Spark Into a Flame

Lin

When Clarita and I divorced I made a vow that my daughter would always come first. Relationships with other women would come second. However, that didn't extend to my daughter being outright rude. Pippa was my fiance and was practically Joey's stepmother. I got that Joey was frustrated, but I certainly wasn't going to tolerate her back talking.

After we'd all had a few minutes to cool down, I knocked on Joey's bedroom door.

"What?" she asked sharply. I pushed her door open and closed it behind me, raising my eyebrows at her.

"What was that about?" I asked her, crossing my arms.

"You and Pippa said you supported me and Elliott's relationship. That you would let us see each other as long as I didn't sleep over," she began, sitting up on her bed. "Now all of a sudden Pippa thinks she needs to tell me what I can and cannot do with Elliott?"

"First of all, I asked her to talk to you," I said, my voice firm. "As soon as I found out what happened at the doctor I did some research. We cannot chance you rupturing a cyst if that's what it is."

"You're all overreacting!" she accused, standing up. "I'm not going to die from having sex."

"It needs to stop until we find out what it is," I told her. "If you can't agree to that then I won't allow you to go visit him at all."

"That's bullshit!" she yelled.

"Language!" I admonished her. "Second of all, you will not talk to Pippa that way. She's my fiance and deserves some respect. You've seen how challenging Alex has been lately. She doesn't need attitude from you too."

"Fine," she growled unconvincingly, plopping back down on her bed. I just studied her for a moment. Where was my responsible kid?

"You need to apologize to Pippa," I told her. "And you're staying home tonight."

"What?!" she gaped as I walked to the door. "Elliott's expecting me!"

"And I expect you to treat adults with respect," I quipped, opening the door. "Come out when you can be polite."

I closed her door to the sound of her groaning loudly and throwing something at the door. I rolled my eyes and walked back to my bedroom. Pippa was curled up on her side and had a tissue in her hand. I sat on the edge, then leaned down to kiss her temple.

"Don't let it bother you," I told her softly. "She was rude to me too."

"It just hurts," she said, "Especially after the morning I had with Alex."

"You're a great mom," I reminded her. "This is just a rough time. We both want what's best for them and they're not always going to like it."

She nodded and dabbed at her eyes. I kissed her again. "Why don't you stay in here a while and I'll handle the kids. You just relax. Take a bath maybe."

I left my fiance in our room to relax and wandered back to the living room where the kids were still watching TV happily. We limited their screen time, but sometimes it was nice just to let them zone out so we could just breathe for a while. They were being good so I grabbed a soda and my laptop and started catching up on e-mails.

I had a good half hour of peace and quiet. When the show ended, Jack wandered over to me, laying his head on my lap. "Hey, bud," I said, rubbing his back. He began to climb into my lap and I helped him settle in. "How about we go to the park in a few minutes?"

"Yeah," he said, chewing on his hand. I kissed the top of his head as my fingers flew over the keyboard. After I'd finished I closed the laptop lid and sent Jack to find his shoes. Alex followed suit, happy to go back outside. I poked my head in on Pippa and told her what we were doing. I also told her Joey should be apologizing and that she was grounded for the day.