Christmas with the Single Dad (The Single Dads of Seattle Book 5)

by Whitley Cox

  “Care to share?” Mark asked slowly, elbowing Zak. “When we left you Christmas Eve, things seemed to be going great. What happened?”

  “In case you’re wondering, she’s been working from home,” Liam said, sitting across the poker table from Zak and giving him a knowing look. “We gave all our associates that option if the snow made it too hard to travel. Particularly since we got hit with another eight inches of that fluffy white crap on Wednesday.”

  Zak cleared his throat. “I wasn’t wondering.”

  “Bullshit,” Emmett said with a snort. “It’s written all over your fucking face.”

  “Yep,” Mitch added. “Plain as day.”

  “Like Sharpie marker, bro,” Mark cut in. “Emmett and Liam filled me in.” He clicked his tongue and shook his head. “You need to relax. If there’s anything I’ve learned from the way I treated Tori after what happened with Gabe, it’s that good women don’t mean to hurt us and we need to stop and realize that before we hurt them. And we all know how I fucked up with Tori, how badly I hurt her.” He shook his head, his eyes wide in bewilderment. “That woman is a saint to forgive me and give me another chance.”

  “Amen to that,” Liam agreed. “You were a dick.”

  “Yep,” Adam chimed in. “If you ever spoke to me like that, I’d have given you two fucking black eyes and then called it a day.”

  Mark made a sheepish face. “Believe me, I’m still making amends for it. We’re together, but her forgiveness wasn’t immediate. She still holds that shit over me from time to time, reminds me how much of an ass I was.” He glanced at Zak. “Don’t make the same mistake I did. I got lucky, Tori took me back, but Aurora might not be as forgiving.”

  “She lied,” Zak ground out, taking a sip of his scotch. He hadn’t had a drop to drink all week, but once he got to Liam’s that night, he knew beer just wouldn’t cut it.

  “Yeah, but they weren’t heinous lies,” Liam countered. “They were lies of self-preservation. She didn’t cheat on anybody. She didn’t hurt anybody. She told you she worked closer to the gym so that you wouldn’t think she was some creepy stalker-chick. She let you believe she was a fourth-year rather than a first-year, and she didn’t tell you that her ex-boyfriend was harassing her. All pretty minor in the grand scheme of things, don’t you think?”

  “They were still lies,” Zak challenged. “And after the shit Loni put me through with all her deceit and cheating, I vowed I’d never be with a liar again. Once a liar, always a liar. A white lie today, a cheating lie tomorrow.”

  “Bullshit,” Aaron said, shaking his head like he was tired of this topic. “Get off your fucking high horse, dude. Fuck.”

  Zak ignored Aaron. Aaron could be abrupt sometimes; that was just who he was. “I just don’t understand why she didn’t tell me all that stuff right from the beginning. I was honest with her.”

  “Because not everybody vomits their life story on the first date, bro,” Adam said, shaking his head.

  He, Violet, Mira, Mitch, Paige and Jayda had all returned from Hawaii two days ago. The motherfucker was tanned and happy. Zak wanted to punch his brother in his smug, tanned face.

  Adam tipped up his beer. “You’ve been out of the dating game a while. Did you forget how it goes?”

  Zak’s eyes drifted down to the cards in his hand. “I just prefer to lay my cards on the table right off the bat, so to speak. I want to do the relationship thing different this time. No lies, just honesty from the beginning. If the woman can’t do that too, then she’s not the one for me.”

  “And that’s all well and good, but you can’t force other people to adhere to your timeline or your philosophies. She was embarrassed about where she came from. She was embarrassed that she’s been essentially stalking you—which she wasn’t, by the way. Maybe she just wanted you to like her and then she’d tell you the truth, who knows. Only she knows why she did what she did,” Liam added. “But what we all know, and I think you know it too, is that you overreacted. Aurora is a sweet person and one hell of a lawyer, and she likes your kids and they like her. I’d go and fix things before it’s too far gone and unfixable.”

  “Where’s Atlas when we need him to get all angry and pound his fist on the table?” Mark asked, glancing down at the cards in his own hand before moving a stack of chips into the center.

  “He’s still in Oregon,” Liam said, raising the stakes with an even bigger stack of chips. “Scott says Freddie gave him his cold, so he’s in bed with his NyQuil and Dristan.”

  “Kids are gross,” Adam said, shaking his head before exchanging glances with Mitch. “I’m sure we’re all going to be sick in a few days from that airplane ride. All that recycled air and shit. We should have bathed Mira and Jayda in Purell every twenty minutes while we were in the airport.” He shuddered and then crossed his fingers. “Please don’t let it be a gastro bug. I can deal with a runny nose and a cough, but I can’t handle the shits.”

  Mitch made a face that said he was right there with Adam. “The guy sitting behind us on the plane was sneezing like he’d just inhaled a whole cup of pepper.”

  “Ah, fuck,” Adam groaned.

  “Just pray your pregnant girlfriend doesn’t get it,” Liam offered.

  Adam’s eyes went wide. “Ah, fuck. I didn’t even think of that.”

  “Tell those effers to keep their snot-nosed kids away from my Willow,” Mason chimed in. “The last thing I need is a sick baby on my hands. The bar has been slammed. I’m supposed to be taking quote, unquote paternity leave, only working part-time, but I’ve been at the bar every fucking day but Christmas day. My poor baby’s not going to recognize her daddy if things keep going the way they are.”

  “Who’s got her now?” Mitch asked.

  Mason, was busy spinning a beer bottle cap in his fingers, staring blankly at it. “My mom. Willow loves her nana, so it makes it easy to get a break or work, but still. I don’t want my kid being raised by my parents. I also don’t want to abuse them.”

  “Maybe let Adam and Violet take her once in a while. They’re going to need to get used to changing a shitty diaper again,” Liam said, snickering.

  Adam rolled his eyes. “I can remember how to change a diaper, thank you.” He turned to Mason, his eyes earnest. “But we will take her whenever. Love that little squirt.”

  Emmett cleared his throat. “Anyway, back to the topic at hand. Which is Zak being an info-barfer and expecting everyone he meets to follow suit.”

  “I don’t expect them to barf info,” Zak countered, getting frustrated with how they were twisting his words. “I just don’t want to be lied to.”

  “And I don’t want to have to pay my ex-wife alimony,” Liam said, rolling his eyes. “But sometimes life doesn’t go the way you want it to. She didn’t lie to hurt you. She’s been through a lot these past two years and didn’t want to dwell on it, didn’t want it to be the focus of her time with you, of her Christmas. She was afraid you’d pity or judge her for getting dumped—though frankly, I say good riddance. That Pressley guy was a turd.” He glanced around the table with pursed lips. “He’s a personal injury lawyer for Bruce Kay and Associates.”

  A bunch of the men grimaced in understanding.

  Zak didn’t understand and his face said as much because Liam took pity on him and explained. “Notorious ambulance chasers in town. They’re the scum of the earth. Nearly out of their cars before the paramedics are, hounding victims as they’re being loaded onto stretchers and put in neck braces. It’s disgusting how cut-throat they are. When her boyfriend told me who he worked for I immediately went and washed my hands after shaking his.” He shuddered. “She’s better off without him for sure.”

  “You said Dina hired Aurora?” Aaron asked, changing the subject and then raising the stakes by tossing more poker chips into the center, making all the other men’s eyebrows lift.

  Liam nodded. “Saw something in her. Passion and drive, integrity and a willingness to put in the long hours, in the grunt work to
prove her worth. She’s a determined thing, I’ll tell you that. Smart as a whip and always willing to help out on a case. Works her fingers to the bone.”

  “Dina was always an incredible judge of character,” Aaron said stiffly, the muscles in his jaw clenching and unclenching. “No-nonsense, but fair and kind. She knew a person’s worth within minutes of meeting them. If she saw something in Aurora, she wasn’t wrong.”

  Liam swirled the ice around in his glass of scotch. “She wasn’t wrong. Aurora will be the first of the new batch of first-year associates to make junior partner when she’s ready. If she continues to work the way she is now, she’s going to go places. I plan to do everything I can to keep her at our firm.”

  Zak sucked in a deep breath, pushing a strange ache out of his chest.

  He felt proud of Aurora as he heard Liam and Aaron go on about her. Because he knew everything they’d said to be true. He hadn’t known her for very long, but what he did know, he’d fallen hard for.

  “You know you overreacted,” Adam said, resting a brotherly hand on Zak’s shoulder and giving him an affectionate squeeze. “We all overreact from time to time. And a good woman will see that you were being a pretentious ass and hopefully forgive you … ” He grinned and released Zak’s shoulder. “If you’re willing to grovel, that is.”

  Aaron and Mark snickered and nodded.

  Mitch’s bugged-out eyes said he’d groveled a time or two in his day. “No shame in groveling when it’s a good woman you want to forgive you,” he said. “It’s when you let your ego and your pride get in the way that you lose out on the good things in life. The good people.”

  Emmett turned to face Mitch. “Fortune cookie?”

  Mitch shook his head. “Horoscope app on Paige’s phone.”

  Emmett nodded. “Wise words no matter where they came from.”

  “Look,” Liam started, “do you want her back or not? Are you able to get over the white lies and start fresh? Start your relationship open and honest?” He lifted a shoulder, then drained his scotch before standing up and heading to his leather-top bar to refill. “I mean, if you guys do get together and things go south, I can’t represent you. She works for my firm. It’d be a conflict of interest. She’s also a great lawyer, so she’d take you to the fucking cleaners, just FYI.” He grinned like an asshole as he used the ice tongs to grab a few cubes from the ice bucket and drop them in his glass. He poured himself the scotch, then wandered back to the table. “My money is on her leaving you though.” He pointed his finger at Zak’s chest and arms. “Muscles are overrated.”

  Zak snorted. “Says the man who is now seeing one of my personal trainers three days a week.”

  Liam sipped his scotch. “I’m looking to tone, not bulk up like The Hulk.”

  “What are you going to do?” Emmett asked. “I have her number if you want it. She didn’t want yours though, didn’t want to hound you. She’s pretty resigned to the fate of your relationship, so if you want her, you have to go get her.”

  Did Zak want Aurora?

  Was the Earth round?

  Did beer taste good?

  Was the Pope Catholic?

  Of course he wanted her. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d wanted anything or anyone so badly. He’d been a wreck all week, angry at himself, at Aurora, at Loni. His ex had made his ability to trust virtually nonexistent. He was unable to discern a forgivable lie from an unforgivable one. Because to him, a lie was a lie, and if you were able to lie once about where you worked, you were also able to lie about book club and orgies.

  “Aurora is not Loni,” Liam added. “You can’t paint all women with the same brush. What if they did that to us?”

  Fair point.

  “I can see it on your face, bro,” Adam added. “You miss her. You know you overreacted. You’re just struggling with your ego to go to her and admit you were wrong.”

  “But she was wrong, too,” Zak ground out. “She lied.”

  Nearly all the men around the table said “Oh for fuck’s sake!” at the same time.

  “Get over yourself,” Mark said, shaking his head and tossing his cards into the pile. “I fold.”

  “Yeah, bro. We all fuck up. Even you,” Aaron added, tipping his scotch back and draining it. Liam angled his head, asking if Aaron wanted another one, but the big redheaded SEAL shook his head. “Gonna head out soon. You bitches gonna fold or play?”

  Mitch stood up and tossed his cards down. “I’m tired of this, and I fold. Win her back. Don’t. It’s only your happiness on the line.” He rolled his eyes, then took his empty beer bottle to the kitchen muttering things like “Christ almighty” and “what a moron.”

  The rest of the men followed suit, all of them but Aaron tossing their cards face-down on the table.

  Zak tossed his cards down too. He had nothing in his hand.

  Grinning, Aaron scooped all the chips toward himself, then stood up to go and collect his money from all the losers, leaving Zak sitting at the table alone with his thoughts.

  “It’s New Year’s Eve tomorrow, dude. You going to start the new year off without at least seeing her? Without at least talking to her?” Emmett asked, returning to the card table and slapping Zak on the back. “Her car still in the parking lot at the gym?”

  Zak nodded. “Yeah.”

  “Well, then you know where she’ll be.” He patted Zak’s shoulder, and when he removed his hand, a piece of paper fluttered to the table in front of Zak. “Don’t fuck this up, bro. She deserves a second chance. You both do.”

  16

  Zak wasn’t ready to go home yet. Especially since his house was now empty.

  Loni and Craig—true to form—called him on December 27, saying that they left the cabin on Mount Baker early and were coming to pick up the kids. But, of course, because nothing was ever easy with his ex-wife and her small-footed lover, Zak had to take the kids again on New Year’s Eve because Loni and Craig, the speedboat salesman, had tickets to a big party at The Ludo Lounge.

  Zak hadn’t had it in him to argue with the narcissists who figured nobody else had a life or any plans and that even if they did, they would change them up to accommodate Loni and pinky-finger-ring Craig.

  His grandparents were over visiting Adam, Mira and Violet for a few nights, so now he was alone.

  All alone.

  No kids, no grandparents … no Aurora.

  And even though he normally had no problem arriving home to an empty house, tonight he just couldn’t bear the thought of it. So he stuck around Liam’s place, tying one on because it was the weekend and he was lonely and heartbroken.

  Thankfully, his friend and the club founder didn’t seem to mind the company.

  They cleaned up the potato chip bowls, put the card table away and the beer bottles into the recycling. Mason stuck around too, as apparently, according to the baby monitor app he had on his phone, Willow was zonked out in her crib at home.

  “So, whatcha gonna do about your lady love?” Mason asked, sitting back in Liam’s brown leather couch, his ankle cocked on one knee, arms spread out over the back of the furniture like he owned the place. “You gonna go to her, tell her you fucked up, get on your hands and knees and grovel?” He tipped his beer up into his mouth, grinning around the bottle neck before he began to guzzle.

  Zak’s jaw clenched and unclenched. “I’m just struggling to get past the lying.”

  Liam sniffed, then leaned forward and knocked the ash from his cigar into the ashtray. They rarely smoked cigars around the table—because doctors Emmett and Mark would have conniptions, then proceed to lecture them—but once in a while Liam busted out a stogie. Zak never took part though—his lungs and mouth were clean and cancer-free, and he preferred to keep them that way.

  Healthy body, healthy mind.

  “You really think you have a right to be so high and mighty?” Liam asked, lifting his head slightly and cocking one brow before he sat back in his recliner. “I keep wondering when you’re going to get a nose
bleed from that mile-high high horse you’re so precariously perched on and instead come down and join the rest of us average Joes who from time to time lie and screw up.”

  Zak’s head reared back. “I don’t fucking lie.”

  Liam’s face held a peculiar look. He studied Zak for a moment, drew on his cigar, held the smoke in his mouth, then slowly released it, studying the cigar as if it were not just a nice Cuban from a grateful client, but a priceless artifact or the holy grail. “You sure about that?” he finally asked.

  “What the fuck are you getting at?” All the hairs on Zak’s arms rose to attention. An itch at the back of his neck grew practically unbearable until he was forced to scratch it, chasing it around the top of his spine and down his shoulders.

  “You don’t think I know?”

  Zak lurched forward and stared Liam square in the face. “Know what? Fucking spit it out.”

  Unlike Zak, who was about ready to snap, Liam was as cool as a goddamn cucumber. That just made the whole thing worse. “That you threatened your ex-wife into giving you shared custody of your children.”

  “Dude,” Mason muttered, his blue eyes darting back and forth between Liam and Zak. “Not cool.” Then his face grew serious and he sat forward in his seat. “Like threatened to beat her up?”

  Zak’s body slammed back into the couch, his hands landing hard on his thighs. “How the fuck … ?”

  Liam simply lifted his brows. “Secrets have a way of coming out. Just leave it at that. I know you leveraged the video you had of her for a fair custody agreement. Even after you told me that you wouldn’t sink to her level, you did anyway. You lied to me.” He held up his hand, his cigar between his index and middle finger, the smoke curling up around his dark blond head like a gray-blue halo. “I’m not judging you, man. Loni was a bitch for what she put you through. The cheating, the lies. You deserved shared custody, don’t get me wrong. But you’re lying to yourself, and you’re lying to everybody else, if you don’t think you stooped to her level. You’re a liar just like the rest of us.”