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"No, since it’s allmoment "You want to expand on any of that?"

"You’ve seen my life, Grace It’s…busy" His mouth quirked when she snorted at this newsflash "My schedule’s insane, and I have to be soed"

"Which is what reat doctor"

"And only a so-so dad," he said, and Christ how he hated that adue the crappy brother part, but she’s pretty nificant other?" she asked

"I don’t have one, but if I did, yeah, I’d be crappy at that too"

So crossed her face Disappointment? That couldn’t be She’d been the first one to say that they weren’t going there

"Toby’s got a project at school," she said carefully

Josh felt a fishing expedition co

"A fa expedition

"He said he couldn’t fill in the mom because he didn’t have any pictures"

"Toby has a picture of his mom," Josh said "It’s just an older one" He paused "We split when he was a few months old He doesn’t remember her"

"You have full custody"

"Yes"

She waited, clearly hoping for more But he didn’t have more, and he was too tired to even try

"He hasn’t seen his mom since he was a few months old?" she asked

"She isn’t froh" She softened, clearly feeling sorry for him

He hated that, both for Toby and himself They’d done just fine on their own Well, ht between his eyes

"You’re tired," she said softly "Try to get some sleep" And then she patted him on the arm like he was a pathetic loser

He stared down at her, torn between showing her just how not tired he was and wanting her to leave before he did exactly that

She patted hiers on hers, sighed, then dropped her forehead to his chest "Do you have to sood?" she asked, voice muffled "Like, always?"

"I--"

"No, don’t answer that" She lifted her head and kissed him on the cheek Her breath ar, and daraved invite, he turned his head and look at that, his ht up with hers

Oh yeah This hat he’d needed All daue teased the corner of her lip When she opened for hiainst hi it She rewarded hiht there with him, and he felt a whole hell of a lot better

Finally, Grace stepped back, s at herself, and hiot into her car

Josh watched her drive away, turning only when he heard Anna’s wheels hit the porch behind hi?" he asked her

A truck pulled up to the curb and honked, answering his question

"He should come to the door for you," Josh said

"God, you’re old," she said "And he has a name"

They all had names Josh had discovered it was easier to just think of each of the, since Anna was co Anna by the back of her chair "First, tell irlfriendon you"

Josh knew better than to let her engage hiirlfriend" comment slide "You were on your best behavior, then"

Anna smiled

Hmmm…

"Like I said, she stuck it out," Anna said

"Maybe to your best to make me look like an ass," he said

"Maybe toain

Josh slid Anna a look and she shrugged "He’d come in, but you scare hiot authority issues Anyway, he did some research and came up with a European itinerary I e-mailed it to you"

"What about school?"

"School’s du school"

"You don’t understand"

The family therapist had told Josh not to pretend to understand That he was never going to knohat it was like to be a hore, not to s

What he did understand was that, as usual, he was the bad guy

Anna pushed off toward the truck, and when she was gone, Josh went inside "Just you and me," he said to Toby "Ready for bed?"

"Arf"

Chapter 10

Einstein was eating chocolate when he came upon the theory of relativity Coincidence? I think not