More Than Protect You by Shayla Black
Author:Shayla Black [Black, Shayla]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: 1001 Dark Nights, Shayla Black, contemporary romance, More Than Words
Publisher: Evil Eye Concepts, Inc
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00
Chapter Seven
After Oliver fell asleep, cuddled up with his plushy toy train, Mandy and I do the dishes in silence. I can tell sheâs thinkingâso hard I can almost feel it.
Sheâs in the middle of drying a frying pan when she abruptly turns to me. âHow long were you married?â
âTen years officially, but Ellie and I have been separated for nearly two. She asked for âspaceâ one night. A few months later, I realized I was more relaxed, moreâ¦myselfânot walking on eggshells, wondering if I was saying the wrong thing all the timeâso I filed for divorce. She didnât fight me.â
âNo children?â
I shake my head. âWe tried. Eventually doctors told us she wouldnât be able to get pregnant.â No reason to get into all the medical stuff, and I doubt Mandy cares about my ex-wifeâs ovaries. âItâs one of the things that changed her perspective on life, I think. After we heard that without something like IVF she wouldnât be able to have kids, she started focusing on ways to improve herself, which I supported. She wanted to go to college. Fine. I was busy with the gun range. She helped when she could. Butâ¦we started living two different lives and grew apart.â
âDid you want children?â
âYeah.â
âDo you still?â
I tucked that hope away years ago, after the doctors gave Ellie and me the bad news and she refused to discuss adoption. But now? âIf the opportunity arises, Iâd like to. The sooner the better. I want to be young enough to enjoy them.â
Mandy nods. âIs Ellie your age?â
âSix years younger.â
âDo you think the age difference was the problem with you two?â
The easy answer is no. When Ellie and I got married, we were both in our twenties and at roughly the same place in life. But Iâm not sure thatâs what Mandy is really asking. âMaybe. I donât know whether the age difference had anything to do with her refusal to try working it out. Maybe it was immaturity. Or maybe it was the realization that her thirties were just starting and she didnât want to spend them tied down to someone she didnât see a future with?â I shrug. âI donât know. But she was always looking for something. Herself, I think. Iâm not sure how much of a role age played in that.â
âThank you. Iâm not trying to be invasive.â She sets the frying pan aside and blinks up at me in the too-bright kitchen. âIâm trying to figure out if weâd be a good fit.â
I suspected as much. âTake your time. When you decide, I want you to be sure.â
âDoes my age bother you?â
âIâve given it thought, but no. Does my age bother you?â
She shakes her head. âI was never attracted to anyone my own age. Even in fifth grade, I had a crush on my teacher.â
âWhen did you first think of Barclay as something other than your dadâs friend?â
âHonestly? I donât think I ever saw him that way.â Mandy hesitates. âItâs funny. My mother was always reluctant
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