“Do you see? She doesn’t stay up long, but it’s a start! Are you proud, Daddy?”
I rub my lips together, emotions forming inside of me, and I clear my throat before speaking. “So proud.”
Emma moves the support pillow out of the way and settles down behind Gracie, then flips the camera back her way so that I can see the both of them. “Say hi to Daddy, Little Tulip.” My daughter looks up at the screen and babbles with a happy smile on her face.
“Hey, baby girl. Daddy’s so, so proud of you. I miss you, Buttercup. I’ll be home soon.” I sniff and blink a few times, overcome with a sense of pride and joy.
The noise makes Emma look up. “Oh, Greyson,” she says tenderly.I guess I’m not hiding my emotions well enough.
I look at the time again: two minutes. “Hey, I gotta go. We’re about to hit the ice, but thank you for calling.”
“Okay, we'll see you tomorrow! Bye, Greyson.” She grabs my daughter’s hand and makes her wave. “Say bye to Daddy, Little Tulip. Bye-bye!”
“Bye, baby girl. I’ll talk to you later, Bunny.”
She smiles sweetly. “Okay.”
Hanging up, I put my phone away, then rest my elbows on my knees, shoving the heels of my palms into my eyes. “Jesus, Hayes. How do you do it? All she did was sit up on her own, and I feel like I want to scream with joy and cry at the same time.”
Silas chuckles to my left. “That’s called pride, my friend. Last week Dante took his first step, and I swear I was bawling like a six-foot-four baby.” He laughs again. “You’re just at the beginning. But that feeling? You’ll feel itevery timeshe does something new. Wait until she says ‘dada’ for the first time! Ha! That one hit me hard.” The smile on his face is so bright it’s nearly blinding. You can tell just how much his son means to him.
“So, what’s going on with you and Em?” Clay asks from Silas’s other side.
“Nothing, why?” I look at him curiously.Where is this question coming from?
“You gave her a nickname. You don’t give random chicks names. You only do that when the person significantly means something to you,” he says, to which Silas nods in agreement.
“That’s bullshit. I call Cecilia‘Rose’all the time,” I tell them defensively.
“Rose is her maiden name. It’s the name she gave you when you guys met. That’s not the same thing. Do you have a cute little name for Morgan? What about all the girls you’ve hooked up with? I’m pretty sure you don't even have one for your own sister. The only person you’ve ever gifted with a nickname is your daughter, and now Emma,” Silas states.
Shit. He’s right. What the hell does that mean?
EMMA
~ The Next Day ~
I’m playing with rubber blocks on the floor with Gracie when the sound of the front door shutting hits my ear, followed by Greyson’s loud footsteps.Shit, I thought I had an hour still before he came back.“I’m back! Where’s my—” He stops short, looking around the living room. “What happened here?”
While he was away, I safeguarded the whole house, babyproofing every corner, wire, and power outlet. As well as taking away anything that could be a danger to Gracie. I also got some storage organizers for Little Tulip’s toys instead of having them all over. A pink baby jumper now sits in the corner of the room with foam mats on the floor to give her a little play area.
I rise from the floor, leaving Gracie on her belly as she plays with her blocks, gibbering to herself. Dusting my hands off on my dress, I walk over to Greyson. “I thought it would be good to prepare the house for when she starts to crawl. Cecilia said it should start soon, and I wanted us to be ready before it happens.” I smile and look around at all the changes.
“We also went on a little shopping spree, and I got a couple more toys and made her a play area. But I was thinking we could also maybe turn one of the spare rooms on the first floor into a playroom for her and Dante whenever he comes over,” I continue.
Greyson looks at me with wide eyes, opening his mouth to speak, but I cut him off. “Oh! And everything I removed from the living room, I put in the media room since I didn’t know where you wanted them. So you’ll have to go through that when you have time.” I let out a breath, exhausted from the excessive talking. “I hope that’s okay?”
“Emma, breathe. It’s fine, thank you. I’ve been thinking of doing it but haven’t had the time. And I think the playroom is a great idea. We can look more into that tomorrow,” he says, placing a hand on my arm. His eyes catch my shoulder, then travel down over my dress.Ugh, I should have changed earlier when I had the chance.
“I’ll go change,” I whisper and turn quickly in hopes of escaping, but he grabs my wrist before I get the chance.
“Hey, wait. Don't change.” He looks me over once more, and the side of his mouth twitches. “I didn’t know you were into vintage clothes.”
I look down at my dress. It’s an emerald-green 1950s-style dress. The top half is sleeveless with lapels and buttons down the center, covered in white polka dots. And the bottom half is a full green skirt that flares out and stops just above my knees.
“Oh, this? It’s nothing. Gracie and I were just playing a game earlier, and I haven’t changed out of it yet.” I try to brush it off, but by the look he gives me, I know he’s not buying my story.
“Mostly the 50s,” I say reluctantly with a sigh and look away.Here comes the mocking and insults…
