OMG! CONGRATS!!!!!
Estelle
Yay! So exciting!!!!
Bea
It means he’s on trial with the Alliance for the next two years until they make a final decision about him. But he’ll be able to contract for pro events next season! We just opened the letter and got his probationary membership card today!
Smiling, I exited the chat and pulled up Jesse’s name. He deserved some congratulations, too. Even though he never sought or wanted credit, Meadowbrook relied so heavily upon him.
“Mommy, are you about to call Mr. Jesse? I want to talk, too. I’m bored.” Nora stretched onto my lap, tired of the parade. Her curls fanned across my legs and her bottom lip pooched out. I couldn’t blame her for being a little bored. Peter and Sarah typically spent Thanksgiving with her family, Tag and Bea couldn’t travel because she was eight months pregnant, and Jackie was with a friend’s family. Which left Estelle, Ben, Mom, Dad, and I. The cooking was mostly done, so we were waiting around for Aunt Judith and some cousins—who thankfully had a couple toddlers who would keep the girls entertained. But they wouldn’t be here for a while.
Even though I felt lighter today—especially after the exciting news—I also felt strung out by yesterday’s hearing and the many conversations I had with my family afterward. And my heart still ached for my daughters. For all the things they would never sharewith Garrett. There were so many moments in a girls’ life where she needed her dad—daddy-daughter dances, first dates, late night talks for advice, walking down the aisle. To no one’s surprise, Garrett didn’t call or reach out after the hearing.
I softly laughed at Nora’s expressive bemoaning. “I was just sending him a quick text.”
She whined, “Thanksgiving is the most boring holiday in the universe. I want to call Cade.”
Izzy walked into the living room then, her stack of cards blurring between her hands as she shuffled them mid-air. “Oh! We’re calling Cade? I need to show him my magic trick.”
I sighed on a laugh, amused by the fact they loved those Texas cowboys as much as I did. “Okay, fine.” I relinquished my phone with a warning. “They might be busy though.”
Moments later, the girls settled shoulder to shoulder on the couch beside me, beaming down at the screen as the Facetime bubbling sound rang through the air. I held my breath, waiting for Jesse to pick up. Last night, we’d had a long conversation and I fell asleep talking to him on the phone. Other than some text messages, we hadn’t spoken this morning.
A hollow ding preceded a black screen. Suddenly, Jesse’s face appeared and Nora squealed. Jesse’s mouth dropped open, the immediate joy on his face completely sincere. “Nora! Izzy!”
Out of the camera’s shot, I bit down on my lip to stop smiling so hard.
“I thought your mom was calling me, but this is way better.”
The girls squirmed and giggled, and so did I.
“What are you girls doing?”
“We helped Grammie cook!” Nora said.
“That’s fun! What did you make?”
Nora smacked her lips. “I made cheesecake. And Izzy cleaned the turkey’s butt.”
Jesse laughed as Izzy gave a dramatic retelling of her experience with the giblets. Quietly, I watched from afar, amazed by how enraptured my children were. Ever since we left Texas, Jesse hadn’t pushed to be a part of our lives. True to his word, he made sure we had spaceto choose the best path forward and put ourselves first. But, we invited him in—daily. And he never turned us down.
He watched as Nora held the phone so Izzy could show him her magic trick. But she didn’t do it right. She flopped backward on the couch, annoyed by her fail.
Jesse encouraged, “It’s okay, Izz, try again.”
Sighing, she picked up her cards and did the trick again. Jesse didn’t take his eyes off the screen and praised her when she figured it out. Their conversation went on and on as they talked about anything and everything under the sun. Jesse never asked for me, just poured into my children like a father would.
My own thoughts nearly doubled me over.
Like a father would.
A quiet gasp pulled into my lungs as I realized what Jesse was doing for my girls.
I’d been so stuck on the fact that my daughters wouldn’t know Garrett’s love, that I hadn’t even considered they already had Jesse’s. The three of them blurred in my vision as overwhelming gratitude pummeled into my heart.
They already had Jesse’s love.
