Free The Halo Effect (Cupid Chronicles) by Shauna Allen

“And your husband? I don’t think you’ve ever mentioned him.” She turned to her with an eerie, icy-blue stare.
    Braelyn sucked in a quick breath. “I’m not married. I never have been.” She glanced around. No takers left for the ice cream. She shifted her gaze back to Ariel. “Tristan’s father and I were a brief high school romance gone bad. My son is the only good thing to come of it.”
    “Oh.” Ariel touched her arm as if to comfort her. “Are they close? Does he see him often?”
    Braelyn rolled her eyes as she perched on the floral-print loveseat in the lobby. That was a joke. “Uh, no. Rory signed over his parental rights last year so he didn’t have to pay any more child support. Now he’s having a new baby with a girl just a few years older than our son.” She couldn’t believe she’d divulged so much to a total stranger. Something about Ariel just made her comfortable. And the whole thing with Tristan’s father still stuck in her craw, but she knew it had to hurt Tristan ten times worse. Rory had never been candidate for father of the year, but to write off your own flesh and blood so easily?
    Ariel’s mouth fell open.
    Yeah, shocking. Men could be such pigs. “Poor baby,” Ariel whispered.
    “Yeah, I know. But I try my best to take care of him. That’s pretty much why I moved us away. New scenery. A fresh start. And now he’s got a Big Buddy to hopefully give him a positive male role model to make up for his jerk of a father.” She smiled ruefully. She wasn’t ready to divulge the real reason she’d left. It was embarrassing how she’d let Julian threaten them both and suck the backbone from her. Luckily it was coming back, one confident vertebrae at a time. Each step she took toward her own emotional freedom and Tristan’s happiness, made her more sure she’d done the right thing.
    “Well, I’m sure having a buddy helps.” Ariel offered a supportive smile. “At least until God sends him a real father.”
    A real father? She didn’t want another man in her life, much less Tristan’s. She couldn’t say a word. She could only stare at the strange pixie of a woman as if she’d lost her ever-lovin’ mind.
    Tristan rolled his neck to ease the stiffness as he watched Michael lift the motor of his dirt bike like it weighed nothing. They’d made some real progress and excitement was buzzing through his system like a swarm of honeybees. The motor wasn’t running yet, but he was stoked.
    Michael turned to him and swiped his sweaty brow. “Hand me that rag, will ya?”
    Tristan picked up the greasy cloth and dropped it into Michael’s outstretched hand. “Thanks for helping me, man. I wouldn’t have gotten this much done without you.”
    “Yeah.” Michael wiped his fingers. “No problem. It’s fun.” He tossed down the rag.
    They admired their work in silence for a while, sipping cold sodas as they circled the frame, deciding what to do next. Tristan couldn’t freakin’ wait until his baby was running and all that was left was learning to ride. He stifled a belch and glanced at Michael. “So, do you ride motorcycles?” He’d only ever seen him in the Bug.
    Michael grinned. “Well, yeah.”
    “Cool.” He paused and leaned against the bench. Could he ask him? Should he? “You think you might teach me? Someday? I don’t have anyone around to teach me this stuff.” He turned away and rubbed at a grease stain with the toe of his sneaker.
    “Can I ask you something?” Michael said after a moment of silence.
    Tristan looked up and nodded. “Sure.”
    “Well, as much as I’m enjoying being here for you and all, I can’t help wonderin’ about your dad.” He glanced around the garage at nothing in particular. “Is he around? Do you ever see him?” He turned back to Tristan. “I’m curious what he’s like.”
    Sudden anger snaked up through Tristan like wildfire. He pushed away from the workbench and felt the darkness descend upon him like night. Tears pricked