He considered that for a moment, then nodded. “Mine never wanted me. Mom doesn’t talk about him, but I used to hear Grandma and Grandpa talk sometimes. They said Mom had to move away and stop diving. I don’t know who he is, but I don’t like him. Do you think that’s okay?”
My chest tightened. I doubted I was the person he should’ve been having this conversation with, but I was the one he’dchosen. Knowing I would have to tell Maisie about this later, I knelt beside him so we were eye to eye.
“I’m sorry, buddy,” I said quietly. “That’s a lot for a kid to deal with. I know I can’t make that better for you, but I would like to be around. If that’s okay with you. Kind of like a dad.”
He smiled in that honest, unfiltered way only a kid could. “I’d like that.”
I felt like a weight I hadn’t realized I was carrying had lifted off me. Maybe I really could be part of their world, just me, Maisie, and this awesome kid, figuring things out together, one morning at a time.
CHAPTER 28
MAISIE
The house was too quiet when I woke up. For a second, my heart jolted, sharp panic rushing through me like ice water had been injected straight into my heart. I threw the covers back and padded into the hallway, my hair still tangled from sleep and my pulse slamming.
I burst into Brody’s room, but it was empty. So was the couch downstairs, the blankets I’d given Callum last night folded neatly on top of the cushions.
Standing there on the landing, my stomach lurched like it always did when I lost track of Brody, but the sight of those blankets reminded me that Callum had slept over here. Again.
They haven’t vanished. They’re just golfing.
I let out a breath that was half laugh, half groan, pressing my hands to my chest. I headed further down the stairs. After that first night Callum had slept over, I’d found a note as well as breakfast ready in the kitchen.
He’d taken Brody to the driving range that morning, but on their way home, apparently he’d promised to take him golfing today. Naturally, that had meant Brody had begged me to let Callum sleep over again last night.
Bleary-eyed and back to being half asleep now that I’d remembered this had been their plan—that I’d consented to—I padded to the kitchen and fixed myself a cup of coffee. From the pot that had already been made.
I wasn’t used to this, a quiet Saturday morning that allowed me to sleep in. I wasn’t used to already made coffee or someone running interference with Brody either, taking him out to burn off all that endless energy.
Normally, it was just me, but not anymore.
It was going to take some getting used to, letting Callum shoulder some of the weight of the responsibility of parenting. He’d stepped in without even being asked, and Brody was thriving under his attention.
I’d noticed it recently, ever since that first time Brody and I had gone golfing with Callum. It was happening slowly, almost too slowly to notice at first, but my son was flourishing. His shoulders squared a little more when Callum was around. He rattled off stories and asked questions about absolutely everything from school to superheroes because he knew Callum was actually listening.
His laugh was a little louder and a little freer, and now here they were, off at sunrise with their golf clubs in tow, leaving me to sleep in. I sipped my coffee, but something fluttery and soft settled low in my chest.
This was what it felt like to have help. To not do it all alone. I wasn’t angry about it. Not even close.
Carrying my coffee to the window, I peeked out between the curtains on the off chance I’d catch them coming back, but instead, I saw that the whole cul-de-sac looked like Halloween had exploded overnight. Orange and purple streamers crisscrossed porches, inflatable ghosts and grinning pumpkins bobbed in the breeze, and someone had gone all out with a fog machine that they were testing.
Kids were already darting around in their costumes, experimenting with their plastic swords while the girls ran around with fluttering fairy wings behind them. I smiled beside myself, letting the curtains drop back into place just as I heard my mom’s voice behind me.
“They’re not back yet?” she asked.
I spun around and shook my head, that smile still on my lips. I motioned to the kitchen. “No, not yet. Can I make you some coffee?”
“I think what you mean is, can you pour me some of the coffee Callum’s already made?” she teased but nodded and followed me. “I heard them earlier, you know. They were talking before they headed out.”
“Yeah?” I reached for a mug and filled it, then added cream and sugar before I handed it over. “Were they saying anything interesting?”
“Yep.” Mom was already dressed for the day, her eyes lined with a bit of coal and her graying hair pulled up into a ponytail that told me she was ready to get to work. I just didn’t know at what. “They seem to be getting along like a house on fire, honey. It was really sweet, listening to Callum give Brody advice on his swing and telling him more about his family.”
“Callum told me Brody’s been asking a lot of questions about them,” I admitted. “I’m starting to think Brody’s going to like being part of that family after we get married.”
Mom’s lips pursed. “He already is part of that family.”
I opened my mouth to explain—again—why I hadn’t told Callum the truth the other night, but she waved me off. “It’s alright, baby. I know how hard this must be for you. Let’s talk about Halloween instead.”
