A second chance at true love

Chapter 6 - We've found our rhythm.

.Meredith.

.5 years later.

“Miles!” I call upstairs and wait for his answer. “Yes?”

“Your father is on his way!”

I hear Miles come into the hallway and his room door closes. “I’ve said a hundred times that the father-son things, I don't need them. It's not fixing anything. I’m not going to college, not for what he wants,” He grumbles as he comes down the stairs.

He sits down at the bottom of the stairs and crosses his arms. “Miles.” I sigh.

“Does he do this with Melissa too?” he asks, annoyed.

“That’s not the point,” I answer him.

I know what he means. Maxwell is much tougher on Miles than he is on the girls.

He wants Miles to get a business degree so that he can join Maxwell’s company and then Maxwell can train him to be his successor. But Miles wants very different things.

Miles wants to be a professional football player and he’s well on his way to getting there.

He’s the starting Quarterback of high school right now, and they’ve been at the top for three years. The season runs throughout the school year, in the summer and other holidays, Miles is now enrolling for the second year to compete here at Cliffs’ NFL club. They hold summer camps for young talents and if you pass the selection you can participate. He succeeded last year and he has now registered again this year. Only this year it's much more exciting.

After the summer, Miles is going to college at an accelerated pace, he’s passed all the entrance exams, and he’s going to college as the Golden Stars have suggested here in Cliffs, after this summer.

“How long will he stay?” he asks me. I shrug.

“This isn’t his weekend, so I think he’ll leave after your dinner,” I answer.

The separation between me and Maxwell was hard. Hard against hard.

When he got the letter from my father’s law firm, Maxwell also started looking for a good divorce lawyer. In the end, my father gave the case to one of his associates because he was afraid that his involvement could be questioned. We fought to the last penny. Everything worked out in detail. It took two years before everything was completed and I was finally separated from him. He didn’t want anything and he wanted to stop everything I did.

The first thing I did when I gave him the divorce papers was move to Cliffs.

He wanted to stop us, I had to stay in Texas, preferably Dallas, but after a long fight, Cliffs was fine. And when the divorce was finally finalized after two years, I sold the house in Dallas.

Cliffs is no longer the small town it was when I left, but has also grown into a good city, but much smaller than Dallas.

Maxwell still owns the Dallas apartment, but he’s also bought a house in Cliffs. He wanted to keep seeing the kids and driving back and forth to Dallas was too far for him. It’s a good two-hour drive. Once every two weeks, the children stay with Maxwell here in the house in Cliffs from Friday to Sunday evening.

For the rest, there is mainly contact by phone. But I notice with the children that when there is something, they rarely say that they want to call their father, and when I suggest calling Maxwell and telling him, more and more children respond with 'You can tell him, mom’.

The past five years have been adapting and have been difficult for all of us, the children had to get used to the new school, the new environment, and the new arrangement with their father.

A father who, when he was at home, tried to be at home for his children, but also, especially in recent years, was at home less and less often and found his children ‘too loud’. He was particularly strict with Miles. The girls always got less attention from him.

I was born and raised here, so for me, it quickly felt like coming home. My parents and my brother live nearby and every day one of them walks in to ask how things are going. Not only with me but also with the children.

Now, five years later, the children have resumed their lives. Everyone has made new friends, found new sports and other activities, and we’re busier than ever.

I work when the kids are at school, sometimes in the office of Steel, Fox & DeKeyser, sometimes at home. But most importantly, we’ve all found happiness again.

“MOM!!” Melissa shouts from above.

“If you want to talk, you come down,” I answer her.

Miles has his phone in his hands and puts his cap on backward.

“You know your dad likes that.” I point to the cap. He shrugged.

“He’s not here, is he?” replies Miles and I shake my head.

“Sorry, Mom,” He sighs.

“It’s okay sweetie, but your father is coming here to spend time with you, as you agreed together. Then you have to do your best too.”

Miles sighs. He knows I’m right. He takes off his cap and runs back upstairs, hopefully, to do his hair and put on other clothes.

Melissa comes downstairs. “Can we take Sofia this week when we go to look for dresses, she tried it with her dad, but..” Melissa doesn’t have to finish her sentence. Sofia has already told me that it is difficult with her father and girls things.

“Fine,” I answer. “When can she?”

I look at the calendar on the wall in the kitchen.

“We can’t this Saturday, but the week after that, Madison is swimming, Megan is playing tennis, Marley is playing football. We just have to take Mallory with us.” I tell her.

Melissa nods. “Mallory is fine.”

Mallory is two years younger than Melissa, but the two girls barely argue with each other. Only about bathroom times. It helps that both girls have almost the same interests.

“Do we pick her up or is she coming here?” I ask.

Melissa’s fingers fly over her phone. “She asks her father to drop her off here when he takes her brother to soccer.”

I nod and write on the calendar so everyone can see who’s where and what is happening.

“Do you think we can do it in two hours? Otherwise, I’ll ask Grandpa and Grandma or Uncle Brian to pick up your sisters.”

Melissa bites her lip. “Sofia and I wanted to look for new bras afterward,” she tells me.

“We’ve been two weeks ago,” I answer her in surprise. My mother’s instinct says something else is going on.

“Yes, I know, but I haven’t been with Sofia.” She says.

“Melissa,” I warn. She knows better than to withhold information.

“Sofia is ashamed of it.” She sighs.

I put the pen away and sit down on the couch with Melissa. Something I’ve always done with my kids is talk. I’d rather have them tell me what they want to do and that we can talk about the dangers of it than get a call that I have to pick them up somewhere because they’ve done something they can’t. Much to Miles’ chagrin, my girls are open to talking about anything, very open. About everything. And Miles hates it. It can’t be easy for him in a house with six women.

The doorbell rings. I sigh and stand up.

“This conversation isn’t over yet.” I point to Melissa.

I walk to the front door and call Miles as I stand at the bottom of the stairs.

I open the front door and see my ex-husband in his suit and the expensive rental car.

“Maxwell.” I nod.

He steps inside and kisses me on the cheek. His hand rests on my hip.

“You look good Mer.” He replies.

I nod kindly to him. But I don't say anything else.

I lost enough weight, I didn’t fit clothes anymore, I barely slept, I barely ate, but now I’m feeling good again. I have gained some weight, not everything yet, but that will come again when the peace in my life ever returns, with six children, whose most difficult years are yet to come, I do not expect that peace to come soon.

Miles comes down the stairs and he has put on his best clothes and done his hair.

“Hey, Dad.” He hugs his father.

The two are almost the same size, and Maxwell hugs him as well. As much as Miles resists, I know deep down that this is good for him and that he misses his father.

“You seem bigger every time I come here boy.” Maxwell looks at him and squeezes Miles’ arms. “And I see more muscles.” He nods proudly to his son.

“I signed up for the summer course again this year.” He tells his father.

Maxwell glances at me briefly and when I give him my ‘support this’ look, he turns to Miles.

“How good my son that you are already working on your summer program. But-”

And here we go again. I’m looking at the ground because I already know what’s coming.

“Have you thought about college? You know I’d love for you to come and work for me. I can also pay you for the work you do in the summer. It’s going to give you priority when you come to work for me over the summer and extra points for a good college. The experience that -”

Miles sighs and walks out. “Let’s go out to dinner and forget about this topic.” He grumbles.

Maxwell turns to me and I shrug. What else should I say about it?

“Sorry?” I try.

Maxwell sighs and steps over to me. “You look really good Mer.” He kisses my cheek and walks behind Miles.

“F*ck this.”

“Miles!” I reprimand him.

Miles walks back in. “Sorry Mom, I’ll behave.” He takes me in a hug and then walks out again.

“Don’t swear Miles!” I call after him.

He responds by waving his hand at me but gets into the car without looking back at his father.

“Okay Melissa, back to that whole you and Sofia thing, why are you blushing? Did something happen?” I ask her.

“No, no, it’s not. But I think it’s so bad for Sofia, she doesn’t have anyone to discuss her bra with,” She begins.

I plopped down on the couch next to my daughter and she starts talking.