Play With Fire (The Men of Fire 1)

Zoey understands the double meaning of my words. “Yeah, it will be okay.”

I don’t even have a response to that. We both know it won’t be. I let out a deep sigh. “Let’s get this done then, shall we?”

Automatically, Zoey grabs my hand in a show of support. Calling out to Ryan, she says, “Come on, Ry. Let’s ring your dad.”

“Yay,” Ryan cheers as she bounces her way ahead of us. I drag myself into action, feeling as though my feet are dead weights.

They head toward the living room while I hurry to my bedroom, popping my head in to check on Coby, who’s snoring like a sailor with her teddy shoved under her arm. Getting to my room, I quickly grab my phone. I notice a missed call from an unknown number but dismiss it as I head back out to Ryan.

I get to the living room and hear the tail end of Ryan explaining the events of her day to Zoey. I can tell by the look on her face that she’s already connected the dots to the mystery man who was here today. I can see the questions written all over her face and that she’s dying to ask me once we get this phone call done and Ryan to bed.

I turn around while they’re still talking and hurry back to the kitchen, ignoring the sink full of dishes as I go. I cooked, she cleans. That’s the rule. Grabbing two glasses and the bottle of wine I had in the fridge, I pop it under my arm and join the others before sitting down right in the middle. This phone call with Bryce is going to need alcohol and a lot of it, so we may as well get comfortable.

“Alright, ready?” I say, letting out a breath. “Let’s call your dad.”

“Okay, momma. Can I press da buttons?”

“Yes, baby. Of course, you can.”CHAPTER 6AMELIARyan takes the phone from my hand and presses her dad’s name to make the call. Just as I thought it was going to ring out, Bryce picks up the phone and barely gets out a hello.

“Yello' ”

Yello'? I look over Ryan’s head to Zoey, and she rolls her eyes at the sound of the sperm donor’s voice. I try to hold back my smile. I cannot believe I slept with that man. That thought alone makes me feel like running into the bathroom and having the hottest shower of all time, so hot that I burn the first layer of my skin off.

“Lo’, Dadda,” Ryan says with so much excitement that it makes my heart smile.

Obviously, not expecting the sound of his daughter’s voice, his tone slightly changes so it seems like it’s not the biggest inconvenience to be on the phone to us right now. “Ryan, what are you doing calling me at this time of night?”

And just like ripping a band-aid off, my daughter tells her father about her eventful day.

“The fireman saved my head. I was stuck.”

Silence.

Complete, utter silence is met from the other side of the line. Not good. Not freaking good at all. “What did you say?” he questions, making my stomach sink. I mean, why can’t he just show a little affection for his baby girl? What’s so hard about asking, ‘Are you okay?’ or ‘Oh, baby. That’s terrible. Are you hurt?’

“My head. I was stuck,” Ryan repeats.

Dead silence. I can feel how angry he is.

Not a second later, the bomb explodes. “You’re such a fuck up, Amelia. Are you kidding me right now? How stupid can you be? What kind of mother lets their child get into those types of situations? FUCK,” he booms down the line.

Just like that, I’m made to feel like the worst mother in the world. I look over to Ryan to gauge her reaction, and the look on her face tells me that she realizes what’s about to go down.

I try to give her a reassuring smile to let her know it's okay and that Mommy’s got this, but I don’t think it works. To my left, I can feel the anger radiating off Zoey, but I know she’s only holding back because Ryan is with us.

This is just how it is with Bryce. A simple phone call to tell him about their day turns into a chance for him to tear me to shreds. I don’t know if it’s his way of making himself feel better or his lack of parenting know-how, but fuck him.

“Are you even listening to me, Amelia?” he continues.

No.

I must have completely zoned out. I look to Zoey to see what I missed and see tears in her eyes. That look alone tells me that I don’t even want to know what he said. It takes a lot for her to get upset, especially when it’s bullshit from Bryce.