Chapter 15

CHAPTER 15

VIOLET

I floated through the next week, high on the weekend I'd spent with Ryder and his family. Even though he hadn't taken me along to drop off Faith, I still felt like our relationship was moving in the right direction.

It was new, and I understood that he didn't want to involve me in the visitation exchanges yet, and I didn't want to make anything harder on him or Faith. I was sure he'd want to keep it drama-free.

I hoped I wasn't ignoring a huge red flag. That he was going to keep his relationship with me separate from that part of his life.

On Friday morning, it was slow, so when an unknown number appeared on my screen, I answered it.

"Sweet Scoops."

"Is this Violet?"

"It sure is. Who am I speaking with?" I kept my eyes on the sidewalk outside to gauge whether there were any tourists milling about.

"Charlotte Monroe. Daphne said I should call you."

I turned my attention to the call. "Oh. Cole's sister?"

"That's right. Mr. Calloway hired me to do some marketing for the farm, and I wanted to start with a holiday festival of sorts where vendors could sell their wares."

"That sounds nice."

"I know you have a cart at the farmer's market and local harvest festivals. Would you be willing to have one on the farm for this event? The only problem is that it's next weekend."

"What are you doing to draw people in?" I asked.

"We're launching an email campaign and posting advertisements on the bulletin boards and in local newspapers. A local news station is coming out to cover it and the farm."

"Wow. Teddy's okay with that?"

Charlotte laughed. "He's not happy, but his dad is the one who hired me."

I wouldn't want to be in her position. "It sounds like a great opportunity for my store and the farm."

"Can I put you down as a yes?" Charlotte asked.

"Who else do you have lined up so far?" Charlotte was so easy to talk to. I sensed that we could be friends.

"I'm calling everyone on the farmer's market list. So far, everyone has said yes."

It was a good opportunity, and I might see Ryder and Faith there. "I'd love to be part of it. Let me know if I can help with anything."

"We'll be setting up that morning, and I'll take all the help I can get."

"You can count on me to be there."

"Perfect. Thanks, Violet. This is going to be so amazing." Charlotte's energy was infectious.

I talked to her for a few minutes about timing and logistics. Then I got up the courage to ask her for help.

"Are you taking on other marketing clients? Or is the farm your sole client?"

"I am. What did you have in mind?"

"I'd love to draw more customers into my shop as opposed to the other ice-cream stores. Would it be possible to meet up and discuss what you could do for me?"

"I'd love to. Would you want to meet at your store? Then I could get a feel for what your vision is."

"That would be perfect."

I was pleased I was taking this next step with the business. I'd played it conservatively since I opened. But I had a little bit of extra money I could use to boost the business. I had to take the risk and hope it paid off.

I wondered if Ryder knew about the planned holiday event at the farm and if he was intending to be there. It sounded like something that would be fun for Faith too.

Charlotte sounded a little nervous when I asked about Teddy. I wondered if he was still giving her trouble. It was unfortunate because she was so excited to help the farm, and her ideas seemed good. She was the type of person who could get people rallied to her cause. Someone you'd want on your side.

I couldn't imagine why Teddy was against the help she could provide.

That night, we'd planned to go out on our first real date. So I got ready, picking out a dress and heels, then taking extra time with my makeup. Since Ryder had a daughter, I assumed most of our time together would be doing things with Faith.

But after Ryder's talk with Stacy last weekend, she decided to stick to their every-other-weekend visitation schedule. I hated that for him because he wanted more time with Faith, not less, and it felt like she was punishing Ryder for being with me when she'd been with Phil for months.

When it was almost time for Ryder to pick me up, I grabbed a clutch and placed my wallet and phone inside it.

A knock sounded, and I answered the door with a smile.

Ryder's expression was filled with regret. "I wanted to take you out tonight?—"

"But something came up?" I tried not to let the disappointment filter in. He was a single dad, and his daughter was his first priority.

"Stacy needs me to pick up Faith. Apparently, Faith threw a fit about spending the weekend with Phil and his family instead of with me."

I frowned. "I thought Stacy wanted to stick to the every-other-weekend schedule."

"Faith told me that she feels like she's ignored at Phil's. He already has three kids, and there isn't a place for her to sleep." Ryder shrugged. "What's the point when she can be with me?"

"It would make more sense if she'd just let you take her like you usually do."

"I think she wanted to make things difficult for me, and now that Faith is upset, she just doesn't want to deal with her."

I grimaced. "I don't want to cause trouble for you two."

Ryder stepped closer, his hand drifting to my cheek. "You're the opposite of trouble."

His words flowed like warm honey in my body. "You want company for the ride?"

His brow furrowed. "That's probably not a good idea yet."

I didn't want Stacy taking our relationship out on Ryder. "You're probably right."

"I can pick you up on the way home, and we can have a night in," he suggested hopefully.

As much as it sucked, I wanted to be the better person in this situation. "I don't want to take away your time with Faith. She might want some alone time with you."

"You're pretty great, you know that?" Ryder stepped closer, his hand cupping my neck, sending tingles down my spine.

We had a night planned, and now I wouldn't get to see him at all.

He kissed me softly, then said, "I'd better go. Stacy said if I wanted Faith, I needed to get her before seven."

"She's making demands when she called you?"

Ryder merely shrugged. "If I want to see Faith, then I have to do what she asks."

I didn't like that. It meant that Stacy would be calling the shots well after the ink on their divorce order was dry. I wanted to point it out to him, but we were too new. "Have a safe trip."

With a regretful smile, Ryder turned and jogged toward his truck. I wouldn't have minded the change in plans if I was included. If I could go along with him to see Faith.

It was a little like being on the outside looking in when my parents fawned over my sister's latest accomplishments. She was always winning some award or going to a ceremony where she was going to be honored. Anytime I expressed my thoughts, I was told I was just jealous. That I should do something worthy of a ceremony or an award.

The familiar hurt seeped around my heart, eroding the relationship I'd built with Ryder. Was this just like my situation with my family? Was I always going to be second-best?

It was understandable, but I still thought Ryder could have handled it better. I went inside and took off the dress and heels I'd picked out. Ryder hadn't even mentioned how I looked. He was too caught up in Stacy's latest drama.

I texted Claire and Daphne to see what they were up to. Both of my good friends had kids. Maybe it would be good to hear their perspective.

Claire's son, Owen, had a football game, but Daphne invited me to her place. She said Colson would be going to sleep soon. Then she could talk. I was sure her husband, Cole, would entertain Izzy until bedtime.

At their house, I texted Daphne I was there so I wouldn't wake Colson with a knock.

Daphne opened the door with a smile and ushered me inside. "It's so good to see you. I could use some girl time."

We hugged, and Cole came into the foyer with a sleeping Colson on his shoulder. "I'm going to get this guy to bed."

Daphne kissed Colson's chubby cheek, and then Cole's. "Thank you."

Cole winked at her. "After I get this one in his crib, I'll make sure Izzy takes a bath."

"You're a lifesaver."

Cole stood up straighter and smiled at us. "Have fun."

Daphne led the way to the kitchen and grabbed some waters from the fridge. "Let's go on the back porch. I can turn on the heaters. If we're inside, Izzy won't want to go to sleep."

"Sounds good to me."

Outside, she turned on the heaters and the gas fireplace before handing me a throw to put on my lap. "This is nice."

Daphne gave me a look. "I thought you were going out with Ryder tonight."

I sighed. "His ex needed him to take Faith."

"I bet he was happy about that. I know he was upset she was threatening to reduce his time with Faith." Then she caught the look on my face and grimaced. "But it sucks for your date."

"I know it's selfish, but we were supposed to go out. Our first date by ourselves." I picked at the fabric of my sweater.

"I'm sorry. It's never easy when you're dating someone with a child."

I sighed. "I was hoping you could give me some perspective."

"What's bothering you?" Daphne asked.

"I get that Faith comes first, but it feels like Stacy is controlling everything. As soon as Ryder mentioned he was dating me, she wanted to go back to the original visitation agreement which meant every other weekend."

"She reduced his time," Daphne said with disgust.

"Then we make plans, and she calls him, demanding he pick Faith up so Stacy can spend the weekend with her new boyfriend."

"And of course, Ryder wants to see Faith."

"It feels like Stacy's getting what she wants, and the rest of us have to jump when she says so."

Daphne cradled the bottle in her hands. "That might be how it is for a while as they navigate the new situation."

"I don't want to come between him and Stacy, or him and Faith, but I'm concerned about how things are going to go in the future."

"As you should be. But I'd give it some time yet. Things are new."

I let out a breath.

"I'm sure Ryder appreciates everything you're going through."

"He said she controlled things during their marriage, but it's no different now."

"That's up for him to figure out for himself and for you to decide if you can live with it."

I let my head fall back. "Ugh. This sucks."

The slider opened, and Cole came outside.

He sat next to Daphne. "Everyone's in bed."

Daphne smiled. "Thanks for putting them down."

"Of course. What are you talking about?"

"Violet's worried about the situation with Stacy. She's jerking Ryder around with the custody schedule, and he's going along with it."

Cole's expression was pensive. "I can see why he'd do that. He wants to see his kid and doesn't feel like he has a lot of options without it getting contentious. As the dad, he might feel like he's at a disadvantage."

I nodded. "He said in the past that Stacy handled the caregiving, and he worked too much. He wants to be more involved."

"I think you have to give him the space to deal with this how he wants to," Cole said.

"What if I don't like how Stacy treats him?" I asked both of them, wanting to know their answer.

"You can point out what's going on, but you can't come between them," Daphne said carefully.

It felt like I had to stifle my feelings. It was one more instance where I was second place. Logically, I knew that was the case with a single dad. I felt the same way I did every time my parents chose Danielle over me.

"If it doesn't work for you, you can walk away. But you have to be prepared to do that. Ryder, Faith, and unfortunately, Stacy are a package deal," Cole said.

"What about the fact that she took away the extra visitation when he told her we were dating?"

Cole shook his head. "That's shitty."

"And she's been dating someone since Ryder moved here. So she doesn't have any room to complain," Daphne added.

"She doesn't want him to move on." Cole stretched his legs in front of him.

I sipped my water. "That's what it seems like. But I don't want to make demands of him. That doesn't seem fair. He already has one person telling him how things will be."

Cole uncrossed his legs, placing his feet flat on the floor and leaning on his thighs with his elbows. "You could express your concerns and give him space to consider them. If at any point things don't change, and you feel like the situation isn't tenable for you, you can walk away."

My heart hurt just thinking about it.

"This is his issue to deal with. You can be there for him, listen, and be supportive. But I don't think it's your place to put more demands on him," Daphne said.

"I hate what she puts him through. How she thinks it's okay for her to date but not him?"

"She was so confident that she could control him through the separation; she never thought he'd actually move on and start dating again. That's just my observation," Cole said.

"She's jealous," I said flatly, not having realized that before he insinuated that was the case.

"She wants to date and still have him on the line," Daphne said.

Cole nodded seriously. "That's what it seems like to me."

"Well, what did she think was going to happen when she asked for a separation?" I asked, not really expecting an answer.

"Didn't you say that he wanted to save the marriage and suggested marriage counseling?" Cole asked.

I nodded miserably.

Daphne shifted in her chair, rearranging the blanket around her legs. "He's only ever wanted a family. He let Stacy isolate him from us for years. Even if he chose wrong, he was going to stick with his decision."

"Then when she forced the issue, he had no choice but to move on," Cole said.

"This could go on for years. Some custody disputes do, or he could acquiesce to her requests. I'm sure he thinks that's easier on everyone, including Faith."

"I wonder if at some point it's better for your kids to see you stand up for yourself," I said, thinking out loud.

"You might be onto something there." Daphne's gaze was on the fire. "But the realization has to come from him. He has to want the situation to be different, and it's a risk for him. The court could give him less custody. He was the one who moved out of state."

"For work and to be closer to family," I said.

"But farther away from Faith's mother," Cole said.

"I was lucky in a way because my ex didn't want anything to do with Izzy. It's not a great situation for her, but it allowed Cole to step in and be the father figure she needed."

"Thank you for listening. I know it's not exactly the situation you were in, but it helps to hear the parent perspective."

"What she's doing is jut causing more stress for everyone, and I guarantee Faith is feeling it too," Daphne said.

"I don't want to cause any more stress for Ryder and Faith." I wanted to be their support system. I'd have to keep my concerns to myself and hope that Ryder saw what Stacy was doing. But I had a feeling he didn't want to do anything to upset her. He was worried she wouldn't let him see Faith at all. I wouldn't get in the way of him seeing Faith, even if I had to break things off with him.

If Stacy didn't like me around, and she kept making things hard for Ryder and Faith, I'd have a difficult decision to make. I didn't want to walk away, but I would if it would help them.

Then there was the niggling insecurity that I was always going to be in second place when it came to my parents or to my relationship with Ryder.

I'd give it time. We had the holidays to get through, which might be the toughest since it was their first since the separation.

"I hope Stacy stops playing these games. For everyone's sake," Daphne said.

I sighed. "She controlled Ryder through the marriage. Why would she change now?"

Daphne sipped her water and then said, "Maybe her new boyfriend will help her see reality. He has kids. I'm sure he has to deal with an ex too."

We talked for a bit longer about Izzy and Colson. Then I said goodnight. I was sure they wanted time to themselves with the kids asleep.

I loved how Cole had become part of Daphne's family. I wondered if it would ever be like that for me and Ryder.

Would Stacy let him go, or would she want to hold onto him forever?