On Monday morning, Leo sat down in Lilli's office with a loud sigh.

Zach followed him. "Hey, you used to come talk to me in the morning." The younger man's eyes narrowed. "What did Riley do?"

Leo shook his head. The trouble his daughter stirred up used to be his only day-to-day problem. Surprisingly, he had never received any medical bills from the soap incident. He suspected the agency was glad he hadn't called them again and probably blocked his number.

Lilli said, "What are you worried about?"

"What aren't I?" Lilli smiled. Leo frowned. "What kind of friend are you?"

She bit her lip. "Sorry. What can I help with?"

Not getting rid of Reagan. She kept texting all weekend. "Easter."

"Easter? We're going to the Sumners for Easter."

Zach smiled. "Uncle Kurt will be there."

Leo shook his head and smirked. Zach's uncle was the Dwyer in Dwyer-Mitchell Literary Agency. "No. Shopping for Easter."

"That's something I can do. Sunday?"

Leo shook his head. "Not Sunday. I want you to take Isla and she won't go on Sunday. I've never met anyone so religious."

"Oh, oh oh! How was her date?" Lilli bounced in her seat.

He frowned. "I don't know. She wore her uniform."

Leo had referred to her sweaters and skirts as her uniform. At least they were always clean.

Zach said, "She probably can't afford to shop, but it's spring. She'll be too warm in a sweater soon."

Leo never thought about the summer weather. Everything would be too warm, including her heavy skirts. He wondered what different clothing would reveal. Although he had decided she wore those clothes to stay hidden. That was why her date surprised him. When she returned, he couldn't tell how it went. She wasn't beaming like Lilli, a woman in love. He even studied her lips to see if they looked kissed. That had been a mistake, because he hadn't noticed how perfectly plump they were. Not Botox plump like Reagan's probably were.

Lilli said, "I'll take them shopping on Saturday. How is your sex date?"

Zach groaned. "Lillian."

Leo looked from one to the other. "Do you two talk about me?"

Zach said no, at the same time Lilli said, "Of course. We're. I mean, I'm concerned about you. For a guy who ended a how many year drought?"

He frowned. "Three." How had three years gone by? So much had changed, but not what he hoped for.

"Right. You should be smiling, but you aren't."

He groaned, which was all he did. "Because I don't even like her. Shouldn't there be some feelings involved? Honestly, the best part about it is that any conversation ends with..."

"The clothes?"

"The bedroom?"

Zach laughed. "Lilli, you know the bedroom is optional."

Leo put up his hand. "Stop. I don't need reminders." He pointed from one to the other.

Lilli probably talked the whole time. Autumn liked to talk in a teasing, sexy way. He remembered the last time they were together before she left that Saturday. Maybe if he was a worse husband, things would have been different. Instead, he let her go and waved with a smile on his face.

Zach said, "Now you've upset him."

Leo forced a smile. "I'm okay. So shopping for church clothes."

Lilli nodded. "There's a consignment shop I like near the plaza. Maybe Isla can afford something." The plaza wasn't a fancy hotel, but a shopping mall, the South Shore Plaza.

"She should have a fair amount. I pay her enough each week."

Leo felt better having a plan. His objective for the week was to get someone in Hollywood interested in a blockbuster adventure series. He focused on the big studios, because it wouldn't be a simple production, but neither was Harry Potter. The need for Computer-generated imagery might not interest the smaller studios, although it couldn't be an action movie without CGI. Percy worked for a smaller studio, but Leo wasn't ready to ask a favor of his ex brother-in-law.

After stepping off the train Monday evening, Leo sluggishly lumbered to the car. As he slipped into the driver's seat, he looked at Isla before greeting his kids. Her jaw was set, and he wondered what went wrong.

Riley whined. "Dad, I have a project and the dumb printer won't work. I need color pictures and now I'm gonna fail."

He sighed. "You won't."

"Well, she was no help." Riley complained.

"Excuse me." Leo said, sternly. "I didn't hire Isla to be tech help. She does enough for us."

Riley cried, "Well, I don't like what she made for dinner."

The honeymoon was over. Both kids had been trying new foods without complaint. Leo looked at Isla, but she stared straight ahead. Once home, the kids scurried out of the car.

Leo muttered as he climbed out of the car. "Sorry."

Isla frowned. "It's not you. She's been upset since I picked her up."

"But she shouldn't take it out on you. I'll talk to her." He wearily flung his bag over his shoulder and entered the house.

After changing his clothes, he found Riley in her room. Rapping on her doorjamb, he stepped inside. She looked at him with glistening irises but didn't lash out. Her sadness rested on his heart as he sat on her bed and rubbed her back.

"Why are you so sad, sweetie?"

"The printer."

"You sure something didn't happen at school?" He watched a tear leak out of the corner of her eye. "You can tell me anything."

"Why?" She sobbed.

"Why what?" He braced himself.

"Why can't my mother be here?"

He shut his eyes, feeling the moisture building up. "Riley, you know she can't be here. I know it's hard, but some things are impossible."

"But it's not fair!"

"No, it isn't, but you, me, and Cody do pretty well. Lilli wants to take you shopping on Saturday." He mustered up enthusiasm.

"Just me?" She looked at him with her mother's eyes.

"No, she thought Isla and Cody could come."

"Figures. Did you know she has a boyfriend?"

"Who Isla? I know she went on a date. Did she tell you?"

"No, we walked home from school and one of those women from church asked her about boyfriend. Will she leave us?"

"I don't think so. If you keep your attitude, she may want to. She deserves your kindness. You need to apologize to Isla. Give me a hug." She wrapped her arms around his middle. "I love you."

"I know, Daddy."

"Let's see if I can get the printer working." It was a lot easier to fix than her little girl's motherless heart.

He left her to recover. She usually bounced back quickly. The computer Riley used was in the corner of the dining area along with the printer, which could be temperamental. He clicked on the printer queue and deleted the jobs so he wouldn't use an entire cartridge of ink on the same picture. The window gave him two messages, offline and low on color ink. The last thing he wanted was to shop for ink. At least he didn't have to drag two kids with him.

After a few frustrating minutes, he reconnected the printer to the Wi-Fi. At the computer, he sent a test page to the printer. The churning of the ink jet as it printed the page called the others out of the kitchen.

Cody said, "I told her Daddy would fix it."

Leo chuckled. "It's temperamental. Isla, sorry you were in the crosshairs."

She nodded. "Is she alright?"

"I think so. She mentioned your date."

"Oh. What about yours?"

He shook his head. "Mine was a mistake. There won't be anymore."

She looked at him for a moment and turned away. He raked his hand through his hair. Mondays were too complicated. By the time he went to buy ink, it was pouring a cold spring rain. He wished he was in bed reading. Instead, he jumped over puddles in the parking lot, all for overpriced ink.

At home, he dried off and changed one more time into flannel pants before loading the ink cartridge. "Okay, Riley, get to work. We both need some sleep tonight."

He went into the kitchen, surprised to see Isla still there. "The water is hot if you want to warm up with a drink."

He nodded and took out a tea bag. He stared at it and remembered before when he and Autumn drank tea together. She didn't like coffee, but loved her tea. He wished life had a do-over button. He would have made her stay home. Regrets wouldn't raise his children, so he made his tea and pushed them away.

When he looked up, Isla was looking at him. He held up his mug. "Thanks for the water." She nodded. "Lilli volunteered to take the kids to buy Easter outfits. She thought you would like to join them."

"Shopping?"

He nodded. "Lilli even mentioned a store you might like."

She nodded. Her face was so hard to read. He hoped he hadn't offended her. She cleared her throat. "I need some new things."

He smiled and nodded. He looked forward to seeing what she would choose.

Thanks for voting 🌟