Jilted (24 page)

And he only had himself to blame.

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Skylar was exhausted by the time she lay her head down to go to sleep that night. It was a long day and it took longer than usual to get the kids down to bed because they kept extolling the virtues of their new hero. Daddy. She didn’t begrudge them their excitement but each question they asked about him was like an arrow to the heart.

Being around Ashley today reminded her of when they were happy together. He smiled a lot and seemed to be genuinely interested in what the kids had to say. He didn’t patronize them as some adults would do with children that age. He got down on their level, played and laughed with them as if he was having the time of his life. Ashley even convinced Skylar to join in the merriment. He packed the gifts in her car so that she wouldn’t be stuck watching them for the rest of the night. Then they all pursued several rounds of skee-ball, air hockey, arcades games and more pizza eating. A woman had come up to them and complimented her on the beautiful family. Ashley had been in earshot and he’d stiffened. Skylar wasn’t sure what to make of his reaction to that comment but it did actually feel like they were a family, and it made her think about what might have been.

They would have been married for five years by now except Ashley decided to break things off in the most hurtful way possible. The weak explanation he gave didn’t sit well with her. Those pictures, whomever they’d come from, couldn’t be real. She’d never seen that man in her life and even if she had, there was no way she would cheat on Ashley. She’d loved him way too much. It did occur to her that someone must have photo shopped those pictures and sent it to him. But who? Could it have been one of his family members? They weren’t particularly fond of her.

Skylar sighed. It didn’t matter now. Too much time had passed and no matter how those nostalgic feelings she had for Ashley kept popping up, what he did to her would always be too hard for her to forget.

After tossing and turning for nearly an hour, she gave up all attempts of trying to sleep. This was one of those nights when she could have used a cup of her mother’s special hot chocolate mix. Sliding out of bed, Skylar grabbed her robe and headed downstairs to the kitchen to heat up a slice of leftover pizza she’d brought home. Maybe if she ate something it would make her sleepy.

She was surprised to see her sister in the kitchen, munching on pizza with a pile of books in front of her. “Hey Izzy. I thought you were going out with friends tonight.”

“Oh hey, Sky. We went to the movies. Some of the girls wanted to go to a club afterwards, but I didn’t feel up to it. I thought I would get a head start on studying for my chemistry exam.

Izzy liked to party and hang out like any 19 year old but no one could accuse her of not being responsible. It was one of the many lessons their mother had instilled in them. Because of Priscilla’s example of finishing her education and working toward getting her dream job, Skylar and Izzy were inspired to pursue their ambitions as well.

Skylar grabbed a slice of pizza from the refrigerator and popped it into the microwave. “I’m so glad that I never have to take another science class for the rest of my life. You and Mom were always better at math and science than me.”

“It’s kind of fun once you get the hang of it.”

“Spoken like a true future chemist.” Skylar took her slice and sat down at the table across from her sister. Izzy aspired to join a research team that looked for cures to deadly diseases

“Here’s hoping. But you make it seem like you were terrible at science. If I recall, you never received a grade lower than a B and most of the time you earned A’s.”

“And they were hard-won. It didn’t come as easy to me as it did for you and Mom.”

“But you have a knack for history, English and debate. Anyway, how did it go tonight?”

“Better than I expected actually. The kids and Ashley really hit it off. They didn’t want to leave Cheesy Charlie’s until he promised to come by and see them soon.”

Izzy pursed her lips. “Well, that’s good at least, because if he didn’t treat my babies right then he’d get another kick in the nuts.”

Skylar threw her head back and laughed. “Lucky for him he has three kids because after that kick you gave him, I doubt he’ll be having anymore any time soon.”

“You’re not mad at me about that, are you? I guess I kind of overreacted when I saw him.”

“I’m not the one you should apologize to but I’m sure he didn’t expect you and Mom to welcome his presence with open arms.”

“Nope. After what he did to you, he’s lucky I didn’t follow up with a roundhouse kick to the face. So how do you think you’ll handle being around him again?”

Skylar sighed. “I honestly don’t know. I’m not going to lie, tonight was tough. It’s hard pretending to be happy when all you can think about is the past.”

“Don’t tell me you still have feelings for him?”

“It’s not that it’s just…” Skylar couldn’t find the words to describe how she felt tonight.

“Just what?” Izzy prodded.

The doorbell saved her from answering. “Who could that be this time of night?” she wondered out loud. “I’d better go see who it is before they wake up Mom and the kids.”

When Skylar got to the door, she looked out the peephole and froze. Why now? She took a deep breath before opening the door. “What do you want, Ashley?”

“I had to see you.” His eyes were blood red and his hair was wild as if he’d run his fingers through it several times.

“Ashley the kids were in bed.”

“I came to see you.”

“Why?”

“To say I’m sorry. So very sorry.”

Chapter Twenty

Skylar stared at Ashley, unsure of how to respond. Besides, she didn’t know what he was apologizing for. He had so much to say sorry for, like breaking her heart and leaving her at the altar on their wedding day. Ashley had kicked her out of his office when she tried to tell him about her pregnancy. He had set out to ruin her life by making it difficult for her to get a job in her field. And then he had attempted to wreck her relationship with Jeremy, not to mention he’d practically assaulted her in the bathroom at the banquet. And most of all, for making her realize that all the feelings she ever had for him weren’t completely dead.

“I-I…I’m not really sure what to say to that, Ashley.”

“You don’t have to say a thing. I just need to get this off my chest. May I come inside?”

“I’m not sure if that would be a good idea. Izzy is up and…”

“Oh, yeah. I guess you’re right. I like my balls between my legs instead of coughing them out of my mouth.”

“Let me get my jacket, and I’ll join you outside. We can sit on the porch swing.”

He nodded. “I’ll be out here waiting.”

Skylar closed the door and placed her back against it. Why now? And where did this sudden about-face come from? Was it because of the time they’d spent with the kids? Was he trying to get into her good graces again just to spend more time with them and ultimately take them away from her? Five years ago before he publicly dumped her, she wouldn’t have imagined that Ashley was the type of man who would do things with ulterior motives, but he was practically a stranger to her now.

But if this was just a straightforward apology, would a simple ‘I’m sorry’ be enough?

She took several deep breaths before she was calm enough to move again and grab her coat. As she was headed outside, Izzy popped her head around the corner. “Sky, who was that? And where are you going?”

“That was Ashley and I’m going outside to have a chat with him.”

Izzy scrunched her face up in obvious distaste. “Why is he here?”

“I don’t know but I’m about to go find out. Could you please keep an ear out for the kids?”

“Sure, but if he tries anything give me a holler and I’ll put on my steel-toe boots.”

“So violent. You should probably see someone about that,” Skylar teased.

Izzy rolled her eyes. “He’s lucky he was able to walk away the last time. I was about to get Mom’s bat.”

“Calm down, Babe Ruth. No one is busting kneecaps tonight. I’ll be back in a bit.”

“Just be careful around him, okay? I don’t think I could take it if I see you the way you were five years ago.”

Skylar gave her sister a quick hug. “Don’t worry. This time around, my eyes are wide open. The only relationship Ashley and I have is one of co-parents. Nothing more.”

Izzy nodded, seeming satisfied with that answer.

Skylar took a deep breath before heading outside. Ashley was leaning against the banister on the porch looking up at the sky. “I used to look at the stars with my dad. He used to take me camping when I was younger and he taught me the names of all the constellations. When Owen was old enough he’d bring him along too but Owen wasn’t much of an outside person. He preferred working on computers so mostly it would be me and my father.”

In all the time they were together, Ashley rarely mentioned his father but whenever he did, Skylar got the feeling that they’d been close at one point. The one instance she’d asked about him, Ashley shut down. She figured it was because he hadn’t gotten over the loss. That he volunteered this information now was a bit confusing.

She took a seat on the porch swing. “That sounds nice, Ashley but I’m sure you didn’t come here to tell me about your childhood.”

He shoved his hands in his pockets and turned to face her. “You’re right but I’m not sure where to begin. I know you don’t owe me a damn thing, especially after what happened, but if you could grant me a little latitude, I’d appreciate it. I meant what I said about wanting to tell you I’m sorry. I apologize for everything I did, for what I put you through, for hurting you. But saying sorry just isn’t enough. I at least owe you an explanation about why I behaved the way I did and in order to do that, I need to provide a little background.” He gestured to the swing. “May I sit down?”

Skylar’s mouth fell open as Ashley spoke. He seemed so humbled and slightly distraught. She could have been very petty at that moment and told him to leave but she could literally feel the pain emanating from him. He’d inflicted a lot of hurt on her, but she simply didn’t have it in her to do it back just for the sake of getting even. With a sigh she gestured to the empty space beside her. “Sure.”

When he sat down, Ashley folded his hands in his lap and looked down. The confident arrogance that he wore so well was nowhere to be seen. As the silence stretched, the atmosphere became more awkward.

“Look, Ashley, I’m not sure what brought this on but, it’s getting late and maybe we should have this discussion another time. Obviously something has upset you and while I appreciate that you’re finally owning up to what you did, I hope you’re not expecting things to magically go back to the way they were.”

She noticed that he clenched his fists and squeezed his eyes shut as if he was in pain. “Yes, I know,” he said softly. “But like I said, I need to get this out tonight because I can’t deal with this weight on my chest anymore. It hurts and I can’t fucking breathe,” he whispered.

“Then take your time.”

“Thank you. You were always generous, more so than I deserved. I think I should start at the very beginning. You’re probably wondering why I never talked about my father much.”

“Yes. I was curious about that. I mean you became a lawyer like him and went on to become partner at the law firm he helped to build. It was clear you emulated him.”

“Yes. I did actually. I’ve always wanted to be like my father. He was my idol. I admired that he came from modest beginnings and managed to build something magnificent. He headed up one of the top law firms on the East Coast and invested in several small businesses. He amassed a nice nest egg for his family so we’d never have to worry about finances for as long as we lived, but he still remained grounded and he did his best to impress his values on me, Owen and Colleen. He taught me the significance of working toward my goals. When I was 16, I thought I was entitled to a car just like the rest of my school friends, but Dad made me get a job and earn one. He said he’d match whatever I was able to save. So I got two jobs that summer, one was lifeguarding at the country club; my mom threw a fit about that by the way. And the other was working at a fast food joint flipping burgers. When I wasn’t working that summer I was sleeping, but I managed to save five grand. Dad kept his promise and I was able to get a nice secondhand car. It wasn’t as fancy as my friends’ who were all gifted luxury vehicles, but I was so proud of that car because I earned my Dad was too. If he hadn’t made me work that summer, I don’t think I ever would have learned the lesson of appreciating the things I received.”

“Your father sounds pretty amazing.”

Ashley nodded. “He was. He always made time for me no matter what, even when I knew he had an important case or was busy at the office. All I’d have to do was call him or show up and he’d drop everything for me. Family was very important to him.” Ashley swiped at the corner of his eye.

Skylar lightly touched his shoulder to offer him comfort but she remained silent as she waited for him to continue.

“His capacity to love was his greatest strength, but it was also is greatest weakness.”

“What do you mean?”

“He loved unconditionally and that’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it often blinded him to stuff he simply wasn’t willing to see. You’ve met my mother.”

Skylar barely managed not to gag as she thought about Katherine Hollingsworth. How anyone could love that evil heifer was beyond her but she guessed the saying that there was someone for everyone was true. “Yes,” she said simply. Skylar had to bite her tongue to not offer any more commentary on her true thought about his mother.

“Well, then you already know she’s not the easiest woman to get along with, but my father adored her. He worshipped the ground she walked on. And my mother knew it and took advantage of his love for her. You see my mother likes to put on airs and pretend that she’s better than everyone else, but she’s extremely vain and my father’s affections just weren’t enough for her. She constantly needed the attention of other men and she flirted shamelessly with any man she deemed worthy, sometimes in my father’s face. When I grew old enough to ask my father why he put up with it, he’d just tell me that Mother was just having a little harmless fun. But it wasn’t harmless; she was having affairs behind his back. I didn’t understand what she was doing until I got a little older, but there were days we wouldn’t see her because she was off with one of her lovers. I heard them arguing once. My father was begging her to leave her latest boyfriend and my mother was demanding some expensive trinket to even consider it. She had no respect for him because she didn’t bother to hide her affairs. My mother would even bring her lovers to our home.”