Tough Love

CHAPTER THREE

ASHTON.

Fuck.

I stood there staring at the closed door, watching as the headlights from her car dimmed and faded to nothing as I had just let her drive off, thinking I didn't care about anything to do with her, or us.

Fuck.

I'd just really fucked up.

Turning around, my fists clenched as I drew my arm back and slammed it forwards into the plastered wall. It didn't help my current mood as my fist now painfully throbbed. "Jesus Christ!" I shouted, almost wanting to punch the wall again but stopped, I wasn't in the mood to be patching up holes tonight.

"Daddy?" Jenna's voice was at the top of the stairs, as I looked up and spotted her standing close to the railing.

"What Jenna?" I asked, not in the mood for anymore dramatics tonight.

She began to make her way down the stairs, then her eyes widened to a point as she noticed my fist. I hadn't been too worried about the bleeding, that was nothing compared to the pure panic in my heart of Belle not coming back. She'll be back tomorrow. She had to be.

"What... what happened?" she asked in a timid voice.

I had no desire to speak about what had happened. I was almost sure the entire neighbourhood heard what had happened, she barely ever rose her voice and I knew that stemmed from past issues, but for Jenna's sake, I needed to state the obvious. "Isabelle left."

She followed me into the kitchen, sitting up on the bar stool as I reached in the fridge for a pack of frozen peas. "For good?" she asked, and I didn't miss the hidden smile that fought on the corner of her lips.

My eyes narrowed, and I stood opposite her as I wrapped a towel around the peas and sat it on my knuckles. "What do you mean for good?"

"I just mean she's not coming, back right?"

Was she coming back? I wasn't sure. This had been our only second fight, the first resulted her kicking me out of our bedroom and I spend three nights on the couch in our media room. Not a time I'd like to go back to, but with her leaving changed everything. In the pit of my stomach, I knew she wasn't coming back. I'd hurt her too badly.

"Isabelle wanted to have a baby." I said no. "I don't think she will be coming back here. She deserves to have children of her own, and I told her I didn't want anymore." I told her that.

I will regret those words for the rest of my fucking life.

"So, it's just you and me now?" she asked, pursing her lips together and then smiled wide.

"Don't look so happy about it, Jenna. She done a lot for you, for us both." My words coming back harsher than intended. "She was the only mother you've known."

Her eyes watered, and gaze dropped to her hands fumbling in her lap. "She's not my mother though, dad."

Sighing, I ran my good hand through my hair, and sighed heavily. "I can't change the fact the fact that your mother isn't alive." Thanks to all the drugs she took during her pregnancy. "Belle was good to you, wasn't she?" I hadn't ever questioned her over this before, but new things were becoming known and now I didn't know what to believe.

"Y-yes.. but she was sometimes mean when you weren't around." She frowned, shrugging. "Like she'd tell at me, and make me eat food that was disgusting. I don't like meat, and yet she'd make me eat it."

I raised a curious brow. "Since when don't you eat meat?"

"Since meat is murder."

I didn't ask her to elaborate anymore, my daughter was obviously a vegetarian now and I hadn't a clue about that. Sitting down beside her, I leant against the counter and looked to my side at her still sitting here. Her and Belle used to be close, and I remember a time when Jenna wanted to spend more time with her than myself. "When did you stop calling her mum?"