22. Chapter Two
Chapter Two
Aiden
M y silver F-150 roars down the road, and I roll down the window to feel the breeze blowing off the Gulf of Mexico. The beach is pristine with white sand and water like glass, and with fall just around the corner, tourism is finally starting to slow down. You’d never know it with this intense heat, though. I reach down and crank up my air conditioner to full blast.
“Daddy, can we get ice cream?”
My eyes shift to the rearview mirror, and Kaylee, my seven-year-old daughter, looks at me with the cutest toothy smile as she hugs the giant stuffed unicorn she’s had since birth. She has long, chestnut brown hair that she wears in a side braid and hates cutting, and I’m pretty sure she’d let it grow to her feet if I allowed it. I think about the possibility of her looking like Cousin Itt one day and smile.
“We still have a few more stops, but we can swing by Third Coast Creamery on the way home,” I say, looking back at the road ahead. The beach runs for miles, but Sweet Water only gets a small piece. It amazes me how much there is to do for such a small town. Aside from epic surf and year-round fishing, there’s always some festival or farmer’s market on the weekend.
“Sweet!” Kaylee shouts and pumps a fist before returning her gaze to the tankers in the distance.
The side of my mouth curls up a little. She’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. She’s so smart and funny, but she also has a heart of gold. Of course, she gets most of her good traits from her mom, who we lost three years ago to brain cancer. But I’m proud to announce that the apple didn’t fall too far from the tree. She gets her dry sarcasm from me, and I couldn’t be prouder.
I’ll admit, the last few years have worn me down. Finding my footing as a single dad has been a challenge, but that little ball of sunshine in the backseat helps me forge forward.
Kaylee jumps as my phone rings and starts vibrating on my center console. I grab it and answer. “Hello?
“Um… hey, Aiden.”
It’s a voice I’d recognize from anywhere. “Caroline? Hey. What’s… going on?”