Rumor Has It

Part 26

This was one of the most unsettling transfers they had done in a while. Bradley had barely heard from Irina before and when she did reply to his messages, it was almost hostile. He was under the assumption that she had moved on with her life and with how emotionally taxing the breakup had been on everyone, he didn't mind so much himself. But seeing how it affected Lea had been hard, so he tried his best to see it in a positive light when Irina was taking a new interest in their daughter suddenly. And in both of them.

Bradley anxiously watched the time tick by on his phone while Lea was still finding pieces and toys to pack, all while narrating to herself. It was like having someone mock his own habit, although he was aware she was only imitating how she always watched himself pack her bags.

When Irina arrived, he couldn't help but add more and more comments, always remembering how much his ex-wife had already missed before her sudden new surge in interest.

"She won't eat chicken anymore at the moment." He commented and recalled the reason for that being the day she had discovered the chickens in Stefani's yard and had made that connection.

His ex-wife sighed when he also brought up the new mannerism where she liked to badger him for more screen time at night until it was way past her bedtime. "And remember she turns into her own evil twin if she goes to bed too late."

"I know." Irina said and hooked their daughter's backpack over her shoulder. "You could always come with us. Make sure I know what I'm doing." She glared at him, her eyes cold and sharp until Lea came rushing into the room to join them, another book under her arm. Her expression softened at the huge grin on their daughter's face as she flung herself around her mother's legs and hugged her.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to imply that." Bradley apologized before the discussion could go on. This was such a change from how she had acted before, maybe his rejection had been too harsh.

"You didn't imply anything, it was very direct. Are we done?"

"We are."

He closed the front door behind them and stood in the darkened living room for a while, listening to the car driving off and then there was no sound except for the faint noise of traffic from outside and the occasional chirp from a bird. Something in him had expected to hear small steps running back towards the door.

*

It took everything not to throw himself into planning a trip to a restaurant out in detail, but that was not the point. They had both clarified that much and Stefani confirmed it again when he showed up at her house to pick her up.

Stefani climbed into his car wearing an oversized hoodie and a baseball cap, her hair sticking out from under it. Her bodyguard's face was carrying a worried expression and he nodded at Bradley once before he closed the car door behind her and they were on their own.

"Anywhere in particular you want to go?" he asked.

"No. Just...go."

She always had to be moving. When they had left her driveway, she settled into her seat with a relieved sigh.

"How are you doing?" Bradley asked and she raised both eyebrows at him.

"Fine. This is nice, getting out without any purpose." She replied quietly. "Emily is with my parents and sometimes the house gets too quiet then."

Bradley nodded and rolled his eyes at the traffic forcing them to stop. "As nice as the quiet is to work sometimes, you end up missing them. Is your dad happy to see her too?" She hadn't mentioned her father much, apart from laughing and calling herself a daddy's girl who was still longing to please him with her life choices.