Just One Kiss Before Divorcing Me (Martin and Calvin) novel Chapter 130

She spent the afternoon walking and talking with Calvin’s sisters and his mother. They’d taken it upon themselves to stop all interactions between him and her. She thought it was quite amusing, she’d not asked them too at all, and seeing him try and play soccer with the twins and Bligh and Brighton, along with Malcom, as they came down the hill, she shook her head.

She knew he didn’t play sports, worked out yes, but that was a different matter altogether. He did that on his own or with Wil. He wasn’t involved in any kind of team sport that she knew of. “Does he play sport?” she’d asked his family as she watched him and snorted with amusement as his own niece out maneuvered him. “Nope.” His sister Cheryl snorted, “watching him is like watching a giraffe try and walk for the first time.” “Tall and gangli, with no co–ordination whatsoever. Even now, he still can’t get the hang of it,” Veronica laughed. “He hated dad making us play sport as kids.”

“Did that often?” she asked.

“Yep, every holiday he would make Calvin go outside and try to kick a ball around or play football with us. There was a lot of whining.” Kay laughed. “My boy is more of a computer man than a sports man. I couldn’t even tell you if he has a football team or baseball team to cheer on,” she shook her head. “I don’t think so.” “Yeah, got him a lot of teasing and tormenting growing up here in Texas and not being into football, baseball or even basketball. He was an odd ball to this state,” Veronica told her.

She sat down after the walk and when Calvin asked her some questions about the boys, after they’d told her he couldn’t even kick a ball. She told him they were in a track and field group, where they ran races. Those two boys of hers liked being on the go and things like running a 50 or 100–meter race. They loved doing that. Both of them also enjoyed the long jump and were this year going to try for the high jump, though that had only come about after seeing how tall Calvin was, and they thought they too would be tall, so they would be good at it. They needed to learn it now so they could be good at it when they were older.

She didn’t mind talking about the boys, and answering questions about them was easy, something she could just be herself with as well: No pretending there, she’d gotten a few cúrious looks from Kay over the course of the afternoon, but that was all. A look that followed something she’d said or done and realised it was something she would have said or done when she was Marrin.

She just smiled at her and let it go, moved on as though it was nothing, and even as the barbecue was being lit up, the boys were on her about getting into the spa. She’d sighed, “It’s winter boys.”

“But it’ll be warm, once it’s turned on,” they’d stated. “Please…” they half begged her.

She’d sighed at them and turned to look at Calvin. He was watching her with them and had a half smile on his face. “I see you’re suckered by their pouting faces.”

“Hmm at times.” she nodded, though it was mostly when they had that expression of begging and their eyes were wider than normal. Two sets of big green eyes looking up at her were hard to ignore sometimes, especially when they were all green and not hazel. “Would you mind?” she asked.

“Not at all?” he stated. “Would you like me to show you where the power switch is, so you can turn it on

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CH 130

yourself later on.”

“No, Just show the boys.” She shook her head. She knew where it was, just didn’t need him to know that sho also knew she’d liked to come out here on those crystal clear nights during summer, with all the lights off and just laze about in the spa or the pool depending on how hot the nights were, and just stare up at the stars. Watching a full moon rise over the cliff from the pool or spa. That was something she’d loved, especially when it was a supermoon. Amazing to look at.

She made the boys wait until after they’d had dinner and then a further 20 minutes before they were allowed to get in, but they were running around in their swim shorts and had a towel wrapped around them itching to get in, and did the minute they were allowed.

“They can swim, right?” Calvin asked her.

“Yes, I had a full year of hydrotherapy and that was followed up with another year of physiotherapy with intermittent hydrotherapy after my accident, and the boys had proper lessons from 1–year–old, because we were already at a heated pool, twice a week anyway.” She stated.

“Two years of physio.” Calvin sighed as he looked at her. She could see what passed for something akin to guilt crossing his face. He was probably thinking if they’d not gotten divorced it wouldn’t have happened. But no one knew what fate had installed for anyone. She could well have been in an accident here on that same day, instead of there, was all.

“It is what it is,” she shrugged. “Though I don’t really talk about it with anyone bar my doctors, there is no need it’s my personal story, and it’ll stay that way.”

He nodded and said nothing more on the subject, but she got the feeling he wanted to know. It wasn’t something she was going to tell him about either. She’d woken up in pain and stayed that way for a long time, her entire body had hurt, and she’d had drains and tubes coming out everywhere. It wasn’t pretty.

She was seated on a lounger near the spa and the boys kept telling everyone to get in. She just shook her head, didn’t need everyone to see her myriad of scars, though likely they would come summer when the weather was warmer, and she wanted to swim herself, but it wasn’t at all necessary right this minute. She let them play in there for an hour before telling them to get out and go shower, and change, and bid everyone a goodnight not long after that, the boys had pouted up at her and stated they didn’t want to go to bed yet. She’d stated, “Santa can’t come until you’re in bed and asleep.” She told them to go and say goodnight to everyone, and they had run over and hugged their grandma, and she’d squeezed them and told them she’d see them in the morning. They’d gotten hugs from their grandpa and aunts and their hair ruffled by their uncles and even their cousin Brighton.

“Can dad read us a story?” Vincent had asked her as Calvin himself had waved his family off to go inside, and they’d all actually gotten up and gone.

She’d looked at him and nodded. “I don’t see why not.” She’d stated, “But, just one, no convincing him of another and another to delay bedtime. He’ll be in that house right there in the morning. I don’t think he’s going to run away and disappear

“I’m not, got me an alarm to get up before they do, even.”

“Good luck with that, Christmas day is a whole other matter,” she’d stated, and went inside. The boys had run off to their bedroom, and she saw Calvin trail them as she made herself a cup of tea.

She’d not written a single word today and eat herself down on the couch to do so it was only 9pm and in. Christmas presents they had wanted to go under the Christmas tree, so she had done that. She only had to take up to the house, the one present that Santa would give them.

She’d decided on with the travel they’d done to get them a Nintendo Switch Lite, so they didn’t have to box up unbox and set up their actual Nintendo when they were travelling long distances in the car. They would be very happy with that, and she’d seen them look at them many times in the gaming store window when they were out to buy a new game for their Nintendo.

She was still sitting when Calvin came out about an hour later and dropped into the chair across from her. She raised an eyebrow at him as if to say what. “We didn’t get to spend much time together,” he stated. “That’s not why I’m here. You shouldn’t look at my being here as anything to do with you and I, but for you and the boys only. They are your family,” her eyes moved to the house behind him “Are your families as well. That is all this is.”

He was frowning at her deeply now, and she stared at him. “I don’t have family, Mr Reeves, so this here and now, my letting them be here with you and your family. That doesn’t interrupt my life, I only have them. But I won’t deny the twins getting to know you or them.”

“I’m certain you want a lot of things, but one can’t always have what they want, now can they?” she asked. “No, I suppose not. I think though, things might be a bit different when you get your memories back,” he

“Alright, I’ll get up early myself.” he nodded and stood up. “Are you going to work all night?”

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