“This isn’t a joke,” I said. I realized there was brownie all over my hands and that it did make my point a little less effective. “It’s—what if I mess it up?”
“Nash, you’re like—the most naturally gifted dad I’ve ever known,” she said. “Don’t tell Andy.”
“You’re flattering me to make me feel better.”
“I’m not.” Claire cut another brownie. It was still messy, still too hot, and she hissed and dropped it back into the pan. “Listen—Nell is a good girl who cares about you. She’s little, I know…but the thing she’s most concerned about is that you’re happy. She adores you, and maybe the only person she adores more is Maggie. So when Nell comes back, you’re going to sit her down and tell her that you and Maggie are together. I mean…she already asked.”
I laughed in surprise. “What now?”
“Last weekend when you were tending bar and she was over for the night,” Claire said. “She asked if teachers can be someone’s mom. I told her of course, lots of teachers are moms, but it was very clear she had a specific teacher in mind.”
All of a sudden, Sammy started barking like mad—and I heard the front door open a second later, then Andy’s voice and the kids. “We’re home!” Andy called, then there were little feet running to us, lured in by the smell of brownies.
Rosie was first, very nearly slipping on the tile floor. She caught herself, though, coming up to the table with wide eyes.
“Mommmm,” she groaned. “You ate the first brownies?!”
“Well, I did make them,” Claire teased. “And I saved you the best corner.”
Rosie was still complaining when Nell hurtled in next, her eyes finding me right away. She flung herself into my arms and I caught her, hanging on tight. “Daddy!”
“Hey, sweetpea,” I said, breathing into her hair. I set her down on her feet and put my hands on her shoulders. “How was the park?”
“It was good, but I couldn’t bring Gerald so I wanted to come back,” she said. “You came to get me?”
“I sure did,” I said. “I wanted to tell you something important. How about you get a brownie then we can go talk in the living room?”
Nell looked at Claire. “Is it okay for me to eat in the living room?”
“Sure, honey,” Claire said. “I’ll get you a plate and a napkin. Just make sure not to give any to Sammy.”
We went through the motions; Claire got Nell all set, gave me the plate, and Nell led the way into the living room. Gerald was on the couch, where Nell sat right next to him, and I passed her the plate. She started to eat the brownie so delicately that I doubted she even needed a napkin.
And all of a sudden I was just…speechless.
Nell was already halfway done with her brownie when she had to speak up. “Are you okay, Dad?”
I nodded. “Yeah,” I said. “I’m actually really, really good.”
“Because you had a brownie?”
“Yeah,” I chuckled. Then: “Well…partially. No.”
She looked at me, eyes sparkling like she was bracing for bad news. Like when I had to tell her her mom wasn’t coming for her birthday again.
I had to do this. And I needed to do itnow.
“Remember how Maggie had breakfast at our house yesterday?” I asked.
Her face immediately brightened and she nodded. “Yep!”
“That was fun, wasn’t it?”
“She makes good pancakes,” Nell confirmed.
“She does,” I agreed. “She makes really good pancakes.” I leaned forward, elbows on my knees, looking at my daughter. “So here’s the thing, Nell. You know how some of your friends have a mom and a dad at home?”
She nodded, very serious now.
