The Problem with Fire - M.E. Clayton Page 0,46
his relationship with Leta. We couldn’t go on like this where Leta was unhappy, Thomas was lost, and I was lonely. We needed better.
I also knew I was going to have to have a serious talk with Sayer. No matter what happens between us, we were neighbors. Short of packing up and moving, we needed to handle this fight? Break up? Whatever it was, like grown adults.
After making him leave, promising I’d be over late to talk, I had banned Thomas to the kitchen to wait until I was done speaking with Leta. I hated that he was in my house, tainting my living space, but that was the least of my worries right now.
Leta was my priority.
So, after setting Thomas up in the kitchen and threatening to unman him should he start snooping, I made my way to Leta’s room. I knocked softly, and when she gave me permission, I entered her room.
Leta as sitting on her bed, her back against the headboard, her phone in her hand, her plate of barbecue on her nightstand, untouched.
My heart ached at the sight.
I sat down on her bed, and I thanked God she scooted over to make room for me. You could never be too sure with teenagers, and I was hoping this was a sign that she wasn’t blaming me for this mess.
“So…what do you want to know?” I wasn’t going to insult her intelligence and act as if she hadn’t heard the yelling that had taken place in the living room.
Leta placed her phone on the bed beside her and looked up at me. “Are you and Mr. Hayes dating?” she asked, cutting to the chase.
I didn’t want to burden her with adult complications, so while I was pretty sure Sayer kissing another woman was a sign that I needed to cut and run, I wasn’t going to go into details about our situation. But I stuck as close to the facts as possible. “We started seeing each other the Sunday you were camping with Jennifer and her family.”
The hurt in her eyes made me feel low. “Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked, clearly feeling betrayed.
“Because it was new, Leta,” I told her. “I didn’t want to tell you until I was sure that there was something worth telling you.”
She was quiet for a long time, and she just looked so sad. Finally, she asked, “That’s why Dad’s doing all this, huh? He got jealous because this is the first time he’s seen you with someone who isn’t him.”
I nodded. “I expected to see or know about him with other women, because he’s the one who left me. I don’t think he had prepared himself for the day that I’d finally move on. Maybe he expected me to pine after him a while longer.”
Leta’s nose scrunched up. “Then why say all that crap about you needing to date?”
“I think that was all for show,” I told her. “I don’t think he was really expecting me to. Plus, I think he was more likely looking for something to blame your relationship on.” I shrugged a shoulder. “His callous remark about you getting over our divorce one day is biting him in the ass, I think.”
“Some days, I’m so tired of being mad at him, but most of the time, I just don’t know how to not be mad at him,” she confessed. “I don’t want to be unhappy, Mom. Honest. I just…it just shouldn’t have been so easy for him to walk out on us.”
I reached over and squeezed her thigh. “Leta, your dad didn’t walk out on us,” I said softly. “He divorced me, honey. And there is a difference.”
“How do you figure?”
I let out a tired sigh. “From the moment he mentioned divorce, he insisted on fifty/fifty custody of you. He was adamant that we share you equally. He did not walk away from you, Leta. If he had, you’d only be seeing him every other weekend, or some nonsense like that.”
“Maybe he just didn’t want to pay child support,” she remarked stubbornly.
“I would concede that point if it weren’t for the fact that, while I don’t know what he’s about when you’re at his house, I do know he’s made every parent/teacher meeting. I know he’s always made sure I had all your health insurance information and updated cards. He’s always paid half, if not all, of any extra-curricular activities you’ve ever engaged in. He’s just as informed of your school academics and social activities as