"Jonas," I whispered, "want to go out for dinner?"

He looked up, his eyes sad. "Daddy, I miss Mommy and Xavier."

I sat beside him, putting an arm around his shoulders. "How about this? It's the weekend tomorrow. We'll go see Mommy and Xavier. What do you say?"

He nodded, but his sadness remained. A sharp pang hit me. The divorce was hurting them more than I'd imagined.

My phone rang. Yvonne.

"Hi," I said, keeping my voice even.

"Cole, Xavier wants to see Jonas. Bring him over now." Her impatience was sharp.

"Now? We just got settled. Jonas is still adjusting—"

"Cole, stop being selfish! You've already taken Jonas away. Are you going to deny them a visit?"

I took a deep breath. "Okay, I'll bring him."

I hung up, forcing a smile. "Jonas, how about we see Mommy and Xavier now?"

His eyes lit up. He nodded eagerly.

Half an hour later, we arrived. Xavier burst out, bypassing me to hug Jonas. "Jonas, you're finally here! Jared brought tons of toys! Let's go play!"

I watched them run inside, a knot tightening in my chest. Yvonne appeared, her gaze cold. "Come in," she said, "but Jonas will have to go back with you later."

Inside, Jared watched the boys play, beaming. His smile faded when he saw me. "Mr. Joplin," he said, rising to shake my hand. "Good to see you."

Xavier interrupted, grabbing Jared's hand. "Jared, you promised to teach me guitar! Can we start now?"

Jared smiled. "Alright, but we need your dad's permission first."

Xavier glared at me. "Daddy, leave me alone! You only care about Jonas!"

His words stung. "He's my son too!"

Before I could say more, Yvonne intervened. "Xavier, be respectful. Cole, let Jared teach him. Children need hobbies, not just studies."

"Yvonne, can we talk? Alone?"

She followed me to the balcony. "Make it quick. I have a conference call."

"Do we have to be like this? Can't we cooperate for the kids?"

She scoffed. "Cole, don't be a hypocrite. You wanted the divorce."