Page 33 of Blurry Little Lines
“Did Little Miss Kelsie say the F-word?” Max pulls back, gloating. “I knew I could pull it out of that proper mouth of yours.”
“Commit it to memory because that’s the last time you’ll pull it out of me.” I straighten my legs and rinse myself off before taking a deep breath to collect my composure. “My body needed to experience that pleasure before I died. Thank you.” I smile and step out of the shower to get ready.
“Mommy!” James wraps me in a hug when Lauren and Adam enter the penthouse. “I had so much fun.”
“I bet you did!” I give him a big kiss. “Wow, surprisingly, you adults don’t look exhausted.”
“You do.” Adam’s forehead creases together. “Rough night?”
“Uhhh, yeah.” I avert my eyes and pick James up, hoping I can bite back a guilty smile. “Willow was as lovely as ever.”
“I’ve always hated her,” Adam replies, shaking his head. He didn’t hate her enough tonotsleep with her in high school. “Why don’t you kids go put your bags in your rooms?”
“Kelsie and I can do it.” Lauren steps forward, linking my arm with hers and dragging me down the hall. “Good morning, little mama. Have you looked in the mirror?”
“Not really.” I hear my voice pitch in confusion.
“You have a legit bite mark.” Her finger traces over the side of my neck. “Your hair is down so it’s not as noticeable, but I noticed.” Her smile has never been brighter. “Look who finally got her world rocked.”
“Shh, it was a one-time event to get it out of our system,” I whisper-yell.
“Right.” She places her hand on her hip. “Your brother just bought a house with his one-time event. I’m so happy for you!” She squeals when Mallory walks into my room.
“Woah, did you bleed on your dress?” Mallory picks up the cream fabric coated in red.
“No, that’s red wine from the lovely Willow Beaumont,” I reply, hoping she will drop the subject and lose interest.
“Julien’s aunt? Ugh, I hate them,” she says with distaste. “Oh no, the zipper is ripped too.” She shrugs, losing interest, then walks out of my bedroom.
“Kelsie!” Lauren’s green eyes light up. “I need details. Now. Where is Max?”
“He’s busy with clients at the gym. And no. No detail besides my body is thoroughly satiated.” I bring my hair to the side to cover my neck when I hear Adam approach.
“We should go unpack.” He looks at Lauren. “Are you almost ready?”
“Fine, let’s go. Bye, Kelsie.” She winks, following her boyfriend out the door.
Max returns later that afternoon and entertains the kids with his guitar while I cook dinner. There is something that’s always been so domestic about us, even before we slept together. We make a great team and always have. Adam has pulled away from our trio in the last year, since Lauren has come into his life. She is the best thing that has happened to him and fits right in with us. But Max has stayed true to his word about being by my side since the elevator incident when I was nine.
I plate the lasagna, since it’s the only thing Mallory will eat this month apparently, and walk my children’s plates to the table.
“And this little man turns four on Wednesday.” I catch the end of Max’s sentence as he walks into the dining room, and my stomach turns. “What are the plans, Kels?” he asks as he pushes James’s chair in.
“Nothing over the top. He’s four.” I turn around and head back to the kitchen to grab our two plates. My hands shake, and I nearly drop our dinner as I try to keep it together. My heart squeezes as bile churns from my failure. What mother forgets her own child’s birthday. I take a deep breath and sniff back tears that want to be known. Setting the plate back on the counter, I place my hands on my stomach to ground myself. I need to keep myself together until I know I’m safe to break down in my bedroom without anyone watching. I’m the worst mother ever.
“Hey.” Max comes up behind me and places a comforting hand on my back. I hold my breath as my hands rest on the kitchen counter with my head bowed down. “Are you okay? I know it’s hard to watch him grow, but that’s also a good thing.” He rubs my arms before picking up the plates, clearly not realizing what’s actually bothering me. “I’ll set these on the table if you need a minute.” He kisses the back of my head and leaves.
I barely touch my dinner. When Max goes back to the gym to teach a class, I get the kids showered, lunches packed for the morning, and crawl into bed. I’m too depleted from the past week and last night to cry about the fact that I forgot my baby was turning four in a few days. I hear Max get home and peek his head in my door, but I pretend I’m asleep. If I drown myself in enough work and focus on the kids, I’ll be able to exhaust myself enough to forget that Max is only across the hallway, and an orgasm away.
“I heard you’re going back to work full time at the start of next week.” My mother stands in my entryway after watching the kids this afternoon. “I’m glad James is enjoying his school. I can still watch him on the two days I used to, if you'd like.”
“He would love that, Mom.” I set my work bag down. “For James’s birthday tomorrow, I am doing a small family dinner here, and I ordered some cupcakes to make it special.” I don’t see the point in going all out for birthdays until he starts actual school and makes more friends.
“Perfect, honey.” She leans against the wall after sliding on her shoes. “Did the stain come out of your dress? I told your father to not invite Willow to the next event.”
“No, you know it won’t, Mom. She’s hated me since we were kids.” For some unbeknownst reason. “You don’t have to fight my battles.”
“Nonsense. I’ve heard the crap she has said about you.” Which is why I try to avoid elite events and socialize with them. “It’s about time she learns her lesson. She doesn’t get to treat our family like that.”