“That’s ridiculous,” Layne returned.

“It’s being a good parent, Tanner,” she snapped back.

“Do not go there, Gabby,” Layne warned. “I’m a good Dad.”

She nodded and crossed her arms on her chest. “Oh yeah, yeah you are. The best Dad ever. The coolest Dad in the world. News flash, Tanner, you didn’t have one so let me educate you.” she announced bitingly. “Bein’ a good Dad does not mean bein’ a cool Dad it means bein’ a Dad.”

Layne took two steps toward her and as he did it he watched her brace which he figured was a good call on her part, considering he’d lost patience and didn’t hide it.

“I know my boys, I know what they’re capable of and we communicate. They’re both almost men and they gotta learn how to be good ones,” Layne told her, his voice low, rumbling, he was pissed. “You made it clear from the beginning, even before we got divorced, that we were both in this parent thing on our own. We never agreed, you never compromised. So, you do it your way, I’ll do it my way but since you made that decision, you don’t get to get in my face and tell me to do it your way. I’ll raise my boys as I see fit.”

“Right, so it’s okay they curse, fuck this and shit that, and it’s okay your fourteen year old son is already dating and he can’t even drive and it’s okay that your seventeen year old son is fucking his way through five different high schools. That’s all okay because,” she stepped back and flung an arm toward Rocky, “that’s the kind of man you are and that’s the kind of man you’re teaching them to be.”

“What’s that mean?” Rocky entered the conversation on a hiss.

Gabby swung to her. “You don’t have children, Saint Rocky, so you won’t get this but it is not okay and does not teach good lessons to have Dad banging the high school literature teacher right under their noses.”

Before Layne could speak, Rocky did.

“You know that’s not right,” she whispered but she was whispering in order not to yell.

“I do?” Gabby flung back.

“You know it’s not right,” Rocky repeated.

“You know what’s not right? Someone like you, who has it all, who’s always had it all, taking more. Taking more and more and more,” Gabby snapped, striding to Rocky and Layne moved with her so he was at Rocky’s back. Gabby didn’t even look at him when she stopped two feet from Roc. “You don’t have enough with your clothes and car and mansion, you need my kids too?”

“You don’t care about your kids, Gabrielle,” Rocky said quietly. “You care about Layne.”

Gabrielle’s torso shot back and she pushed out a puff of air. “Please.”

“You want him, you’ve always wanted him,” Rocky replied.

“Had that,” Gabby stated, her mouth a sneer, not glancing at Layne, “got rid of it.”

Layne rolled his eyes to the ceiling but Rocky laughed and it was laughter without humor so he rolled his eyes back to his woman.

“You are so full of it, Gabrielle, completely full of shit,” Rocky said quietly.

“Trust me, honey, you ever stick around long enough to get his ring on your finger, you’ll throw it back too,” Gabby stated.

Layne went still but Rocky went solid.

That didn’t mean Rocky didn’t speak. She did, to say, “Right, so, to get his ring on my finger, what’s your advice, Gabrielle? Should I quit taking birth control and get him drunk?”

“Bitch,” Gabby hissed on a forward lean.

“Oh wait,” Rocky threw down. “I don’t have to get him drunk for him to want to fuck me.”

Fucking hell.

“Women,” Layne growled.

Both ignored him.

“Go to hell,” Gabby snapped.

“See, full of shit,” Rocky went back to her earlier theme.

“What’s full of shit is you bein’ Tripp’s guide to all things girl and you playin’ matchmaker to get Jas what he wants. Yeah, I know, I hear Tripp on the phone, I saw you with Keira Winters at the game and then, poof,” her hand flicked out, “Jasper’s dating the most popular girl in school. Shit, you’ve crawled so far up their asses, it’s a wonder they can walk!” She ended on a shout.

“Tone it down, Gabby,” Layne warned but Rocky spoke over him.

“Um… let me educate you, Gabrielle,” she said. “I’m a teacher, I see it year after year, Keira’s the most popular girl and Jasper’s the most popular boy. That shit happens, the most popular boy and the most popular girl hooking up. It was going to happen one way or another but, just so you know, I didn’t work Keira, Keira worked Jas.”

“Right, Keira hasn’t been to my house for dinner,” Gabrielle retorted.

“Then ask her,” Rocky shot back.

“This is goin’ nowhere,” Layne cut in and his eyes locked on Gabby. “And this is not cool. You said your piece and, as usual, we don’t agree. Now we move on.”

“Oh no, no we don’t,” Gabby told him, her eyes still shooting fire and he knew, from experience, by the look on her face, she was about to step way over the line. And she did. “You want to know what isn’t cool? What isn’t cool is you two teamin’ up to take away the only things I got left, my boys. And what’s also not cool is you,” she jabbed a finger at Layne, “lettin’ them do what they damn well want to do whenever they want to do it. I leave here only if we have an agreement and that’s gonna be that she,” she jabbed her finger at Rocky, “doesn’t stay at your house when the boys are there and you,” she jabbed her finger again at Layne, “learn how to suck it up and be a decent father!”

Layne clenched his teeth and started counting to ten even though he knew that didn’t work, he had to try something so he didn’t lay his hands on the mother of his children.

Rocky didn’t count to ten.

She marched to the door, opened it and ordered, “Get out.”

“No way, Saint Rocky, you wanted me in, the drama happens here,” Gabrielle retorted, pointing to the floor at her feet.

“Get out,” Rocky repeated.

“You horned your way in on this discussion, you see it out,” Gabby retorted.

“I didn’t horn my way into anything, Gabrielle, this is my living room!” Rocky’s voice was close to a shout.

“Enough,” Layne clipped and both women’s eyes came to him but his eyes were on Gabrielle. “I’ve put up with your shit for a long time, penance for fuckin’ up with my boys, but that’s done. I’m warnin’ you right now, Gabby, that’s done. You fucked up and I straightened your shit out. I’ll remind you of somethin’ you forgot and it sucks I gotta throw it in your face, I wanted to avoid that but you forced my hand, but woman, you no longer have the high ground. You obviously didn’t pay even a little attention to me the last time we talked so you’ve again made a choice, the wrong one, but it’s your choice.”

He moved into her space, looked down at her and dropped his voice.

“You do not tell me how to raise my boys. You do not tell me when my woman can sleep in my bed. You do not bring drama to my doorstep or her doorstep at six forty-five in the morning or at any time. You get your support payments and we share sons. You exist for me only as their mother and that’s it. The bridge has been smoldering a long time, woman, but you just burned it to the ground. We… are… done.”

“That’s not going to work,” she shot back, leaning in and getting up on her toes to get in his face. “I know you hate it Tanner, but I’m their mother and you don’t have a choice but to deal with me.”

“Jas is in college next year, Tripp’s three years behind him. They’re nearly gone, Gabby, it’s gonna work because I’m gonna make it work.”

“Then we’ll see what the court has to say about you fucking Saint Rocky with the boys in the house,” she returned.

“Yeah, they’ll probably not like that, you know, a single man havin’ a girlfriend. They probably never heard of that. But, a single woman havin’ a live-in boyfriend who’s also an enforcer for a loan shark, they’ll like that, you reckon?”

Her face paled, she’d made a faulty play, she knew it then, she knew he had her but Gabby, being Gabby, didn’t give it to him. She went into stare down. She wasn’t as good at it as Rocky mainly because she did it with her face twisted and bitter instead of full of adorable attitude. It wasn’t nice to look at and it wasn’t fun at all.

Layne stepped back, ready to move things on but Rocky spoke and she did it softly.

“It’s almost sad,” she said and Gabby’s eyes and body swung to face her, “how much you want him and what lengths you’ll go to for his attention.”

And Rocky sounded sad, she looked it too, her eyes were no longer flashing, they were filled with understanding.

But Layne didn’t process that mainly because his gut squeezed and his eyes moved to Gabby whose face had lost all of its color and she looked like she’d been struck.

Jasper had said it but Layne hadn’t really heard it.

I see the way she looks at you, it’s the way Mom always looks at you when you don’t know she’s lookin’, but it’s more.

Jesus fucking Christ. It was Jarrod Astley, Gabby-style.

“Gabby,” he murmured and her gaze shot to him then over his shoulder.

“Screw you,” she whispered to his shoulder then turned to Rocky. “Screw you too.” She walked to the door, stopped, turned back and swept them both with a glance that didn’t really connect with either one of them. “You have it all, do what you want, you always had it all and did what you wanted. I should have known that would never change.”

“You think that, Gabby, you haven’t been payin’ attention,” Layne said quietly as he moved to stand behind Rocky.