the comeback kid

She resented him for using the name she had grown up with, her father’s chosen name, the name all of her old boyfriends had called her, now. It was supposed to be adoring, It was supposed to make her powerful, anonymous if Serena managed to find that someone else had her claws sunk into her husband. It made her weak. He made her weak. One night alone with him had weakened her resolve. And to think, she had fancied herself an assassin, dreaming of Angelina Jolie wrapping her arms around Jennifer Aniston’s husband on the set of the movie in which they were married, a viper with shining scales, so cruel and still so regal. Hollywood fairytales.

“You’re an idiot,” Chloé said, looking away from him, staring straight ahead into the looming trees. “You’re seriously fucking stupid if you think that you, Rafe Rowan, Rafe fucking Rowan, America’s fucking husband, father of the fucking year, the greatest carpenter since fucking Jesus, are a scumbag in any capacity.” She had told herself, for the new year, as her resolution, that she was giving up swearing, even though she wasn’t particularly egregious, she knew other words, and she had failed completely. She would have failed even if she had tried. Rafe made her swearing worse. Chloé softened, shoulders falling. “I didn’t mean to make you anxious. When I said ‘we need to talk’. You always understand me. Better than anyone else. I thought you would understand. I know that means nothing, but I’m sorry,”

She needed to look at him for her words to mean anything, to meet his eyes the way he met hers when he asked the question, but her gaze remained on his hand, not out of place laying where it did. “What if I don’t want to pretend?” she asked, placing her hand over his, the way she had inadvertently what felt like years ago, while they were working at the site, surrounded by their crew. His was still bigger. “I don’t want to pretend, Rafe.” She paused, so he would hear the irony in her words even if she wasn’t laughing, “What about me? Am I the stereotypical whore who cheats with a married man who’s her boss?”

Every word about his reputation that she said hurt because he knew that he’d be called the exact opposite if this went public. “You don’t understand, Lily. Please try to use some logic,” he explained rather condescendingly. Feeling himself getting frustrated, he took a deep breath. “All I’m saying is... millions of people watched me on television say ‘I do’ and promised Serena to be hers until death do us apart.” 

Her words relaxed him yet he still felt on the edge. He just reacted to her apology with a small nod, unsure on how to communicate his response to that. Rafe was appreciative that she was so receptive of his tendencies. She’d understand his anxious moments and she’d get when he decided he didn’t feel like talking anymore mid-sentence. He felt like she understood him in a way that Serena couldn’t and it just added onto his physical attraction to her. “I don’t want to either. It would suck to pretend I don’t have feelings for you.” The words left his lips so casually, moving onto the next subject with a shake of his head. He had fallen for her and he had fallen hard. “You’re not a whore. If anything, I’m the fucking stereotype. Do you know how many men cheat? Do you know how many black men cheat? I’m going to get railed by the media. I know you’re concerned but I have a career.” He didn’t mean it to come off as aggressively as he did, immediately realizing what was offensive with what he just said.

“I didn’t mean it like that,” he qualified almost immediately after, hand still resting on her thigh. “I don’t want to stop,” he admitted. “That’s the last thing I want. I want to keep seeing you. I want to keep talking to you. I want to keep lying next to you. I want to keep talking about life and our goals and our fears and... I want it all, Lily.” 

“Oh don’t be so negative!” Piper huffed out. So the one date went bad but it didn’t mean everything relating to dating was going to be. The blonde didn’t really thing such things had an age limit but if that was his opinion, she wasn’t going to harp on it. “You don’t even have Snapchat?” She said in disbelief, “I see moms at work using it all the time!” Though, the more she thought about it the more it made sense – he didn’t really seem like the type for Snapchat. Piper had to admit that when he mentioned priorities and his kid that she softened up. “You’re right, you’re right.” She said with a sigh, “I just don’t want you to be lonely, Rafe. You’re my friend.”

Piper then shook her head as he mentioned her relationship, “Oh – no, no I’m … I’m not in a relationship. I didn’t mean it like that.” She said softly, reaching up to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. Piper didn’t know what was going on in her love life but she knew that much at least. As he went on about the bookcase, the blonde laughed softly – so many questions about a simple thing. “Rafe, I don’t think anybody knows that but you.” She remarked about his comment on dimensions. “A floor to ceiling one sounds nice though, I’ve got stuff I still haven’t unpacked from home.” Piper commented. “I can name, like, three different kinds and that’s it so … I don’t know.” She mused with a laugh and a shrug of her shoulders, “Whatever’s easier for you to work with, I suppose – I’m not picky.”

“I’m not lonely,” he said, unsure if it was a lie or not. He was lonely but he wasn’t feeling lonely. Outside of work, he only really spoke to his parents, his son and nanny over the past few weeks. “There’s no way you can be lonely when you’re a parent. They bug you constantly,” he joked, letting out a small chuckle.

“You’re not? For somebody who is so intent on getting me set up I thought you’d at least be in a relationship.” He was perplexed by her need to be a matchmaker now. “Listen I’m going to give you one more chance at this because your ambition humors me. If the next person is a good match I’ll buy you dinner or something.” He wasn’t sure how much Disney paid but he figured it was a good enough incentive to get him a girl that didn’t have a vocal fry. “Knowing the dimensions of your place really comes in handy, Piper. You’re going to have to e-mail or fax me them because I can’t make a floor to ceiling bookcase if I don’t know how high the ceiling is.” He nodded at her other specifications, being able to memorize all of it. It was a simple enough task with minimal demands - he’d definitely have it done in under a day. “Honestly, thank you. I needed something to do in my spare time. Whenever I have a minute to myself I feel like I should be doing something productive.” 

Ji Nee appreciated people that agreed not to waste time. Rafe had a reputation for working miracles. It was why she chose to buy the countertops from him. He was a household name Allie would recognize, and she would have little reason to expect any foul play. As pushed a binder towards her, Ji Nee leaned forward to get a better look. She smiled up at him and shrugged. “How worse is your worst – and yes that’s exactly what I want,” she said with a light grin.

Petty. That was the word Rafe used and he was right. For every time that her family managed to metaphorically twist her arm, Ji Nee struck back. It was always very subtle. At Rafe’s light smile, she looked down at the pictures he flipped past. She was glad he found this situation somewhat amusing. Most people were curious just to gossip. “Do you think kids would be able to mess up granite?” Ji Nee asked after he finished explaining. She could imagine her nephews banging around at the kitchen counters while Allie cooked. The possibility of them chipping the countertops pleased her, which wasn’t necessarily fair to her nephews, but sometimes sacrifices had to be made. “Just the countertops for now. I may be back here if the receiver catches on to my plan in the future,” she said with a shrug. As Rafe pointed at the picture of the end result, Ji Nee nodded. “It’s perfect, and it’s not for a friend. It’s for family. Have you ever been petty through home materials?” she asked. She let the family part slip off her tongue with ease. Not many knew she had siblings, or the state of her family, but every now and again it felt good to let it slip that no, the Park family was quite the opposite of happy.

He just let out a chuckle at that one question. “If there’s anything that parenthood has taught me, it’s that kids can destroy anything if you let them.” He knew both from trade and from experience that kids could tear into anything they got their hands on. “How young?” he asked for clarification as he started to already plan the project. He was scribbling down a list of what he needed to do and which supplier that he needed to call. “From what little I do know about you, I don’t think you’re a woman who plans things that fail. She might never catch on.” 

Shaking his head no at her next question, he let out another brief chuckle. “Ooh, a little family drama? I get it,” he nodded. “I used to have some tension with my in-laws, uh, ex-in-laws?” He wasn’t sure what to refer to them as now. “It was odd but I never thought of petty carpentry as a means of expression. I offered to do the flooring in one of their summer homes once. I should’ve done a shitty job and used the material that was most susceptible to damage.” It was something that he could keep in his back pocket now - being petty through home materials. “Alright but this is definitely something my team and I can get done. Is there any rush to give this gift? I can have it done pretty soon if it’s urgent,” he offered, starting to gather small bits of paperwork. “Also should I bill you or do you just have somebody who does that for you?” He actually wasn’t sure.

    A momentary lapse in judgement led Serena to the one place she swore she’d never step again – Rafe’s workroom. She recalled several happy memories within it – the one time she’d begged him to kiss her endlessly on his work bench, another time when she’d whispered sweet nothings into his ear until he finally dropped all the tools he had been holding, and the last graspable memory of the positive pregnancy test she’d hid in a pile of wood shavings. Her therapist warned her never to go near Rafe unprepared, yet here she was without a hint of direction as to where the situation would go.

    Serena forced one step after another after she’d parked in the small private lot, waving down one of his assistants to not give him a heads up. She credited the successful look she now wore of pity and anguish for the assistant to keep their mouth closed. Once she’d pushed the door open, there was no going back to the conversation she was about to have with Rafe – though, she could always leave now and never turn back. She knew better than to think that was possible.

    “I doubt you were told to expect me,” Serena mused before walking in fully and brushing her fingers against wood shavings and various tools. Her eyes bounced from one tool to the next, fearing the moment she looked up to the man she once would have given the world up for. “Your office?” The question built up in her mouth and created the need to inhale a deep breath. “I prefer to stay out here as I can only assume what you did behind those closed doors.” Her first slash of the conversation dealt from the truth and betrayal she’d been living in the past few months.

    Her heart fluttered at the sight of the current project Rafe worked on, taking notice of the crib and recalled the one he’d made RJ. Finally, her gaze lifted high to trail up the body of her husband. ‘No, ex-husband.’ She reminded herself always getting lost in the once shared life with the man she no longer knew. Her eyes faltered just enough to show her lack of strength to look him dead on and moved onto something else to take hold of her attention. She needed to say more, to prevent the negativity from drowning them both.

    “I shouldn’t have come,” Serena said after a few seconds that lingered too long to take back. “I – I just needed…” What did she need from him that he’d not already proven to not possess? Faithful love? Unlikely. Loyalty? Absolutely not. The world? Oh, how she still saw the world when she looked at him. “I’m not pushing for a custody battle.” 

     Her words sounded softer than she intended, but they prevented the tears which begged to fall down her cheek. “I told my lawyer last week to send word to yours, but she’d gotten behind schedule and…” The endless amount of excuses she would create to avoid admitting she simply wanted to see him. “I thought you would want to know – to prevent you from worrying further.” She shouldn’t had cared whether or not he was worried, but her final words fleshed out her own inability to hide how much she still loved him.

She was as beautiful as ever, which frustrated the carpenter to no end. The man was in awe when he saw his ex-wife cascade across the workshop, unsure if he he was dreaming or not. This was a conversation that he wanted to be prepared for. One that he could rehearse over and over again to ease his anxiety. Just seeing her put him on edge, straightening his back and just watching her drag her ringless fingers across various tools. Although he knew they were divorced, seeing her without her ring just made it set in for him. “I wasn’t.” He avoided making eye contact, looking down at the random level in front of him.

Memories of him and Lily up against his desk flashed to his mind, their lips flushed and bodies craving more. He was always impressed by Serena’s astute intuition. Still, he didn’t respond and just toyed with the level. “You shouldn’t have come,” he repeated in agreement, still unsure of how to string together words to explain how he was feeling. Her next words completely relieved him - she had all the power in the world to take RJ from him. There was his infidelity, his temper, his bad credit from earlier career decisions. Plus, she had access to some of the best lawyers in the country. “T-Thank you,” he responded, his voice starting to tremble. The fear of having his son taken away from him had been setting in these past few days and to have that weight lifted off of his shoulders really helped ease his anxiety.

“I appreciate it. I... I couldn’t imagine not having him, Rena.” Just looking at RJ reminded Rafe a lot of his ex-wife - he had picked up certain features of his mother’s face but he definitely had her mannerisms and attitude. “He’s starting to ask questions about seeing us together,” he admitted. He had no idea how to explain divorce to a two year old. He could barely explain it to himself. 

“Why?” he finally asked after a few pauses, looking at her. “You have all the power in the world to take him from me. I ruined everything. You deserve this... you have the right to.” It didn’t feel fair and it made him angry. As much as he didn’t want it, he felt that he didn’t deserve her generosity. Her compassion. Their separation had only made him miss her more, the reasons that he fell in love with her replaying in his head over and over again. “Do you want a spice rack?” he asked to break the silence, motioning towards the finished product. “It’s cherry wood.”

&. rafe rowan / @theraferowan date: 19 june, 2017. location: empty street near the ray kappe house, pacific palisades.

She wouldn’t call them lost, especially when she had driven them off the narrow road, and the residence’s address could be easily Googled and mapped and they could arrive in time for their viewing. They weren’t lost. This was something she had engineered. A confrontation.

“It’s too quiet here,” Chloé scrunched up her nose inadvertently as she squinted at the sun, raising her hand to shield her eyes, “Like a horror film. We’re going to get chopped into little pieces and tossed into the Pacific, aren’t we?” She had lost her sunglasses, the cheap ones, the only ones she owned, and the city of eternal summer was unbearable without them. “Would you protect me?” The words were dangerous on their own, lethal paired with the tilt of her head and wide, innocent doe eyes. She would be the one to be killed first, unless she did the killing first. 

She had never been able to stand long stretches of silence. She had wallowed in them, ‘girls needed to learn to hold their tongues’, but she remembered all of them, resenting them, and she resented the one that threatened her now, almost managing to settle in between her and the man who was, ostensibly, her boss. Serena Rowan’s husband. RJ’s father. “I know we need to talk,” Chloé said, quietly, and not for the first time, she slipped up. “Fuck, Rafe.”

Regret was the only thing that plagued his mind as he looked out of the window of the passenger seat. This was already odd because he had gotten used to being the one who was driving. It was almost typical for them - idly singing along to whatever was on the radio and exchanging fleeting glances that felt forbidden. They were forbidden. It was why he couldn’t bring himself to look her in the eyes since they had gotten in the car, only offering a small nod and almost inaudible answer to her question. “Uh-huh.” 

He was enjoying the view and the solitude when she had brought up those words. “Those four words are so anxiety inducing,” he analyzed, ignoring the question at first. “Have you ever had somebody text you that and then give no context? It drives me up the wall.” He preferred that it be qualified - those words always had such a connotation. While he knew exactly what she wanted to talk about it, he thought pretending like it didn’t happen would make him feel better. That it would make him feel like a better person. A better husband. A better father. 

“What do we need to talk about, Lily? The fact that I’m a stereotypical scumbag who cheats on his wife with a younger woman that he’s the boss of?” The words left his mouth like daggers, his voice harsh and his eyes still darting out the window. He couldn’t resist the fact that he practically needed her touch, moving his large hand to rest on her thigh. It brought him enough comfort that he turned to meet her eyes. They looked as beautiful as ever. “We can just pretend like it didn’t happen?” he offered, but it was obvious that wasn’t what he wanted.

Clem sat opposite of Rafe, his expression light and happy while his insides twisted into knots, if only he knew; yea, what if he knew? Clement argued with himself barely listening, he knew Rafe was talking, but the words washed over him like white noise until he realized the silence had stretched for too long and he needed to say something, anything at all. “Gigs-” Clemente replied dumbfounded until it all clicked, “Oh, yea. The band is on a short winter hiatus, but we’re gonna play some event in April man- I gotta write some new material, but it’s all coming out more Ed Sheeran than The Who, and I’m not really vibing it.” Running his hand down his face Clem shrugged, “What about you man, how’s the little dude? I’m sure he’s more interesting than my bad attempt at being my dad.”

“The Who?” he responded in bewilderment, eyebrow raised at that. “I know who Ed Sheeran is but you’ve completely lost me on The Who. I was raised on rap and R&B, dude.” He wasn’t that familiar with the genre Clement performed in but he had heard a few songs out of necessity. “I’m sure it’s going to work itself out. When I’m getting stressed about a project’s direction I just try to take my mind off of it for four hours then revisit. I’m not sure if it’s quite the same when it comes to writing music though. I’ve never tried.” He smile at the mention of his son. “RJ’s great. He’s taken onto sprinting in public now which is... troubling. I don’t know why he’s such an explorer but he’s so intent on trying to take off full speed into traffic. Parenthood has definitely made me a changed man.” Dealing with the impulses of a toddler definitely helped Rafe with his patience. “And you’re not a bad attempt at your dad,” he reinforced. 

After shoving her sister during the last visit home, Ji Nee was met with the usual cold wall of silence from her mother. It only made sense to state her apology with an equally thick wall of cold marble. Countertops. The Park family took pride in their home. Allie, though no longer a Park by name, still shared this trait. Which was how she wound up spending her lunch break going to visit an acquaintance of sorts. Rafe Rowan. Serena Belle’s ex-husband, was the second Rowan she met, and as someone who was friendly with Serena but not yet very close, she had no idea how to approach Rafe outside of business. At his greeting, it seemed he shared the sentiment. “It has been awhile hasn’t it?” Ji Nee said with a half smile as they fell into step.

“I’m looking for countertops,” she said while plucking her sunglasses off her face. “I’m not sure if I want to subject you to the person they’re going to, but I have a picture of the kitchen, and I figured you’d know what I should get. It’s a bit of a strange request.” Ji Nee said, she showed him the picture of his sister’s kitchen and shrugged. “Basically, I need something that’s expensive enough to be an apology, but not something that makes it seems like I’m actually sorry,” she said without missing a beat. Ji Nee was only buying these countertops so her mother would pick up the phone next week, not because she felt bad for shoving Allie at dinner.

He could see exactly why she was so powerful and successful - everything Ji Nee Park did had a certain aura to it. “Mhm,” he said in agreement. He was appreciative that the star wanted to skip small talk and get down to business. Reaching through the mess of binders, he pushed the relevant one towards her.

“It is a strange request but I’ve gotten worse.” The way she spoke of the person wasn’t the best so he was assuming she was doing this out of necessity rather than generosity. He squinted at the picture and got a general sense of the home he reached for the binder and flipped over a few pages. “So you want something with a lot of maintenance that’s easily breakable? Petty.” His lips formed the smallest hint of a smile as he started to thumb through the books.  "Granite would definitely be the way to go for the style. Plus, they are probably the most fragile. Not handling granite with care can lead to a lot of scratches, chips, cracks, you get it," he explained, gesturing with his hands as he did so. "We can just use some natural stone and have it done in a day, probably. Does that sound alright? Did you just want the counter tops done or the entire kitchen?" he asked again, starting to write on another notebook. “This sounds like some friend,” he muttered as he pointed at the picture in the binder to give her an idea of what it’d look like. 

The apology surprised her. She wasn’t sure she had ever heard him say it – even the midst of the scandal. He never spoke out in group, so she wasn’t really sure what to expect from him. It wasn’t as if they had gotten anywhere deep aside from a few lunches – pressing their woes of addiction into the air. Not everyone got it. There was no sure fire way to make sure someone could truly understand without falling into the same pit themselves. Her mouth twitched at the apology. “It’s fine, man.” She wasn’t sure what else to say. The concept of taking care of someone was still new to her.

Her fingers tangled in her hair, knotting up at the sight of the apparent gift. “I’d much rather pay for it.” She said with a tight smile. She never really did like owing people things – even if it was a gift. Her brows raised at his sudden offer. “I don’t want you to be doing it so it makes me get off your ass. You need to attend those meetings for yourself and because you want to. I can’t force you to go – only to check in.”

Her insistence to pay for it frustrated him slightly, but he tried not to show it. Sighing, he stood from the chair and tried to think of his usual pricing model. He could get insane margins on such a simple chair from his name and resume alone, but this wasn’t exactly something he wanted to make money on. “How about you just buy me a burger and fries after group one day and we can just call it even?” he asked, unsure if she’d take the deal. 

The meetings was the last thing he wanted to do. He didn’t even think he was an alcoholic - he just needed something else to blame on the incident other than himself. Liquor was an easy excuse that had led him to six months of sobriety. “I just don’t see the point sometimes,” he finally said as he started to tinker with something else on his desk. He was always fidgety and could never stay still, constantly having to be in motion. “One thing you need to know about me is that I’m incredibly sporadic. Sometimes I get motivation to do things and just do it consistently and other times I just...” he motioned to the workroom to explain himself better. There were various random chairs in construction, but also various projects that were half done. It was obvious that he just stopped halfway through and never returned to them. “Do you think it’s useful every single week?”

He knew that he wasn’t the best at maintaining and keeping up friendships. He was somebody that easily got caught up in what he was doing and would go hours, days and even weeks before responding to a text. He didn’t mean to be so flaky but now he was making more of an effort with others, leading him to this coffee shop with Clement. The younger man was good company and for once, he needed social interaction because only talking to a toddler got tiring.

Rafe grinned at the other from across the table in the coffee shop, “We needed to have a catch up. It’s been hectic with work and everything going on,” he said, keeping everything as vague as possible. He was sure that the other was caught up enough as is. Taking a sip from his latte, he gave the other a solemn smile. “How has everything been with you though? Any big gigs coming up?”

“Long time no see,” he greeted, unsure of where he exactly stood with the other. Nobody had told him how complicated your social life gets after a divorce - somebody should’ve written a guide. But he wasn’t going to let that get in the way of his work, especially when he had to rebuild his career from the ground up. With a series of binders laid out in front of him, he had plenty of options for her to choose from. These were all of his portfolio and things that he had done, but it didn’t mean he couldn’t do a lot more.

“I don’t know if there was anything in particular that you wanted done but I’m sort of a jack of all trades. If I can’t do the job, I know somebody who can and I’ll know exactly how to oversee them.” He had a strong commitment to satisfy every single one of his clients, and it wasn’t something that he would give up on. 

Working on sets were the kind of jobs that Rafe took with caution. They were rather high profile and crowds made him uneasy. Furthermore, directors were some of his most picky clients. After hours of sawing and directing a crew, he decided to wait around outside to catch air. That’s when he noticed Nina Westbrook walking towards him and he gulped. He knew that the other was working on this show but thought he could stay out of her way, knowing how connection she was to his ex-wife. 

“If you’re here to yell at me on Serena’s behalf please don’t. If it’s anything else then...” he wanted to say please don’t but knew that it wouldn’t be the nicest thing. “I guess you can proceed?”

“Yeah …. that was poor taste on my part. Really, I’m sorry.” The beauty admitted with a sheepish laugh. She felt bad that the blind date had gone so poorly but everyone had their fair share of bad dates in life, right? It happened. Piper just accidentally made it happen.

The girl frowned as he mentioned he wasn’t interested in going to the single’s mixer – though it was more of a playful pout then a genuine frown. “Oh Rafe you never know, it could be fun! You have to meet people somehow, besides sometimes fate is just too slow. Okay I see your point but – there’s always that person out there willing to give someone like you a chance! You can’t let your past hold you back, come on.” She said with a shrug of her shoulders. Piper laughed as he mentioned her going to the single’s mixer instead – she shook her head at the very idea. “No, no! I don’t need to go! I’m …. doing just fine.” She said softly. 

She wasn’t going to push him anymore tonight, but Piper really thought he needed to get out more often – he spent too much time in that shed of his. She gave him a look before sighing, “ – I could use a bookcase since you’re offering.” Piper answered with a smile.

“It could be fun but it could also be awful, and I’m leaning towards it being the latter. Plus, those things are for like people in their early twenties. I just don’t have the same things in common with twenty-somethings. Do you know how many times somebody asks me to add them on Snapchat? I don’t even have that app installed on my phone,” he said. He wasn’t even that old but he felt completely out of it when he was with some of his younger friends. “I’m not letting my past hold me back I just have other things to prioritize right now. I can admit that sleeping alone gets pretty lonely but I also have a child to worry about now. I can’t just bring women in and out of his life.”

“You’re doing just fine? I didn’t know you were in a relationship,” he said nonchalantly, getting more eager when she agreed to having a bookcase. “This is just what I wanted to hear. I’ve been itching to work on a bookcase, actually. Do you want a smaller one or like a floor to ceiling one? Do you know the dimensions of your place?” he asked as if that was something people knew off the top of their head. He certainly did. “What kind of wood where you thinking?” he asked again, totally geeking out over the project already. 

“ – OKAY, okay, so I was wrong this time, I can admit that!” Piper said with a sheepish, sweet smile. She didn’t typically set Rafe up on blind dates – preferring just to sign him up for those single meets and whatnot but she had such a good feeling about this girl. Clearly, Piper’s feelings had been wrong. “You can’t hold it against me, I thought I was doing something good!” It was only true so the beauty grinned. “Besides, now we know! – blind dates are not a good idea.”

Personally, Piper herself would never agree to a blind date so she now was wondering why she ever thought it was a good idea to send Rafe on one. “There is a single mixer going on in Echo Park tomorrow night that I’m sure would be fun!”

closed starter → @theraferowan

He gave a blank stare in return to the younger blonde, simply shaking his head no. He wasn’t sure how she had stumbled into the role of his matchmaker, but he was never going to go on one of her blind dates again. “You think? She couldn’t string together a sentence without using the word like. She told me her favorite book was Fifty Shades of Gray. Seriously?” He wasn’t outraged by the literotica as much as he was outraged by the poor choice of literature. While he wasn’t the most educated, he at least knew there were better books.

“I’m not interested in a single’s mixer, Piper. I don’t like small talk or pretending to be interested in other peoples lives.” Those events were foreign to him - he hated discussing boring topics and wasting time. “A genuine connection will form. Plus, nobody wants to date somebody who is divorced. Especially somebody who is a known, documented cheater.” One quick Google search of his name would bring up headlines from his messy divorce. “Why don’t you go to the Single’s Mixer and I head to my shed and work on something. Is there something you need in your apartment? Do you want a bookcase?” He offered. It was enough work to keep him busy for the next few days in between his paid projects. 

Her head tilted towards him, wondering what he was so reluctant about. The media didn’t seem to cease their baiting soon. Every article published on her Twitter theme seemed to go between some ass named Jesse Andrews and the Rafe Rowan downfall. She knew better than to believe him – despite his protest that he had it together. She had the same shit spew from her mouth, dripping like liquid courage until the urge hit again.

“Avoiding your problems doesn’t change the fact that you fucked over your ex-wife.” Kat said plainly. She stretched out her leg on the makeshift desk, not really providing a sense of politeness when it came to his assumed office. “I need you to check in with me if you’re not going – just so I know you aren’t knees deep in a bender once this shit finally catches up.”

Her gaze flickered towards the woodwork. It reminded her of her grandfather – turning his hand over a drill for details. She remembered watching with wide eyes, placing gloved hands against the finished pieces. Her candlesticks never quite turned out as well as his. She pressed her hand against the chair, examining it for a moment. “How much?” It wasn’t like she didn’t need some furniture for her camming.

He hated hearing the words about his infidelity. He knew that he did it but it still felt like a lie. He’d never do that. He’d never be a man who wasn’t faithful to a wife he loved so much, yet here he was. Rafe didn’t so much as move a muscle when she lifted her leg, sighing at her request. “I’m sorry.” It was a phrase that rarely left his lips but his respect for Kathryn had him apologizing. “I’m not on a bender though. I haven’t touched a lick of alcohol in months now. It was tempting but alcohol consumption seems to only lead to bad things for me.” It was a necessary thing to cut down on in his life, but it didn’t mean that it was easy. For him, it wasn’t a problem with functioning without alcohol but rather using the alcohol as an excuse to be unfaithful. “I don’t want it to be an excuse for me anymore.”

“Free. Do you not understand the concept of a gift, Kat?” he asked, moving closer to look at the chair and taking a seat in it. “It’s perfectly fine to sit in,” he explained, standing up immediately after his demonstration. Arms crossed, he gave her a solemn look. “If it makes you feel better I’ll go to the group meeting this week. I’ll try to check in more but I can’t make any more promises. When I get into my work, I get into my work. Plus, RJ has evolved from walking to running and chasing after toddlers is extremely time consuming.” 

Kathryn usually didn’t make personal trips to other members. She’d rather not know a damn detail from their lives aside from the gut-wrenching gospel shared in NA. She placed her hand on the shed door, glancing around the area with a thoughtful hum. It was nice. Perhaps, she should hire him to work on some preliminary options in the larger bathroom. The brunette peaked her head into the shed. His work clothes looked like something out of an adult film. Her brows immediately shot up, lips forming a steady ‘o.’

“You’ve been avoiding me, Rowan.” Her voice rung out, echoing in the small space. Her heel clicked against the wood floors as she sat in the seat he gestured towards. Better now than never. She wasn’t going to ask him directly why he skipped out last meeting. From the view of his shed, it looked like he swept himself up in his projects. Her chin rested on her inked hand as her gaze drew immediately to the MacBook.

His face immediately fell when he realized the person in question who was visiting him. He liked her but he just had no need for her right now. Kathryn had a way of commanding authority when speaking to him. She had a stern voice and demeanor that rivaled his mother. He didn’t know if he feared it or respected it but he couldn’t help that she was right in front of him. “I haven’t been avoiding you.” His voice was frank and honest. He hadn’t been avoiding her. Now was he avoiding his problems? Certainly.

“I just don’t see the need to go to Alcoholics Anonymous right now. I just want to be a bit of a social recluse so the media can leave me alone.” He’s had to move twice since the divorce and it had been very frustrating. He was just very happy that the location of his workshop wasn’t made public to the paparazzi quite yet. “Did you need something though?” he asked, looking up at her as if there wasn’t a problem in the world. That’s when his face suddenly lit up and he stood and scurried over to the finished things. “Actually! Do you need a chair? I got in my zone the other day and made one of these.” He motioned to a well made wooden Adirondack chair with a grin. He already had more than enough of these but they were always a fun project that took exactly one day. “I can even drive it over to your place.”