Say It's Not Fake

“You really do play dirty,” I teased as he worked me over with his hand.

He withdrew his fingers and pushed down my panties, dropping to his knees in front of me. He looked up at me through his lashes, a smirk on his beautiful face. “You have no idea,” he warned before sending me over the edge.

Chapter 15

Kyle

I was completely and totally in love with Whitney Galloway. I could barely think of anything but wanting her and being with her. And fucking her brains out. It was hard balancing your insatiable need to screw your wife with every other aspect of your life.

But it wasn’t just about the amazing, mind-blowing sex that we were now having whenever and wherever possible—it was the way she fit seamlessly into my tiny life. She loved Katie. That was obvious for anyone to see. She had started picking her up from my mom’s after work, especially since my new landscaping job had me running late most evenings.

I would come home to the sound of laughter and music. Usually, I would find the two of them dancing in the living room or playing in the backyard on the swings. Sometimes, if I were really late, Whitney would fumble through making dinner for all of us.

Whitney seemed happy. I hoped she was. Because I could barely contain the level of joy I felt.

It sucked that the dark cloud of Josie hung over our heads, threatening to destroy everything. Josie had been visiting Katie three times a week. We typically met in neutral territory like the park or the ice cream parlor in town. But sometimes it couldn’t be helped, and she came over to the house.

Last evening was one of those visits.

Whitney had ordered Chinese for us. “Should I order something for Josie?” she had asked before placing the order.

I sighed. “I guess. I can’t really sit down to a family dinner and not feed her. Of course, she had to pick dinner time for her visit.”

Whitney raised her eyebrows. “I suppose when you shot down her suggestion of a cozy family dinner for the three of you, she found other ways to interject herself.”

I hugged Whitney tight, kissing her temple, breathing in the smell of her. “This is Katie’s family. Right here. You, me, and her. Josie is on the periphery of her life,” I tried to reassure her.

Whitney relaxed into me, our bodies fitting together almost as if we were made for each other. “She’ll never be on the periphery, Kyle. She’s Katie’s mother. You’ll always have to deal with her, whether you want to or not.”

I tried not to focus on the fact that she said ‘you’ and not ‘we.’ Because even though this marriage was starting to feel pretty damn real, I still sensed the hesitance in Whitney, as if she were waiting to see if she needed to run. I made it my mission to convince her to stay.

After everything she told me about Gavin Wiseley and the nature of their toxic relationship, I understood her baggage. And more than that, I appreciated how she was trying really hard not to let it interfere with what we were building together. But the cracks were still there. I only hoped my love for her was enough to keep the foundation in one piece.

The doorbell rang right at six. I opened the door to find Josie standing on the stoop, smiling, a bag of McDonald’s in her hand. She held it up. “I brought dinner for Katie.”

I opened the door and let her in. She walked past me, brushing against me as she went. “Katie doesn’t eat fast food, Jos. It’s not good for her. I’ve cooked her some pasta and peas, and we’ve ordered Chinese takeout for us, which you’re more than welcome to join.”

Josie deflated. “Oh, I didn’t realize.” She looked down at the bag. “I suppose that makes sense. I’ll throw it out.”

“I’ll pay you back for whatever you spent,” I told her, but she shook her head.

“No, it’s my stupidity. I should have asked before I went and got it. I only wanted to do something nice for her.”

I wanted to say that if she did a minute’s research, she’d know feeding greasy cheeseburgers to a growing toddler probably wasn’t the healthiest option. The more visits Josie had with Katie, the more it became clear that my ex had no freaking clue what it took to raise a child, nor was she really trying to learn. It terrified me that she may get custody of Katie.

But I swallowed what I really wanted to say and instead offered her a smile. “You tried. That counts, right?” No, it didn’t count. Not in my world where Katie’s health and well-being were the top priority.

“Right,” Josie brightened. “Take me to our baby,” she said, hooking her arm with mine. Her grip had always felt claustrophobic and way too tight.