“Mmm, I’ll keep working on it.” He nods his head, returning his attention back to the stage.
“Yeah. Okay,” I breathlessly answer.
Yeah, I’m a goner.
By the time the sun dips andThe Wigglespack up, Paislee’s knocked out cold. Mission accomplished. A whole day of good boy points, cashed in her tiny snores.
***
Turns out good boy points extend to bed and bath time too. After getting home, Brad took Paislee up for her bath time while I got her bed ready.
“I’d say we make a pretty good team,” Brad says, walking into Paislee’s room with her all wrapped up in the yellow duckie towel I bought for her at the zoo gift shop before we left. He’s got a bottle to her mouth as she suckles quietly.
The compliment immediately warms my chest. “Yeah, I’d say so.” I say, brushing my hand down her nose. She looks up at me with such soft, kind eyes. Every day I feel closer to her. She’s really something else.
“Want to help me put her to sleep?” Brad asks, his eyes on me.
“Yeah,” I smile. “Let’s do it.”
The house feels different since my mom isn’t here with us. Her presence in the evening usually makes me feel like I’ve got to walk on eggshells around Brad. Here, right now, I’m getting the chance to sit back and admire him without the fear of getting caught.
Brad sits down in the rocking chair in the corner of the room. Resting a towel over his shoulder, he gently pats Paislee’s back, working on getting her to burp.
I smile at them. He’s so good to her. I take a moment to look around the room. It’s so different in here than it used to be. “This used to be my dad’s home office,” I say, leaning on the closet door, now used to store baby things.
“Yeah, I actually knew that. We had to move some stuff when preparing for Paislee.” Brad smiles kindly. “He's an architect, right?”
I nod, happily remembering him. “You know that big office building down on Queen street in Toronto?"
“Yeah, I do.”
“He designed that.”
Brad’s mouth drops open. “That’sreallycool.”
I bite my lip, nodding my head. I forgot how good it felt hearing someone say that. My dadiscool.
“Is that what you want to do? Architect?” Brad shifts Paislee to hold her like a football player. The little sounds she’s making makes it clear that his patting is working.
I scratch the back of my neck. “Uh, no. I’m not really the design type. Not handy either.”
“That’s alright. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to. What are you interested in?”
A smile tugs at my lips. “I don’t know. It’s stupid.”
He rolls his eyes. “I bet it’s not. Hit me.”
“Don’t laugh.” I warn him.
His eyebrow arches up, clearly intrigued. “My lips are sealed. Go.”
“Audio engineering.” I burst out. I never really talk about it but I guess this is what Brad does to me. “I’ve just always loved music and the mechanics behind it. Getting a chance at building it and helping it come alive so others can enjoy it.”
His eyebrows shoot up. “Audio engineering,” he repeats slowly. “Why would I have laughed at that?”
I shrug, feeling self-conscious all of a sudden. “I don’t know. It’s not really a common job.”
“That’s not true. You could work on music. Movies. There’s so many avenues. You know what? I’ve known some audio engineers. I could call some of them up. See if they can get you to intern or something.” His eyes light up like he’s excitedforme.
