We still do, but it feels like we have been stuck on an island by ourselves for too long.
Not for much longer, though. We will be home soon.
“I can’t wait to see you as a mom,” I tell her honestly.
She looks over at me, a little shy, with some pink on her cheeks. She doesn’t say anything, but I hope that means she is thinking about me the way I think about her.
I plan to tell her how I feel. I know I need to. I have been so focused on moving us back to Boston that I haven’t found the right time to tell her. I mean, I don’t know if she is still dating that guy. She hasn’t mentioned him, but I also haven’t wanted to seem pushy.
Then there’s the issue of the job offer. I want to beg her to stay, but I also want her to have everything she wants. So if she plans to leave, I will let her go.
No matter how I feel about her, I want her to be happy.
“Where are we going to dinner?” Mason asks.
“There is this pizza place around the corner. They make the best New York-style pizza,” Iris says.
“Pizza? I love pizza,” Ari adds her two cents in.
Iris smiles down at her. “I know, which is why I chose it.”
“And you say I spoil her,” I tease.
Iris sticks her tongue out at me.
In that moment, I wonder if this is what our life could be like. If I stopped being afraid and went after what I wanted.
I wish I were more confident than I am. When it comes to business, I know what to do and how to act. I have been trained for it. From my grandfather, father, and Mason. Even then, I still have issues sometimes. It’s why Iris has become instrumental to me conducting business.
When it comes to anything outside of business, I have no idea how to act.
Sure, with Ari it’s easy. She’s a kid. She is easy to please. I am her favorite this week because I bought her snacks and I’m spoiling her.
Brantley will be her favorite next week when he takes her to a hockey game.
Eli will be her favorite the following week when he takes her to the zoo and tells her all about the animals.
It’s harder with adults.
Mason, Eli, and Brantley have been with me since I was a kid. They love me no matter what. Even when I am being awkward, they don’t call me out. They help me adjust and settle.
Iris does the same with me. I don’t know how to step out of the friend zone into something different. Will she still treat me the same, or will my quirks eventually annoy her until she leaves me for good?
I think back to the job offer. The dates.
If I’m not careful, I may lose her anyway.
“Uncle Max, you aren’t listening to me,” Ari whines.
I look down at the little girl. She’s right. I had zoned out.
“I’m sorry, love. What were you saying?”
She rolls those adorable little eyes at me. “I was asking if you wanted to share a pepperoni and pineapple pizza with me.”
“Aren’t you supposed to eat ham with pineapple?” I ask, not loving the idea of fruit on a pizza.
“If you are boring. I like it with pepperoni,” she tells me.
