The Player Next Door

His eyebrows arch in question.

I tell him about Bill.

“Wow. What a dick.”

“Yeah. It’s going to be a long time before she gets over that. Selfishly, though, I’m happy she’s here.” She’s a good distraction.

He pulls himself off the floor and sets to washing the grime off his hands.

I can’t help but gape at his back—at his powerful shoulders and his cut arms, visible beneath the material of his shirt. It’s only been a few weeks since we broke up. It feels like it’s been forever.

An ache stirs in my chest.

Has he started thinking about dating again?

Is beautiful, uncomplicated Susie Teller suddenly not so boring?

She might still bore him, but she wouldn’t be talking while she gives him a blow job.

“How’s Cody doing in school?” he asks suddenly.

I push my dour thoughts aside. “He seems fine.”

Shane reaches for the hand towel by the oven to dry off as if still comfortable in my home. “He said a couple of kids at school have been bugging him about me and you being together.”

“Oh. I haven’t noticed anything.” I frown, picking through the days, searching for any hints of whispers or giggles or Cody appearing upset. “Is it really bothering him? If he tells me who it is, I can speak to them, or get Wendy to haul them in—”

“He doesn’t give a shit about any of that.”

“Oh. Good, I guess?”

“He said what bugs him is us not being together anymore. He thinks it’s his fault.”

I groan. “I hope you told him that’s not true.”

“Of course, I did, but he doesn’t believe me. And I don’t have a good enough answer for him to explain it.”

“I guess not.” To an eleven-year-old kid, trying to explain any of this would still come out sounding like he’s to blame. “Have Penelope talk to him. I promise, he’ll hate my guts by the end.” I cap that off with a smirk.

Shane’s responding chuckle is dark. “That’s the last thing I want to happen.” He begins collecting his tools. “Penelope’s in counseling now.”

“What?” I gasp. “Seriously?”

“Yeah. Travis lost it after that night of the accident.”

“He definitely didn’t look happy.” I recall the glower on his brow as he paced along with me, and how it seemed to intensify whenever his focus landed on Penelope’s mother.

“He told her he was done dealing with her anger issues. Done listening to her bitch about me and you. Done dealing with Melissa altogether. Just done. He laid all his cards on the table. Told her that either she gets help or he’s out. He was serious too. Ready to put the house up and everything.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah.” He shrugs. “So, she’s been going to a therapist.”

“And?”

He closes the lid on his toolbox. “And it’s only been a few weeks, but she seems to be coming around. I talked to her for a while last night when I went to drop off Cody.” He smirks. “She told me I was a good father.”

“You don’t need therapy to see that.”

His soft gaze flips to mine. “She also said you’re probably not the bad person she’s made you out to be in her head.”

My jaw hangs, and it’s partly for dramatic effect but mostly genuine. “Travis had the Red Devil lobotomized!”

He chuckles, and I feel the beautiful sound deep within my chest. “She’s still in there, just a bit tamer. For now.”

I quietly watch him, playing various scenarios in my head of what would happen if I reached out and touched him. All of them likely end with us in my bed.

All of them still end with the same complications.

I remember, again, why I’ve made myself so miserable.

My sad smile emerges. “Thank you for helping with whatever was wrong under there.” But you need to leave now. This is too hard.

“I think one of them hit the pipe with a hammer just to have an excuse to get me over here,” he says.

“What?” I laugh. “Why would you think that?”

“Because of the way the pipe was damaged. And because of that.” He points at the hammer on the counter.

I shake my head. They must have fished it out of my toolbox when they hatched their plan, if it was indeed a plan. “Justine’s going to start paying me rent, so I should have the money to hire a plumber early in the new year. If you can hook me up with your plumber, I’d appreciate it.”

“Yeah, I’ll send you his contact info.” He pauses. “You going to come to the charity auction next weekend?”

“I wasn’t planning on it.” Watching and listening to women drool over Shane does not sound appealing.

He nods slowly. “You should. It’s a fun night out.”

“Noted.” This polite conversation, this heavy awkwardness … it’s killing me.

He opens his mouth to say something but then seems to change his mind. “See you around, Scarlet.”

I stifle the urge to holler after him as I watch his retreating back. “Still too complicated,” I whisper to an empty room, letting my head fall back to thump against the wall.