“You haven’t even looked, have you?” Disgust oozed from his tone. “Typical. Are you sure you can handle parenting and working? Because from what I’ve seen in the last five years, you can’t do both.”

  “I’ll find someone to care for him, Skip.” Her voice was firm this time, as she tried to defend herself and get done what needed to get done. Her heart raced. “Or you can just let him stay with me that week since I already have off—”

  “No. It’s my week, and my time with my son. I won’t give it up to you.”

  “Right.” Esther glanced up as the door opened, her kids coming to the classroom a little earlier than expected. She immediately lowered her voice so they couldn’t hear as she tried to end the conversation. “I’ll find care for him by tomorrow and give you a call to let you know.”

  “You better, or I’ll be speaking to my lawyer about how we can rectify this permanently.”

  Before Esther had a chance to respond, Skip hung up on her. She sighed as she set the phone down and stared at the top of her desk, taking deep breaths and reaching for her stress ball. She would teach with that in her hand for the next hour or two at least.

  Her heart raced as she stood in front of the class, instructing them to pull out their math books so they could work on some simple fractions. She had a lesson she needed to teach, and pushing the argument with Skip out of her mind was harder than she expected, especially after so many years of practice.

  Esther showed up just before five with Anthony in tow, and when Melanie opened the door to let them into the house, it was already bursting with noise. Leaning in, she touched Esther’s arm and whispered, “Is it bad that I’m lamenting those quiet nights by myself already?”

  Esther shrugged lightly. “I hate them personally.”

  “Yeah, but Anthony is five, mine are all grown.”

  “You have the girls?” Esther eyed Megan and Bailey.

  “I’ll explain in a minute.” Melanie bent down to Anthony and took his jacket. “The girls are in the kitchen picking out what kind of pizza they want. Why don’t you go tell Avery what you want too.”

  “Really?”

  “Yeah.”

  Anthony tore off toward the kitchen where all the noise was coming from. Melanie straightened up, hanging Anthony’s jacket on the hooks by the door before taking Esther’s to do the same. When she turned, Esther was right there. Her stomach flipped, and she leaned in as if she was going to kiss her but then pulled back afraid they weren’t quite there. Fear raced through Esther’s gaze, and Melanie knew she’d made the right decision to hold off.

  “Come on.” Melanie put a hand on the small of Esther’s back. “What kind of pizza do you want?”

  “I’ll eat whatever.”

  “Okay. Preston and Becky are taking a week to do some intensive therapy and work through some things, so the girls are here until a few days before Christmas. Avery has been watching them during the day while I’ve been at school.”

  “That’s sweet of her to do.”

  They moved to the couch, sitting down, Melanie right next to Esther, their legs brushing, exactly as it had been during Thanksgiving. She settled her palm on Esther’s thigh. “It is. We’re trying to give them every advantage we can. The girls are missing half a week of preschool, but it’s half a week.”

  “They’ll be fine.”

  “Especially when their teacher of a grandmother makes them do work anyway.”

  Esther snickered lightly. “Devious.”

  “No, it has to do with sanity. Trust me.”

  “Oh, I understand that.” Esther’s lips curled upward. “Which reminds me that I need to find childcare for Anthony for half of the break.”

  “He can’t just go to daycare?”

  Esther frowned. “I didn’t sign up for it since I’ll be home, but Skip didn’t either.”

  Melanie narrowed her gaze as she glanced toward the kitchen then back to Esther, trying to read between the lines of what Esther wasn’t saying. “Are you trying to find daycare for when he has Anthony?”

  Esther’s pained expression was enough.

  Melanie sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “And I don’t suppose he’ll let Anthony come here so Avery can watch him.”

  “No,” Esther murmured. “It has to be a certified day care facility.”

  “Jesus. He’s a piece of work, isn’t he?” Melanie’s stomach clenched hard at Esther’s look of horror. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”

  “No, you shouldn’t have. You’re not his ex. You’re not Anthony’s mother. You don’t get a right to say that.”

  Melanie blew out a breath, once again looking at the kitchen to make sure that Anthony wasn’t nearby or listening in. She dropped her tone, soothing as she drew circles with her thumb on Esther’s knee. “I know, and that was out of line. I’m so sorry. But I see how you get nervous when talking to him, how you tense up when he calls. I can’t stand to see you like that.”

  “He’s not someone to mess with,” Esther murmured, leaning in closer. “And I can’t untangle myself from him.”

  “You can stop giving him power.”

  Esther’s gaze jerked up to Melanie’s eyes, again fear written in every fleck of black in her gray-blue eyes. She shook her head. “No, he’ll take it no matter what I do.”

  “I hate that he does that.”

  “He’s a narcissist, and since I had Anthony, he now has the ultimate way to keep me.”

  “But you did leave, Esther.”

  “I did, as much as I can.” Anthony came running back into the room and jumped into Esther’s lap, giving her a great big hug. “What kind of pizza did you ask for?”

  “Olives.”

  Esther chuckled, and Melanie wrinkled her nose. She was pretty sure the two of them would be the only two eating that pizza unless the rest of them picked the olives off. He didn’t wait long before he slipped from Esther’s lap and joined the girls as they grabbed some toys from the bottom of the shelf and started playing on the floor. Soon enough the volume in the living room was at a pinnacle, and Melanie could barely hear Esther’s soft tones.

  When the pizza arrived, Melanie stood up to get it, leaving Esther on her own with all of the kids. She let them eat in the living room since her kitchen table was going to be a tight fit for everyone and since it was good to have a little fun with their evening.

  After they finished eating, Avery—blessedly—took the kids into one of the bedrooms where Melanie had a second stash of toys to show them where to play and then came back out to hang with the adults. Melanie had her hand on Esther’s leg again, quite enjoying the gentle touches Esther allowed her even though they hadn’t parsed anything out yet.

  Avery sighed heavily. “They are a handful this week.”

  “They’re going through changes and don’t really understand it,” Melanie supplied. Esther pressed her lips together tightly, Melanie and Avery both catching the move. Melanie bumped her lightly with her elbow. “Something to add?”

  “The real changes will come when things start to quiet down a bit, depending on what decisions are made.”

  Avery looked confused, but Melanie understood. They were acting out now but it was more a matter of trying to find even footing. In a few weeks or months when Becky and Preston had settled it was going to be the kids acting out because of the changes themselves, and whether they were for the best or not.

  “You’ve got a point,” Melanie said, sending Avery a look. “It’s not easy when these types of things happen to little kids.”

  “No,” Esther agreed, “but sometimes it is for the better in the long run.”

  “It would not be for the better for Becky and Preston to get divorced.”

  Melanie tensed with surprise at Avery’s outburst. “Ave—”

  “It wouldn’t. I know Preston messed up, but they can work through this. They can figure it out.”

  “Avery,” Melanie said again, firmly this time, to try and catch her daughter's full attention. “That isn’t a decision we get to make. That’s for Becky and Preston, and we have to then deal with the outcome of that.”

  “Well, I plan on telling her what I think about all of it.”

  “Please don’t,” Melanie interrupted. “Becky doesn’t need any more stress. What she needs is our support.”

  “She can’t take him away from them.” Avery’s look turned from Melanie to Esther, angry and hurt in her face.

  Melanie was about to correct her when Esther grabbed her hand and squeezed hard to stop her. Pausing, Melanie looked to Esther and the serenity in her eyes, the compassion at Avery’s own misunderstanding. “There are a lot of reasons couples break up, but for the record, I did not take Anthony away from his father.”

  “If anything, it’s been the opposite,” Melanie added quietly. “Esther has done everything in her power to keep that relationship alive in a healthy way, even to her own detriment. And you, Avery, shouldn’t be so quick to judge someone without knowing who they are or what they’ve been through.”

  Avery sighed, crossing her arms in a pout at having been put in her place. Esther had been gentle with her rebuke, but Melanie didn’t afford Avery the same. She didn’t have to, and someone had to put it bluntly because Avery was someone who always listened better that way.

  “Don’t think I’m not worried about their future, too,” Melanie added. “If we get to see the kids less, it’ll break my heart, but for now, we have this time in the transition to spend with them, and that’s something we should do with everything we have. We won’t love them any less because of decisions outside of their control.”

  “I still don’t like it.”

  Melanie let out a light snort. “No one does.”

  With that thought in her mind, Melanie turned to Esther and touched her lightly on the shoulder.

  “Now you, you don’t have to like it either, but you don’t have to put up with some of it either.”

  Esther’s eyes widened. “I don’t know how to do that.”

  “Then we’ll do that together. All right?”

  “Sure,” Esther answered, but she didn’t sound too convinced. She settled her head on Melanie’s shoulder and closed her eyes. “I’m always so tired this time of year.”

  “Yeah,” Melanie murmured, resisting the urge to drop a kiss into Esther’s hair, especially with Avery sitting right there. “Only a few more days and then it’ll be Christmas break.”

  “A few too many.”

  Avery wrinkled her nose at them. “I’m already on break.”

  “And your break will be spent babysitting. Thank you for that.”

  Groaning, Avery sunk into the chair even more. “Is Jeremy still coming for Christmas?”

  “Yes. Currently the plan is for everyone to be here for Christmas.” Melanie shifted slightly with the weight of Esther’s head on her shoulder, but she enjoyed it, honestly. It had been so long since she’d been this intimately close with someone, but it was nearly perfect. She could stay like that for hours.

  Eventually, Esther moved and sat up. “I suppose I should get Anthony home to do his homework.”

  She winked at Melanie as she said it and then stood up. Melanie followed her as she went to get Anthony from the back room. He actually threw a small fit when she told him it was time to leave, which surprised Melanie. She’d never seen that side of him, but he was a kindergartner, so she supposed it was likely to happen.

  She should invite him for a sleepover while the girls were still there if she had time and energy for it. It would give Esther a break, although she might not want to sleep alone in that house by herself if she could avoid it. At the door, Melanie stayed close to Esther, squeezing her hand as she stepped off the stoop.

  “I’ll see you tomorrow, Esther.”

  “See you, Mel.”

  Melanie’s cheeks warmed at the nickname, something only her close friends called her. She loved hearing the name from Esther’s lips and wished she’d call her that far more often. With a smile on her lips, she stepped inside the house.

  Avery looked her over and snorted loudly. “Oh, you’ve got it bad.”

  “Shut up,” Melanie shot back before disappearing into the kitchen to clean up.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  When the bell rang and Esther let her class out, it was the first time she felt as though she could breathe. The day had been frantic. The holiday party, the cards, the gifts, the chatter. Everyone had been restless, and nothing was going to make the kids focus. She was lucky she had chosen not to give a test that week because none of them would have passed or even been able to focus on it long enough to read the questions.

  She had two more days with Anthony before he went to Skip’s for the week, and she wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of the day with him, but he was on the bus on the way to daycare for a couple of hours while she wrapped up her work day and got ready to leave it behind for the next couple of weeks.

  The sound of the door opening startled her, but Melanie’s bright face was a welcome sight. Esther glanced at the clock, realizing thirty minutes had passed since she sat down. She must have zoned out completely. Straightening her back, Esther nodded at Melanie, indicating she could come in.

  “Are you coming?” Melanie asked, not stepping more than one foot inside the door.

  Esther narrowed her gaze, trying to remember what was going on, but she couldn’t bring it up in her mind.

  “To the staff party and Kelsey’s going-away party.”

  “Oh.” That. Esther had pushed the thought from her mind because she hadn’t really wanted to go. Being shoved into the staff lounge for a quick party with food and people she didn’t feel like she knew—Melanie aside—was not her idea of pleasant. But she was expected to show up, which was probably why Melanie was there.

  “So, are you coming?”

  Esther grimaced and quickly glanced at her desk to try and find an excuse.

  “I can see those excuses running through your mind,” Melanie stepped in closer to Esther and leaned against the desk. The front of her shirt lowered, and Esther found herself absolutely distracted by Melanie’s body. Probably something she’d intentionally done.

  “I have a lot of work—”

  “There’s always work to do.” Melanie’s smooth voice brooked no room for argument. “Let’s go, Esther.”

  She really wanted to whine like Anthony would. She wanted to say the words that every toddler learned. “I don’t wanna.” But Melanie’s soft gaze, the inviting hand that she held out, and the warmth she brought into the room were too much for Esther to resist.

  Sliding her hand into Melanie’s, Esther let Melanie pull her to stand. In a second, she was within inches of Melanie’s lips, and it was so tempting to fall into them. Resisting, Esther stiffened every muscle she had and set her jaw.

  “Esther,” Melanie’s voice dropped, a husky quality to it. “You have to stop looking at me like that.”

  Snapping to attention, Esther stepped away and took a breath of fresh air. Melanie was right, they had to maintain distance while they were in the school, before they figured out what they were doing.

  “Right.” Guilt filled her. She had to pull herself together. Stepping around Melanie, Esther headed for the door, but Melanie grabbed her hand to stop her. “What?”

  “Come out tonight. We’re going down to The Office, just a few of us, a better sort of party. I know it’s a bar, but they have other things there and food.”

  “I have Anthony.”

  “Avery can watch him.”

  Esther gnawed on her lip as she looked Melanie over, eyeing her carefully up and down. Melanie was so open, there was no pressure, it was a simple request. Carissa pushing her to go out and find friends ran through her mind again, and before she knew it, Esther was nodding and saying, “Okay.”

  Melanie’s echoing grin was one of the broadest Esther had ever seen. Her lips curled in response as they continued to look at each other, caught in each other’s gazes. Esther knew they should leave, that they should go to the lounge and join in the party, the festivities, but she couldn’t stop the long intense look that Melanie was giving her.

  “Esther.”

  She was pretty sure Melanie meant her tone to be chastising, yet it was anything but. The huskiness was still there, a sweet whine that said nothing but lust. Melanie stood up and faced her, but she didn’t come any closer, probably for the best. Esther just smiled, unable to wipe the look off her face as they continued to watch each other.

  “Esther,” Melanie whispered.

  “We should go,” Esther responded, her voice equally quiet.

  “Tonight—”

  “Yeah,” Esther agreed, already knowing what Melanie was going to say. “Let’s talk tonight.”

  “Good.” Melanie reached forward and took Esther’s hand, squeezing tightly before letting go. “Come on. Let’s get to this party.”

  Esther drove them to The Office, since Melanie planned on having a drink and Anthony was at her house anyway. Relaxing into the passenger seat of the car, Melanie closed her eyes for a minute and sighed. “I’m worried Becky is only setting herself up to get hurt again.”

  “Like you told Avery, you can’t control what she does.”

  “I know, but I can not like her decisions.”

  Esther’s lips twitched. “That’s true.”

  “I just hate it.”

  “It’s not a fun place to be in—when you discover someone has cheated on you.”

  Something in Esther’s tone clicked in Melanie’s mind, and as if she’d been blinded by it stupidly, she realized Esther had gone through the exact same thing with Skip. Reaching over, she took Esther’s hand in hers, cupping her fingers as she trailed her thumb across her soft skin. “How did you manage?”

  “I walked out and left many times before I actually left.” Esther didn’t look at her, staunchly keeping her gaze out the windshield. “It wasn’t until…well, it wasn’t until much later that I decided I couldn’t take it anymore.”