“You want me to make this easy on you and disappear?”

She narrowed her eyes and glared at me.

Before we had a chance to say another word to each other, Hailey marched out of the bedroom with Heath at her side. One look at their faces and I suppressed a cringe. They were furious. Mona, sensing the tension in the air, quickly went to Heath’s side. He wrapped one arm around her neck but didn’t bat an eyelash.

“Why didn’t you have us call Grandma yesterday? She’s sad. We miss her and Grandpa. We miss our daddy.” Hailey threw back her head and wailed. Tears streamed down her face. Accusation and the agony of loss dulled her blue eyes. Her sobs were heartbreaking, and I was at a total loss, but I had to do something.

“Hailey, honey, your mommy didn’t mean—”

“You’re not my daddy,” she screamed at me, and her words punched me harder than a puck to the gut.

She stomped down the hallway to her bedroom. Heath glared angrily at both of us before racing after her, Mona loping behind him. A few seconds later, the door slammed.

Caro turned on me. “I told you to leave. Please go, and let me take care of this mess.”

I was completely out of my comfort zone. I didn’t know what to do, so I did what she asked. I paused with my hand on the door. “I leave tomorrow for a road trip.”

“Fine. Contact me when you return.”

I’d been given the boot out the door and told quite clearly not to come back in the near future. With my tail tucked between my legs, I slinked out the door and back to my own condo.

I was shaking by the time I entered the condo. Steele was home, and he glanced up as I entered. “You look like hell. That’s not what I expected after you spent the night at Caro’s.”

“We had a fight this morning.” The most incredible night of my life had been ruined by one of the most upsetting mornings I’d ever had.

“What kind of fight?”

“Over the kids. She wants me to back off.”

“You are getting pretty tight with them.”

“They’re my fucking kids,” I almost shouted, and Steele’s brows shot upward as he studied me.

“You don’t have to rush this. You’re pushing too hard. Back off. They’re all dealing with a tragic death. Give them time.”

“Spoken like someone who knows.”

“Yeah, I know. It hurts. You lost your own dad. How would you feel if a new guy tried to take his place within a few months of his death?”

“Pissed.”

“Yeah, well, cut them some slack and give them some space. You’ve been hovering ever since they moved in. This road trip will be good for you.”

He was right. I’d give them space. I didn’t have much of a choice considering we’d be gone on a road trip for a few days, returning on New Year’s Eve. I’d been so looking forward to the new year. Now things weren’t looking quite as bright.