Chapter 8
Chapter 8
Brooke
I should have known that once I started to believe I could get the hang of things, everything would begin to crumble.
I glared at my phone as I sat in the parking lot in my car, wondering why, once again, I was getting an email that I wanted nothing to do with.
Patrice had warned me that Landon Cunning would be coming after me somehow. I just hadn’t realized it would begin with passive-aggressive emails.
Brooke,
I understand starting a new job can be difficult, so why don’t I handle the next afternoon meeting so you can take your time and get your ducks in a row. I wouldn’t want you to overexert yourself. Don’t worry. I’ve done this numerous times before, and I can handle it. I’m just looking out for you.
I will talk to the head adjunct. Don’t you worry.
-- Landon.
I closed my eyes and tried not to snarl.
There were so many things wrong with that brief email I didn’t even know where to begin.
He might as well have told me not to worry my pretty little head over it.
With any other professor, calling me Brooke would be fine. I did not want a man I didn’t know who was literally coming after me using my first name. It diminished my achievements, assuming an intimacy between us that wasn’t wanted in any fashion. He was purposely taking away my doctorate, my position, and my experience, so he could drop my name as if he was talking to a middle schooler.
He then tried to take over my meeting, taking it off my hands before I had even had a chance to try to prepare for it. As if I wouldn’t be able to handle setting up a meeting. A meeting, by chance, that he had requested be moved up.
It was where all of us professors would meet and discuss any upcoming items we had in our department. The physics department was quite large, but my subset of it was only a few people. And Landon was one of them.
He just wanted my tenure-track job, and I wouldn’t simply back down and give it to him.
The cavalier and passive aggressiveness in his email hurt my teeth. It was as if he were so sugar-sweet, butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth. He would have another think coming because I didn’t bow down to anyone.
Hell, I was a woman in science with a doctorate and more than one bachelor’s degree. I had done it on my own, and most of it as a single mom.
I had gotten this job on my own merits, not because of who I knew. I bet he got his because of who he knew and who his father was, not because of his accomplishments.
Because, from what I saw, he didn’t do anything during the day in the name of science. What I wasn’t going to do was lie down and let him have my job.
I shot off a quick reply, letting him know in no uncertain terms that I was fine to handle the meeting, considering all that meant was that I opened the meeting and made sure people knew where it was and what time.
That was it. I didn’t need to bring damn cupcakes or something. I didn’t need to make a presentation.
For this first meeting, somebody just needed to book the damn room.
And contrary to what he thought, I had already done it.
So, fuck him.
“What’s wrong, Mommy?” Luke asked from the backseat, and I rubbed my temples before I set my phone back in its holder, making sure it was charging.
I turned in my seat and smiled over at him. “Just a work email that made me grumpy. But I’m fine now and all here for you. You ready to run more errands?”
“I like errands!” He beamed at me, and I fell that much more in love with my son. He was just the kindest, smartest, sweetest boy ever.
I realized that was very much something that most moms said about their kids, but it was the truth.
After making sure Luke was ready to go, I settled back into my seat, pulled out of the parking lot, and headed toward our next destination.
With my job and Luke’s new school, it was hard to get everything done. Thank God for grocery delivery and May. Between those two, I was able to get most of the things I needed for my house, and my shelves were never bare.
However, there were a few things that I couldn’t leave to delivery or May.
We needed to pick up a few prescriptions, and I needed a new set of sheets since an entire box of linens hadn’t made it onto the moving truck somehow. I still didn’t know how that had happened, since we had watched it be put on the truck, but that’s what happened when you moved cross-country. Things were lost. And while insurance would cover some of it, I still needed new sheets, blankets, and a few towels.
Thankfully none of Luke’s things had been lost. While he was a well-adjusted kid, the move was a big thing. And losing something that he loved, even if he only would love it for the next five minutes, would’ve been too hard on him. I didn’t want to put any more undue pressure on him.
We went to three different stores trying to find sheets that would fit my bed and were actually in stock, and I was getting grumbly by the end of it. It shouldn’t be this hard to find a nice set of white sheets, but everything seemed to be out of stock or outrageously expensive.
I also needed a few things for the house, like fake plants so I wouldn’t accidentally kill them, since the one from my realtor was already barely hanging on, and a tray for the kitchen. Luke was getting tired, but I had a few more items on my list.
My brain kept going to lesson plans, wanting to check my email in case Landon emailed back, and the fact that Leif hadn’t texted me. Or called me. Or contacted me in any way in the past week since our date.
I let out a breath and try not to be upset about that.
He’d said that he would be out of town for a couple of days visiting family, but I had thought all his family lived in Colorado. But what did I know about him and his family? He had a job, a business he owned. He was busy.
But he hadn’t texted.
I thought he would have texted.
And now I was annoyed. Because why was I worrying so much about him when I had to get my son home, had to finish my shopping, and had a thousand other things to do that had nothing to do with that Montgomery.
The same Montgomery who hadn’t wanted me before but now suddenly did.
I held back a growl and went to look for a few more things that I needed for the house. I didn’t even have a damn toilet brush since mine had broken as soon as I bought it. Two weeks of cleaning, and it had snapped. Now the store I went to for the matching set was out of stock. How the hell were toilet brushes out of stock? I sighed and checked out, knowing that meant we had one more store to go to.
Luke was tired, and I knew he was hungry. So was I. I didn’t know the restaurants around here, and since it was lunch hour on a Saturday, there was barely any parking anywhere.
I rubbed my temples as I put everything in my trunk, and after buckling Luke in, I looked over at my son.
“I didn’t plan this well. We still have to go to another place to drop some paperwork off. I’m sorry, buddy.”
Ideally all the paperwork and everything associated with moving cross-country and buying a home should have been easily organized. That was not the case for some places. Although I had all of the utilities and insurance and everything ready to go, there were still other small pieces of paperwork that had shown up out of nowhere that I needed to deal with, and I had to drop them off in person.
On a Saturday.
I still had time next week to do it if I didn’t make it today, but I just wanted it to be done.
“I’m hungry, Mommy.”
I looked at my kid, then leaned forward and kissed his forehead.
“Me too. I have some fish crackers if you want some, and maybe we can just head home and I will make your lunch.”
“Okay. I love you, Mommy.” And then he burst into tears. I rubbed my temples, knowing that I was messing things up again.
I leaned forward, unbuckled him, and held him close, rubbing his back. He was hot, tired, and had been so patient all day. We should have spent the day doing fun things where he could relax, and I could have mom and son bonding time. Instead, I had to be an adult and drag my kid with me. I wanted to cry right along with him.
“I’m sorry, Luke. Let’s get you home, and we’ll go play out in the backyard. We’ll run errands another day.”
“I’m sorry I’m crying. I don’t know why.”
Tears pricked my eyes, and I ignored the person who honked at me and wanted my spot. I was holding a crying kid who was hot, hungry, and tired.
The man flipped me off as he drove away, and I was grateful that I was holding my kid, or I would have flipped him off too.
Jerk.
“Okay, let’s get you home and stop taking up space here. I could use some lunch too, kid.”
“Sorry for crying. I just had a tough day.”
He sounded so serious and adult-like that my eyes widened, and I just grinned. He’d probably heard that from me a time or two and had picked the phrase up. Hence why I tried not to curse around him too much since I didn’t need him going to kindergarten dropping the f-bomb.
Again.
“Me too. Let’s go eat something yummy.”
I saw the line for a familiar fast-food restaurant behind Luke’s head and figured we could sit in that line and have a greasy burger, but first I needed to buckle him in.
I did so and walked around my car and cursed under my breath as soon as I spotted it. Black dots slid over my eyes for a moment before I blinked them away, an overwhelming urge to cry along with Luke hitting me like a two-by-four.
“You have got to be kidding me.”
I knelt down in front of my now flat tire and wondered how the hell that had happened so quickly. I hadn’t noticed there was an issue when I’d driven earlier, but sure enough, there was a damn nail that proved to be a slow leak that hadn’t stayed slow.
Luke was still in the car, and I needed to get him home, feed him, and deal with the countless other things on my list, but I couldn’t because I had a damn flat tire.
In the middle of Saturday, in the middle of the parking lot, and everything that I had just bought was now piled on top of my spare.
I snarled, cursed, threatened to kick the tire, then composed myself. Then I opened the back door again. “Okay, let’s get you some fish crackers because we will be a minute. Mommy has a flat tire.”
Luke’s eyes widened. “I didn’t know you had tires.”
I laughed then, mostly out of desperation. “Mommy’s car has a flat tire. And hopefully, I’m going to be able to jack up this car in the parking lot.”
I quickly got Luke some crackers and juice and looked at the tire again, trying to remember the last time I’d actually changed a flat. High school? Maybe.
I opened the trunk, waving off people who wanted my spot, as I pointed to the flat tire. Nobody offered to help, which was fine because I could do this on my own, but it was quite odd that not a single person even offered.
I moved everything from the back to the seat next to Luke, and then went to get out my spare, and narrowed my eyes at it.
“Okay, you and me. We can do this. It’s been years since I did this, but I can.”
Or I could call AAA. Though I didn’t remember if I’d changed from the California AAA to the Colorado one, and now that seemed like an oversight on my part.
I shook my head, knowing I was a strong, independent woman.
I can make this happen.
I bent over the tire in the back as a familiar voice hit my ears.
“Brooke? I thought that was you. Hell, let me help.”
I nearly slammed my head on the inside of the trunk as I turned to see Leif strolling towards me, jogging slightly as he sped up.
I narrowed my eyes at him and then saw where he was coming from. Behind him, on one side of the strip, was a huge sign that spelled out Montgomery Ink Legacy.
Well. I always wanted to know where he worked, and now I did.
Because fate hated me.
“Oh. That’s a coincidence,” I mumbled as I tried to pull out the tire.
It fought me, and I wanted to hex it. “Seriously?”
“Here, let me help. My mom has this car, and the tires are a bitch to get out.” He winced. “Sorry, Luke,” he called over the back seat.
Luke crawled around and waved at him. “Hi, Leif. And it’s okay. Mom already cursed.”
“Tattletale,” I teased, even though I was sweaty, annoyed, and felt out of sorts. I was already trying not to think about him . About the fact that he hadn’t texted, we hadn’t talked at all since our date. I was a sweaty mess, stressed out, and didn’t need anybody coming in and telling me how to live my life and help me when I didn’t need it. I had done this all on my own for long enough that I didn’t need him to step in.
I didn’t need anybody to step in.
“Here, let me help. Seriously.” Leif didn’t shove me out of the way, but he did bump his hip against mine, grinning.
I glowered up at him. “I’ve got it.”
“Okay,” he said, studying my face.
I realized I had snapped the words, and I hated myself for it. I didn’t know what to think, and it was all too much.
“I see you guys are out running errands. Getting a flat tire with all of that has got to be annoying.” I knew he was speaking softly for Luke’s benefit, trying to cut the tension, but I was so tired. Just annoyed.
“Thank you for your help, but I can handle it on my own.” I sounded like a queen bitch, yet I didn’t care. I just needed to get out of his parking lot and Leif didn’t owe me anything.
“If you’re sure.”
“Now you’re telling me I don’t know my own mind?” I asked
His eyes widened.
“Okay. I was just trying to help out a friend.” He let out a breath. “By the way, I’m sorry I haven’t contacted you all week. I was out of town with my family, and like an idiot, I dropped my phone in the river.” He smiled over at Luke. “Did you know that if you drop a phone in a river and it is underwater and hits a bunch of rocks, it won’t work anymore?” he asked my son.
Luke’s eyes widened. “One time, I dropped Mom’s phone in the bathtub, and she was so mad. But then we put it in a rice bath thing, and it was fine. I think. Right, Mom?”
I grimaced, remembering the panic over him pulling my phone out of my shirt and into the tub. It was my fault for having it so close to him when he was so curious with his little grabby toddler hands.
“It all worked out. Don’t worry.”
“I have done that before, too, and I think I broke the phone, but I still used it for a few more months. I’m not great with phones. Oh, and Lake would’ve gone over the fence to say hi and tell you what was going on, but she was out of town for a presentation in New York. And I didn’t want to send over anyone else to your house and be weird. I didn’t borrow someone else’s phone because I honestly didn’t remember your number off hand because I don’t even remember my own number most days. I’m sorry.”
Well, that made sense, but I still just wanted to get home, feed my kid, and then go back out and run the four hundred other errands I had to do.
I barely had any time off these days as it was, and I knew this was my own doing, that this job, no matter the commitments that came with it, was my choice, but right now I felt like I kept making the wrong ones.
Was I losing too much time with my son because I wanted to further my career? Was I fighting with someone at work just to prove that I had bigger balls than he did?
I needed to stop making rash choices, but I also needed to just do things on my own. I was better when I was on my own.
“Do you want Luke to come into the shop and get some water while you’re dealing with the tire? Let me know how to help, Brooke. I want to.” He stuck his hands in his pockets, and he looked so contrite, like he was trying not to scare me or anger me.
And I didn’t know what was wrong with me, but I just couldn’t handle it. But I needed to.
Luke needed me to handle it.
Because nobody else would.
“I got it. I had it in Paris, and I have it here.”
I hadn’t meant to blurt that, and when his eyes widened, I muttered under my breath.
“What?” he asked as he leaned forward.
“I’m sorry. I’m just tired.” And I knew the fastest way to get home was to let him help. Because despite the strength I had in my veins, he had more muscles than I did. So I should just let him help.
It wasn’t a failure, even though I felt like it was.
“I would appreciate your help with the tire. Mostly because I can’t get it out of the trunk. And it’s annoying me.”
“Yeah, that would be annoying.” He kept studying my face as if he wanted to ask more but knew he couldn’t. Not in public like this, not with Luke right there, and clearly not when I acted like the bitchiest of all bitches.
“Thank you in advance,” I mumbled.
He met my gaze, nodded tightly, and helped me with the tire.
In the ways of fate and men, he had the spare on in no time, while it probably would’ve taken me over an hour because I was out of practice and weaker than he was.
That didn’t make me feel like I was helpless or anything.
“You’re all good to go.”
He high-fived Luke, who had stayed in the car but had stuck his head out of the window to watch.
“Be good, buddy.”
“Thank you, Leif. I’ll see you soon!” Luke got back in his seat, and I quickly buckled him back in, making sure he was secure, before turning to Leif.
“Thank you. I have to head home. Things are going to start melting.”
Not that I had ice cream or anything in my car, but it seemed like a good excuse. I was melting as it was.
He studied my face as if he wanted to say something, but there was nothing to say.
I had to make the right choices for my son in my own life.
And I wasn’t sure the man that continually went haywire on my emotions was the right choice.
“Get home safe, Brooke,” Leif said, without any hint to his emotions.
Something broke inside me, but I didn’t know what it was or what it meant. So I nodded my head in thanks once again, and got into my car. When I pulled out and headed home, I refused to look in the rearview mirror at him.
Because I wasn’t sure what I wanted to see.
That he was still there, waiting.
Or that he was doing what he had done before and should do now: leave.