted of talk about the small town, Riki going to school, Kinley growing like a weed, and the food. Cory sat right beside Alexis, barely speaking a word. Ellen treated Alexis like her own mother would treat Cory, with respect and kindness.
It wasn’t so bad, and Alexis relaxed fairly quickly. Ellen was easy to talk to and she was happy to see Riki and Kinley for a little while. It helped in missing them so much. Kinley sat on her lap the entire time and ate Alexis’s food. It wasn’t until Ellen took Riki to the restroom, and traitor Bernie walked out to the sidewalk to talk to Travis that Alexis had to deal with Cory.
Cory moved his arm over the back of her chair, sending an aroma of his cologne through the air and right to Alexis’s nostrils. Maybe she did need a toy. “I want to take Riki to school her first day.”
“No, she’s too excited about riding the school bus with Emily.” Alexis avoided eye contact, focusing on feeding Kinley soup.
“Then I’m coming over to see her off. You do know you have no rights to her, right?”