It’s been a hell of a crazy Easter Sunday around Gannett’s remodeled apartment. I had only ever seen it once before, briefly, and that was in the aftermath of the smoke and sprinkler damage. Now that I’ve practically been living here, I’ve seen what a home he’s turned it into.
Pictures of him with one or both of the twins are on every wall. There’s evidence that it’s clean, yet lived in, everywhere. Toys—both dog and kid varieties—are scattered in various nooks and crannies. Groceries that don’t quite fit in his over-stuffed pantry are out on the counter. More of Tati and Terra’s crayon art decorates the fridge, rather than the fresh paint on the walls—though I do know that Gannett has discovered just what is so magical about Magic Erasers.
It took less than an hour for the girls to quickly seek outmostof the treats he and I hid for them last night. I’ve memorized the locations of the other snacks, which will satisfy my sweet tooth later. Can’t be wasting a perfectly good Reese’s Egg. Gannett claims the Cadbury Creme Eggs are better, but what the hell does he know? His taste, as evidenced by his infatuation with me, is questionable at best.
It was fuckin’ adorable watching Terra and Tatiana get excited over every egg they found. Gannett just about decked me when he found out I’d placed a couple of special golden eggs of my own, and the girls became one-hundred dollars richer a piece. It’s been many years since I’ve played Easter Bunny for Taryn, and I didn’t realize just how much I missed it.
“The fuck are they going to do with all that money?!” he whisper-hissed at me.
I just shrugged. “They wanted bikes for your place.”
“Well, I’m telling themyougave them that. Some fictional rabbit isn’t going to get all the credit for it.”
“Do what you want, you’re the parent…”
Around lunchtime, Taryn and Morgan stopped over and helped me make dinner, since the only thing I can comfortably trust Gannett with is decorating the ham with pineapple slices. If either of them had anything to say about me and Gannett, they kept their comments to themselves. Their shared smirks said it all, anyway. Taryn knowssomethingis up, regardless of whether Morgan told him or not.
I guess Gannett and I haven’t been as subtle as we thought. Hard to be when we’re both making up for a fuckton of lost time we could have had together.
After they left, and while Gannett was washing the dishes, Tati and Terra both approached me with a gift. “These are for you, Mr. Gordy,” Tati said, her dimples proudly on display.
Tears welled in my eyes as I held the box of Easter-themed snack cakes. Knowing they didn’t go to the store and simply buy these themselves, I spared a glance at Gannett. He offered me a tight-lipped smile. “Tatiana told me the significance behind them…”
I could have kissed him right there on the spot, but I held back, because the girls were still right there. He’ll nevertrulyknow how much these stupid little cakes mean to me, but just the thought of him doing this, this little gesture, makes me wonder what the hell I did in my life to deserve a man like Gannett. His ex-wife may have thought him a thoughtless asshole, but I know differently, and for that, I’m one lucky son of a bitch.
Now, the apartment is mostly picked back up, and the girls are getting their things together to go back to Sarah’s. A knock on the door signals her arrival. On instinct, I make a move to hide so she doesn’t see me.
Gannett scowls. “You don’t have to hide, you know. Please, stay.” On that, he opens the door and ushers her in.
She greets her girls first, then spies me. “Oh… hi, Gordy.”
I tip my chin up as a greeting, matching her lackluster enthusiasm.
“Look what we got!” Terra exclaims, holding up her hundred dollar bill.
Tati flashes her money next. “Yup! These were from Mr. Gordy, not the Easter Bunny. And we got him those cakes his mumma used to get him!”
“You spent… Easter together?” Sarah asks Gannett, as if I’m not in the room.
“Problem with that?” Gannett huffs, a display of annoyance I’ve rarely seen him with. “Believe it or not, Sarah, he’s spent quite a bit of time here lately. He’s helped out with making sure I get them to all their activities when I can’t be in two places at the same time.”
She rolls her eyes. “Must be nice. Never had that kind of help when you were around.”
I butt in. “Can you maybenotdo this in front of your kids? I’ve never once heard Gannett bad-mouth you in their presence. Besides, do you not have help now? Certainly Steve must be giving you a hand.”
Her jaw practically scrapes the floor as she scoffs.
“Furthermore,” I add. “I’d like to point out that Terra said she was interested in trying t-ball this year, but she didn’t think they could because they didn’t have enough coaches. Is it going to be problematic for you if I volunteer to coach her t-ball team?”
Her eyes dart over to Gannett, likehe’llback her up for sticking up for myself in front of her like this. He offers her no such reassurance. Instead, Terra cuts in, “Pleaaase, Mumma? I promise I will score you a homerun if I can just play da t-ball.”
See, it was that same kind of pleading that suckered me into volunteering to coach. Gannett’s girls are persuasive as hell. Stubborn, too. Just like him.
“At some point, you can go ahead and admit I was right,” Gannett grumbles. “He’s not a bad guy. I think you're probably just perturbed that he’s being a good friend and we’re making this work. This isn’t a competition, though, to see who can be the better parent, Sarah. It’scooperation.”
Sarah regards me suspiciously for a beat, but then acquiesces. “Fine,” she sighs before snickering. “Are you sure it’s notcopulation?”
Gannett plasters her with a sardonic smile. “Positive, sweetie. You know, I’m starting to prefer doing these handoffs with Steve-o. Is hesurehe doesn’t want me to teach him how to play chess?”
