Free Broken Lion by Devon Hartford Page A

otherwise. I couldn’t really blame him.
    I sighed.
    This was the life I signed up for. Before the divorce, it had been tolerable and often enjoyable. Whenever I’d had spare time, I spent it with Daniel. He was the brightest light in my busy schedule. I had tried to include Donald in everything we did, but he never seemed satisfied. At least he didn’t try to shut me out of Daniel’s life after the divorce. Our current relationship was workable and generally polite, and we always put Daniel first. But as always, my time was limited by my schedule. Maybe in a few years, after I gained more experience, I would join a private practice. Then I’d have more time for my son.
    Hopefully.
    Believe me, I beat myself up every day over my choices.
    Again, I blame the Super Mom fantasy.
    Me: I’ll make it work. Can you bring Daniel to my condo first thing in the morning?
    Donald: Would your highness like anything else?
    I hated it when he did that.
    He was the one who got treated like royalty. For all I knew, his business thing was an early morning golf game at the Beverly Hills Resort with prospective clients and he didn’t want to be late to tee off. Me, I didn’t have time to exercise. Going to the gym meant that much less time with Daniel. Schmoozing at the golf course was hardly what I’d call work. Clearing an impacted bowel or delousing a patient was work.
    Me: If you bring him over first thing in the morning, I’ll make sure he gets to karate class. Your parents can go to Palm Springs and you can do your business thing. Then everybody will be happy.
    My happiness wasn’t part of the equation.
    As long as my son was happy, that was good enough for me. Secretly, I dreamed of having a life of my own outside of work.
    Experience told me that wasn’t a dream I should hold on to.
    With any luck, when I brought Daniel to class on Saturday, Lion wouldn’t be the one teaching. He was a symbol of the life I wanted but couldn’t have.
    Hopefully he would have his staff teach for him and I could forget about him for good.

Chapter 9

    BRIGID

    “Hey! It’s Dan the Man!” Lion was greeting everyone as they walked into the dojo late Saturday morning. This time, he was on crutches instead of the wheelchair and had his knee brace on. He wore a gold instructor’s karate uniform with black karate pants and a black belt. The top had various embroidered patches that made him look official and authoritative. Not that he needed any help. His physique alone was sufficient. I could see his chest muscles flexing in the V of the uniform top whenever he leaned on the crutches. But there was something about a man in uniform.
    Daniel was all smiles when Lion greeted him. “Hey!”
    “Hey, Brigid.” Lion grinned.
    I rolled my eyes, “Hello, Mr. Maxwell.”
    “Call me Lion.”
    “Fine. Lion.”
    “Do I call you Lion too?” Daniel asked.
    Lion grinned. “Call me sensei.”
    “What’s that?”
    “It means teacher.”
    “Oh. Cool. Hey, sensei!”
    “Hey, bud.” Lion smiled at me. “I like this kid.”
    “Me too.”
    “You ready for class, Dan the Man?”
    “Yeah!”
    Lion turned to the young man I recognized from the wheelchair demonstration the other night. “Hey, Robert? Can you and Melanie get Daniel a uniform and help him and the other kids get dressed for class?”
    Melanie looked about sixteen and was too cute in her gold instructor’s uniform. She and Robert nodded and led the kids into the back, carrying a pile of new white uniforms in plastic wrappers.
    There were other supportive parents sitting in chairs near the front windows, but for the moment, Lion and I were relatively alone.
    “What do I owe you for the uniform?”
    “It’s free if Daniel signs up for a regular class.”
    “Oh.”
    “Are you planning on signing him up?” He looked hopeful.
    “If Daniel likes it, his father and I agreed we would.”
    Suddenly, Lion sagged and looked slightly sheepish. “I owe you an apology, don’t I?”
    “Why?”