Page 25 of Bittersweet Redemption

“Uh, not today, kid. My brother and his fiancée are coming over, so I’ve got to get cleaned up.”

This makes Willa drop to the mat. “Oh, you should’ve told me. We would’ve cleaned instead of playing.” She gathers the things around her. “We’ll stay in our room while they’re here.”

I watch as Roman tries to fold up the white Twist Around mat that’s three times bigger than him. Before I can even think about what’s coming out of my mouth, I say, “You don’t have to do that.” My jaw clenches. Why did I say that? They absolutely should stay in their room or go out while I have company, or at least, that’s what I should make them do. But I can’t bring myself to take my words back. Instead, I add, “You guys can join us for dinner. Riley always brings way too much food.”

Willa stands and looks me directly in the eye, a move I find intimidating even though this woman is almost a foot shorter than me. “Are you sure? We don’t want to be in the way.”

I roll my eyes and turn back to my bags in the kitchen. From over my shoulder, I call out, “I wouldn’t have said it if I didn’t mean it, Willa.”

She doesn’t respond. Instead, I hear her helping Roman fold the mat and throwing all his cars into a little bin. They run past me towards their room, and when they come back out, the toys are put away, and Willa is dressed in cut-off shorts and a black long-sleeve T-shirt. It’s a casual outfit, but now that I know what bra she’s wearing underneath, I’m having a hard time keeping my eyes from glancing at her tits.

A few minutes later, there’s a knock on the door, and I let Kellan and Riley in. As predicted, they have way too many bags of food for three people.

Willa stands from the couch when they walk in.

“Riley, Kellan,” I say, making introductions. “Y’all remember Willa?”

It’s a dick thing to say on my part because, of course, they remember Willa. When Willa was interviewed again a few years ago, Riley was there as she retracted her original statement claiming she saw me rob the jewelry store. And Kellan had to watch her testify in court all those years ago.

A light pink spreads across Willa’s cheeks. She’s embarrassed, as she should be. She took ten years away from me. A little embarrassment is the least she can do.

She doesn’t say anything, but she gives a little wave.

We all stand in silence for a moment too long, making it even more awkward for everyone. Riley breaks the silence first. “It’s good to see you again, Willa.” Riley smiles genuinely. She’s too nice for her own good. Why she became a cutthroat defense attorney, I’ll never know.

“You too,” Willa says, although she probably wishes she didn’t have to see them again. “This is my son, Roman.”

I add, “The coolest kid in town.” Roman smiles the biggest smile at me, making my heart crack. He’s really taken with me, and I need to make more of an effort to hang out with him instead of trying to avoid his mother.

“What?” Riley asks, playing along. “I’ve never met the coolest kid before. You’ll have to tell me all about yourself. Are you hungry? Come help me unload all this food.” Roman and Willa follow her to the kitchen.

“So, they’re having dinner with us now?” Kellan whispers.

I roll my eyes even though I’m also concerned that they’re joining us. “What did you want me to do? Tell them to leave?”

He shrugs. “I don’t know. Maybe? You were just telling me how much you hate her.”

“I told you, it’s for the kid. Not her.”

“Sure.” He doesn’t believe me, which isn’t surprising because I don’t even believe me.

“Whatever, man. I’m hungry.” I turn and walk into the kitchen, where Willa, Riley, and Roman have pulled the food out onto the counters. I grab enough plates for all of us, and we sit at the table, Roman on Willa’s lap.

The awkwardness is overwhelming, so I’m grateful Riley breaks the silence and keeps the conversation going.

“So, Willa. What do you do?”

Willa wipes her mouth with her napkin before answering. “I’m a hairstylist.”

“Oh, cool. Where at?”

Willa tells her the salon’s name, and Riley tries to figure out where it is. Very girl talk, so Kellan and I keep our heads down and eat. Pretty soon, the conversation turns to the wedding this weekend. Willa keeps a smile on her face while Riley talks about it.

After she goes into detail about the honeymoon, Roman asks, “Mommy, why didn’t you and Daddy get married?”

I look over at Willa. She’s gone completely still. She clears her throat and says, “Mommy and Daddy weren’t right for each other, Ro. We’re better off as friends.”

Roman continues eating like this is a casual conversation for him and not one he should have in private with his mother. “Yeah, ’cause Daddy was mean to you.”