me close. “Well, then it's a good thing she has a kick-ass mom to be there for her. She'll always be okay, as long as she has you.”
I let her comfort me, and when we separate, I sigh. “I have to go see if she's okay.”
“I know.” She smiles. “Go. I've got this.”
TWO DAYS PASS, AND I ignore each one of Colby's phone calls. It's not that I'm still angry at him. After talking with Maddie, I realized he has a point. No, the reason I'm not answering is because I'm afraid of what will happen if I do. He made it very clear Saturday morning what he wanted, and I don't think that's something he's going to let go of any time soon.
Telling Brenna that Colby is her dad is not a topic that should be taken lightly. For one, she's spent the last few weeks thinking that he's just one of her mom's friends. While I understand his reasons for wanting to tell her, I'm also terrified of what it could do to her—especially when he starts traveling for football again and she needs to go weeks without seeing him because he's just too busy.
I'm sitting on the couch after putting Brenna to bed. My phone weighs heavily in my hand as I look over all the texts Colby has sent since Saturday morning.
Colby: I'm sorry I snapped. Call me.
Colby: Saige, please. Just call or text me back.
Colby: When can I see Brenna again?
Colby: Are you ever going to answer me?
Colby: You can't keep her from me. Whether you like it or not, I'm her dad.
Colby: If you don't answer me soon, I'm going to have to take alternative action. Please don't make it come to that.
The front door swings open, and Topher stumbles into the house. He doesn't even bother to close it behind him as he trips and slams right into the wall. A picture falls off and the frame breaks with the impact of hitting the floor. I roll my eyes as I put my phone on the coffee table and go over to help him.
“What happened to you?” I ask.
He mumbles something inaudible and pushes me away as I try to help him up. “I'm fine.”
At the smell of his breath, I take two steps back. The amount of alcohol in his system must be enough to drown a ship. I shut and lock the front door before picking the broken wood up off the ground. Thankfully, the glass is still all in one piece.
“So, what?” Topher slurs. “I have a few drinks and you don't love me anymore?”
Tossing the remnants of the mess into the garbage, I turn to him with an emotionless look on my face. “You told me not to help you. I was cleaning up the mess you made.”
He scoffs. “The mess I made? What about the mess your little tater tot makes every day? Huh? What about that mess?”
“Don't bring Brenna into this,” I tell him. “You knew I had a daughter when you got involved with me, and again when you asked me to marry you.”
“Yeah, but I didn't know you were one of Hendrix's whores.”
The insult is like a punch to the gut, and while a part of me knows it's only because he's drunk, I know there's some truth to it, at least where his feelings are concerned. Ever since I told him about Colby being Brenna's father, things have been different between us. And this whole coming home drunk thing? Yeah, it's nothing new.
“I'm going to bed,” I say, not willing to sit down here and endure his verbal abuse. “Try not to puke on yourself.”
He mocks me like a child as I walk out of the room and head upstairs. I go into my bathroom, washing my face and trying to calm myself down. If this is what being married to him is going to be like, I'm not sure I'm interested. I miss the guy I started dating. The one who used to help me with tough decisions and wanted to be there for me through it all. Whoever that man is downstairs is not him.
“SAIGE!” I WAKE UP to Topher screaming my name. “Saige! Get your fucking ass down here!”
I jump out of bed, noticing it's one o'clock in the morning. My feet pad quickly down the stairs, just to get him to shut up.
“Are you out of your mind?” I hiss. “You're going to wake up Brenna!”
He's holding yet another beer