I didn’t like even the thought of getting double-teamed, never mind it actually happening.
“And what exactly are you observing?” I pushed.
“When I took you to work this morning, you were in the same mood as you are now.”
“Quite the detective work ...” I slipped off my suit coat and set it beside me. “I didn’t get any sleep. That would put anyone in a pissed-off mood.”
“Should I point out that you’re not much of a sleeper, Mr. Worthington? For the last few weeks, you’ve been averaging only three or four hours a night.”
He drove me to the office, back, and everywhere in between. That was a lot of hours, and instead of silence, there were times I’d confessed my thoughts and actions. Driver-slash-therapist, but now I regretted ever saying a word to the man.
“You think I’m acting this way because of her. You’ve taken a side, Denis, I get the point.”
“Is Jordan’s side such a bad one to take?”
I went quiet for a moment. “There’s nothing there. The well’s dry. Don’t try to pump it. There’s not a single drip left in that hole.”
Ben’s mother had once filled it. It had sat empty ever since.
“That’s not what her expression told me at four this morning,” he offered.
I pulled at my tie, loosening it from my neck. “You and my brother, forever trying to get me to settle down. I’ll tell you the same thing I’ve been saying for years: Things are good. Ben needs all of me. And that’s not going to change, regardless of who I sleep with.”
“That boy wants his father happy.” He glanced at me through the rearview mirror. “And despite the attitude that’s been steaming off you since this morning, there’s a look in your eyes. I saw it the second you got into the car, and I’ve never seen it before.”
“Daddy!” Ben shouted from his seat at the island as I walked into the kitchen, lugging my briefcase and suit jacket and tie, setting them on top of a barstool. “Want a cupcake?”
There were two vanilla cupcakes, one in front of Ben, the other by his nanny, the icing at least four inches high. Jenny was using a fork to eat hers, but my son was hands-deep, his mouth covered with frosting as well as his shirt.
I held my breath as I took the remaining steps toward Ben and pressed my lips to the top of his head, releasing the air only to ask, “Where did you get those?”
“Emily! The pretty nurse, Dad!”
My eyes squeezed shut, the word I’d been afraid of hearing echoing in my ears. “How did Emily get you cupcakes?”
“She delivered them,” Jenny explained, wiping her mouth first and then pushing up her thick, oversize glasses, the same pair she’d been wearing since I hired her when Ben was only a month old. “She brought them about an hour ago. Since Ben finished his whole dinner, I allowed him to have one for dessert.”
At least twice a week, I worked late, and on those evenings, Jenny made sure Ben was fed, and she took care of all the nightly duties until I got home.
“Gavin, you have to have one. They might be the best things I’ve ever tasted, and I don’t normally even like vanilla. There’s a whole box of them over there.” She pointed to the section of counter near the coffee machine.
Just as I was about to ask how they knew the cupcakes were from Emily, Ben shouted, “Daddy, she gave me a card too! With dinosaurs on it! And she called Fenway my friend—that doggy was so cute. We need a dog just like Fenway!”
Jenny pushed the card over to me, and I lifted it off the island.
Ben, you were the bravest boy last night, and I’m so, so proud of how well you handled the removal of the button. (We won’t talk about why it was in your nose, we’ll leave that for your dad to discuss with you.) I was walking by a bakery this morning and saw these and knew someone very special who would love them.
Triple frosting, just like I promised, enjoy!
Your friend,
Emily & Fenway (he says “woof”)
I set the card down, breathing through whatever the hell was happening in my chest, and said, “Did Emily bring them up here?”
“She left them downstairs with security.” Jenny used a napkin to wipe a chunk of cake out of Ben’s hair. “I wasn’t sure who she was, but security confirmed her identification and assured me she was the samenurse who came here last night and treated Ben. Don’t worry, without their confirmation, I never would have allowed Ben to eat them.”
Had that thought even crossed my mind?
