Kane lowered his gaze, muttering under his breath, “You and Mom have split up like a gazillion times. When I was born, she stormed out because of you.”
He knew he had to be harsh, to lay it on thick, so Leopold could finally see the error of his ways.
Leopold was helpless, “That's because your mother got the wrong idea, okay?”
Kane, dead serious, shot back, “How could she not? You clam up and never spill your guts. No wonder she gets the wrong idea.”
Leopold's big issue was that he was about as good at sharing feelings as a brick wall. It was like asking for misunderstandings.
Leopold pinched Kane's cheek gently, “Are you criticizing me? I have my reasons for everything I do. You're too young to get it. Maybe when you're older, you’ll see things my way.”
“I won't learn from your mistakes?” Kane retorted, “Why would I just repeat them?”
In public, he’d stand by Leopold, come hell or high water. But in private, it was time for some real talk.
Leopold choked up, looking for an escape, when Aurelia walked in, a godsend. He couldn't remember Kane ever grilling him like this before, and he was at a loss for words.
He reached out and wrapped an arm around Aurelia’s slim waist, “See, I’m not fighting with your mom. We’re peachy.”
Aurelia rolled her eyes and shrugged off his arm, taking Kane’s hand instead, “Time to head home. You’ve got school tomorrow.”
She led Kane out, not giving Leopold the time of day.
Leopold felt a headache. He had agreed to think things over. Was she still mad?
But Aurelia’s beef wasn’t about which side he took or wanting him whipped. It was that he never even tried to see things from her perspective or cared about her feelings.
In the living room, Arnold arrived to pick up William.
“Daddy!” William leaped off the couch and into his arms.
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