Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

Blythe

R hodes strode closer to me and my kids, and with each step he took, I felt my heartrate kick up a little faster. I hadn’t really been in the headspace to take him in fully when I ran into him in Lincoln’s office, but standing in the middle of the aisle at Fresh Foods, it was impossible to miss how much he’d grown up since I last saw him all those years ago.

I remembered him being so strong when we’d been together. He’d been tall and broad, with arms that made me feel so safe when he held me, but the man standing before me was even bigger. His thighs filled out his dark-washed jeans, and the simple white tee pulled tight across his chest and stretched around his arms, showcasing a walking wall of muscle. There was nothing particularly attractive about jeans and a plain white tee, but somehow, Rhodes made it look almost sinful.

And of course my ex would look gorgeous only the second time I saw him while I was a rumpled, exhausted mess. I was still in my scrubs from work, my hair—which I hadn’t even bothered to run a brush through that morning—was thrown up into a sloppy ponytail that was more ratty than artful, and I was pretty sure the mascara I’d swiped on this morning—the only makeup I’d bothered with—was smudged beneath my eyes. Hell, I couldn’t even remember if I’d put on deodorant earlier that morning.

I was well and truly a mess while Rhodes looked like the type of man women would walk into traffic for, just to get his attention.

The heavy soles of his motorcycle boots clomped against the floor as he closed the distance between us. “Hey, little man,” he started, gracing my son with a straight, white smile. “Had a bit of an accident, huh?” Avett regarded Rhodes curiously but didn’t say a word, and I patted myself on the back for having successfully taught my kids not to talk to strangers. “I’ve been there.”

Avett’s brown eyes widened. “You have?”

Looks like I spoke too soon , I thought to myself.

“Sure. I managed to drop a whole jar of pickles just last month. Not only did it make a mess, but it stunk too.”

Avett let out a little giggle, and the sound froze me to the spot. The sensation that rushed through my chest was somehow pleasant and painful at the same time. That giggle was a good sign. It was a sound I hadn’t heard nearly enough over the past several months, so hearing it hurt as much as it healed. It was bittersweet and joyful in one breath.

Ainsley had rebounded well enough after her father’s death, but that was to be expected, given her age. But while she was handling it okay, my boy had been struggling.

Avett and Elliott had been so close, and there wasn’t a day that passed that he didn’t miss his father something fierce. With every loss like the one he’d suffered, a hole formed in his heart that would never fill back up. Some people handled it better than others. Avett was somewhere in the middle. He had his good days and his bad, but I still wished I could take all the bad away for him. I would have gladly added his sadness to everything I was already carrying if it meant I’d have my bright, happy boy back for good.

“I like pickles.”

“Me too, buddy. But I like eating ’em. Not smellin’ like ’em.”

“Yeah,” Avett agreed. “They can be kinda stinky.”

“Sure can.” Rhodes shifted his gaze from my son to me, and being hit with those brown eyes nearly stole the air right out of my lungs. I’d avoided eye contact the whole time I was stuck in that office with him at Alpha Omega, but I hadn’t been fast enough this time, and as I stared at my past across the aisle, I felt like I was drowning. The brown was several shades lighter than Avett’s and Ainsley’s. The flecks of gold and green mixed with the brown made them look almost amber, and I knew from experience that, in the sun, they’d appear to catch fire and take on a shade closer to red clay to match the streaks of auburn in his dark hair. For three years I’d gotten lost in those eyes. For three years I thought those were the only eyes I’d ever love.

I had been wrong.

“You guys need a hand?”

That question snapped me out of my head and back into reality. “We’re fine,” I insisted. “I just need to find someone who works here?—”

I didn’t even get the whole sentence out before Rhodes leaned over and scooped Avett up like he weighed next to nothing, plucking out of the center of the spill and depositing him back on the ground at a safe distance.

“Thanks,” I said quietly, pushing down the fluttery feeling in my belly at the sight of Rhodes lifting my son into his arms. I told myself it had nothing to do with him, that I would have had the same reaction to any attractive man hefting my kid about. It wasn’t about Rhodes, per se. It was simply my body’s primal reaction.

Rhodes smiled then, and I took that flutter and began to stomp it to death. “Not a problem at all.”

Just then, a woman came scurrying around the end cap and into the aisle. She wore a maroon polo that sported the name of the grocery store on her chest and a pair of khaki pants. “Heard we had a bit of a spill—” Her words died off as I turned to face her fully. Even in a uniform that should have been unflattering, it was impossible not to notice her beauty. She had light brown hair and pale blue eyes, and just enough curves to make me envious. I’d always been bummed I hadn’t gotten my mother’s ultra-curvy frame, and instead, was willowy. A tense few seconds of silence alerted me to the fact that, while I’d been taking stock of her, her focus had been latched onto the man slowly rising to his full height once again.

“Rhodes,” she said in a breath that managed to drip with both pain and longing. “H-hi.”

I looked back to Rhodes just in time to catch something that looked a lot like guilt flashing across his features before he blanked it out. “Grace,” he greeted with a tilt of his chin and a gentle smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. The tone of his voice wasn’t overly friendly, but it wasn’t cold either. Just polite enough, like if Goldilocks had to pick a tone that was just right . However, I didn’t miss the familiarity in his voice that made my stomach feel sour all of a sudden.

“Um . . . how are you? How’s Koda?”

“I’m good, thanks. And Koda’s Koda. Just living her best life.”

Grace’s expression changed just then, her features suffusing with a kind of warmth and softness that made me uncomfortable. “That’s good. I really miss... her.” She fumbled over that last word.

Rhodes cleared his throat awkwardly, his gaze ping-ponging between Grace and me so obvious that it drew her attention my way.

She blinked like she hadn’t realized I was standing right there the whole time. “Oh, hi!” She replaced her earlier expression with a professional smile.

“Hi. I’m really sorry about the spill.”

“Don’t sweat it. Happens all the time.” She extended her hand for me to shake. “I’m Grace, the manager here.”

“I’m Blythe. The mother of these three rug rats.”

Her hand spasmed, her fingers squeezing almost to the point of pain as the smile fell right off her face and the color leeched from her cheeks. “Blythe.” She said my name like she was familiar with it, but while she seemed to know who I was, I couldn’t manage to place her. She looked to be a few years younger, and I scanned my memory bank to see if I could remember her from high school, but there was nothing.

I narrowed my eyes, studying her beautiful face. “Sorry. Do we know each other?”

She blinked then, like she was coming out of some sort of trance, and dropped my hand like my touch scalded her.

“Uh, no.” She took a step back, her gaze darting all around. “I’ll get someone right over here with a mop to clean this all up.

“Oh. Okay. Well . . . thank you.”

She blinked at me for a second before looking back at Rhodes who was standing silent. A flush tinted the tops of his cheeks above the scruff on his face. That longing was even stronger this time before she offered him a quiet goodbye and scurried off without a backward glance. It didn’t take a genius to figure out she and Rhodes had history and she very much didn’t want it to be in the past, I just didn’t know why she looked like she’d seen a ghost when I told her my name.

Adeline’s voice broke through the haze of memories I’d almost gotten stuck in. “What’s your name?” she asked, looking at Rhodes, as she skipped up beside her big brother.

My middle child had always been the more mindful one. Avett was the brave one, taking his role of big brother extremely seriously. Ainsley was my impulsive one. But Adeline was a planner. She liked to assess every situation before making a decision, and after seeing her brother’s acceptance of this man, she’d decided he must have been safe enough. To them, he was. To me, Rhodes Bradbury was anything but safe.

Rhodes crouched, bringing himself to eye-level with my two oldest. The bulky muscle of his thighs tested the strength of the denim they were wrapped in, and I had to silently scold myself to get it together. I had no business noticing his muscles or his smile... or his anything. Even if Rhodes and I didn’t have a past, it would have been inappropriate. I had more baggage than LAX during the week of Christmas. I needed to focus on getting my shit together and being there for my kids. That should be my only focus.

“I’m Rhodes.” He held his hand out to Adeline first, then Avett.

“I’m Avett,” my son said, puffing his chest out and straightening his shoulders like a little man. “This is my little sister Adeline, and that’s Ainsley. And that’s my momma.” He pointed to the cart I was holding with a death grip, and my youngest—completely oblivious to my turmoil—lifted her hand in a happy wave.

Rhodes’s smile grew even bigger as he returned my baby’s wave, then his eyes scanned back around, landing on me and pausing briefly before returning to my son. “It’s very nice to meet you. And I know your momma.” My throat tightened as I tried to brace for what he might say next, but it was no use. He lowered his head just a bit, twisting to look back up at me through an unfairly thick fringe of lashes as he spoke so quietly I nearly missed it. “We used to be friends.”

The emotion in those words and in his eyes landed like a gut punch from a heavyweight champion boxer.

Adeline gave a little hop in place. “If you and Mommy are friends, then you should come over for dinner!”

“Honey, that’s not?—”

Avett chimed in before I could object. “Yeah, you should! Mom’s like the best cooker in the whole wide world.”

One part of me wanted to squeeze him for the compliment while the other wanted to slap tape over his mouth to get him to be quiet.

“Want to know somethin’?” The two of them nodded with rapt attention. “I used to eat your mom’s cookin’ all the time.” That was another blow. If my ribs kept tightening, I wasn’t going to be able to breathe much longer. “And she’s the best cook I’ve ever known. Never met anyone as good as her.”

Avett’s cheeks grew pink, and his eyes glowed with excitement. “So you’ll come, right? I bet she’ll make something extra awesome for you.”

“Baby, I’m sure he has other things to do.”

Rhodes rose to his full height, a good few inches over six feet, and spoke before disappointment could wash over my boy’s face. “I’d love to come for dinner.” He looked at me, a smile slowly pushing the corners of his mouth upward in a smile.

I narrowed my eyes, trying my hardest to shoot lasers at him as my kids hopped up and down and cheered with excitement that their new buddy could make it to dinner.

And I was stuck, because it was the first time I’d seen the two of them this excited about something in a while, and I didn’t have the heart to take it away from them.

Which meant I was stuck having dinner with the first man to ever break my heart.

What fun.