Charleigh smiles. “Ma…ma!”
“I’m not even sure when this will be over.” I rub the pain in the center of my chest.
The thought of it being over should feel like a weight being lifted off my shoulders, because that means Benedict has finally moved on. Yet, there’s dread that comes with it.
“Ma…ma!”
I smile. “Can you say…Malaki?”
Charleigh stares at my mouth.
“Right, that's way too complicated.” I tap my chin. “What can you call him?”
“I know!” Zoe comes into view. “Dada!”
I stand abruptly. My coffee spills out from the top of my mug onto the counter. “That is not funny!”
“Daa.”
I gape at Charleigh.
Her lips try to form the word again.
“Daaa.”
Zoe bursts out laughing.
“Zoe!” I shout.
There’s a knock at the door, and I’m pretty sure it’s karma.
I point at my sister. “You better come up with other words that start with Da right now!”
My sister snorts out a laugh and gets on Charleigh’s level. “Damnit?”
“Zoe, I swear!” I call out over my shoulder.
The fancy doorbell that Malaki had installed makes a chirping noise before being followed by another knock.
I open it, still preoccupied with Charleigh and the word dada to register who it is.
“Mrs. Moreno?”
I come face to face with a man who looks to be in his forties. There are dark bags on his face, his eyes tired looking. It sends me back to my childhood when my father tried selling vacuums for fast cash. He’d go door to door with hope gleaming in his eye, only to take out his frustrations on my sister and me when he made next to nothing on commission.
“Sorry,” I apologize kindly. “We’re not interested.”
I move to shut the door but stop at the last second.
How does he know my name?
“Wait! Are you Mrs. Moreno?”
I pull the door open slightly, “It’s Ms. Moreno.”
He pushes an envelope into my chest. “You’ve been served.”
The blood drains from my face as I watch him walk away.
