13. King
It’s not very often that you thank a stomach bug, but I am thankful for the virus that brought my woman and kids to my house two days ago. I’ve barely gotten any sleep, but I’ve never been happier. Sparrow has let me take care of her, I’m choosing to not think that the only reason is because she had a fever and couldn’t think straight.
Am I really happy that it took them being sick to get them back here?
I carry the plates of toast and oatmeal into the living room. I have a feeling my daughter is milking this for all it’s worth, but who am I to deny her the princess treatment? I think Loch felt better yesterday, but she’s getting used to me waiting on her hand and foot.
“Daddy?” Loch slowly asks.
“Yes, Princess Loch?”
“Do you love my mom?”
Setting the plates of food on the coffee table, I sit down next to Loch. This feels like a conversation that needs to be had without breakfast in my hands. “More than anything. Just like I love you and Telle,” I honestly tell my daughter.
“That’s good because we love you too. We need you, so don’t leave again, ‘kay?”
I’ve heard of the saying, ‘kids say the darndest thing’ but having it turned on me wasn’t something I ever expected. Loch grabs a piece of toast before she snuggles into my side. Having my daughter next to me feels right, like the past eight years haven’t happened.
Except they did, and I have a lot of ground to cover to make them feel comfortable with me.
“Never. I’m never leaving you guys again,” I have never considered myself to be a good man, but for them, I will be. I will be here every day; I won’t miss any more birthdays or holidays.
“Dad, I’m hungry.” I freeze as Telle calls out from behind me. He has only called me King, and I don’t want to do or say anything to pop this bubble.
“Dad made us toast and oatmeal, Telle!” Loch responds to her brother.
“Cool.” Telle plops down next to me after grabbing two pieces of toast.
Ace and River come stomping in the living room, Ace speaking on the phone. “Yeah, I’m on my way there to put up new cameras. I fucking know that, Cam. Yeah, see ya.”
“What’s the problem?”
“Someone broke out some windows at the motel last night. But the back camera has been broken, and I forgot to replace it. Cam’s up my ass,” Ace grumbles in return.
Fuck. Ace should have replaced the camera right away, and looking at his tight face, he knows he fucked up.
“You don’t need to say it, King. We can’t all be business owner extraordinaires.” The thing about Ace is that he’s been like this since he was a kid. When his anxiety gets high, his depression starts to take over, and the result is that he seems like he is pissed off at the world. He isn’t, but he doesn’t know how to explain his emotions.
“Any of the other cameras pick anything up?” Before Ace can respond, Sparrow walks into the room. Turning my head, I try to hide my smile. Sparrow in my basketball shorts and an old T-shirt is a sight I could get used to.
“No. I’ll see you guys later.” He stomps out of the room, and a few moments later, I hear the front door slam closed. He’s going to be an ass the rest of the day.
“Is everything okay?” Sparrow softly says from next to Telle.
“Uncle Ace is pissed because of the motel, Uncle Cam yelled at Uncle Ace, Uncle Ace yelled at Dad.” My head whips towards my son, but I have to bite the inside of my cheek when I catch Sparrow’s expression.
“Teller…thank you for the morning update, but don’t say pissed . Pissed is an adult word, you could have said upset.”
“Sorry, Mom.”
Sparrow leans over and picks up a piece of toast before slathering it in a layer of oatmeal. She takes a big bite before looking up and notices that everyone is staring at her. “Stop staring! It’s good, I swear,” she says before bursting into laughter.
We both know it isn’t good, but I let it slide; we used to have to eat random things to make a full meal, and toast and oatmeal was one of them.
She’ll never have to go without again.
The kids crash out on the couch while watching a movie, so I go search for Sparrow. She’s been in my bed for the past two days, too out of it from her fever to realize that I’ve been sleeping in the same bed.
Small wins are still a win.
Finding Sparrow in the kitchen, I lean against the doorway and watch her clean as she talks to River.
“You know King is a good man, Sparrow. Give him a chance,” my brother tells Sparrow, like giving me a chance is the easiest thing to do. I’m about to interrupt when she responds.
“I know he is, River. You all grew up to be good men. I just don’t know what type of person I grew up to be if I’m not in fight or flight mode.”
Deciding to let her off the hook, I clear my throat, bringing attention to myself. Sending an aggravated look towards my youngest brother, he stands from the island. “Alright, I need to get ready for my client. It’s going to be a late one, see ya tomorrow.” River quickly walks out the back door, leaving Sparrow and I alone.
“You took care of us,” Sparrow softly says, so low that I have to strain to hear her.
“I did. And I’ll continue to take care of you for the rest of my life,” I tell her honestly.
“How can you know that?” Sparrow whispers.
“I know that because I've loved you since I was fifteen years old. I lost you when I was seventeen, and I’m never letting you go again. I was stupid once; I won’t make that mistake again.”
Sparrow slowly turns and faces me. “Tell me about this house.”
That wasn’t what I thought she was going to say, but if I want her and the kids to live here with me, I need to give her something. “You know how we were raised.” I wait to continue until she nods her head. “Once we got older and it was time to get out of Dad’s house, we didn’t want to live separately. I needed to know that they were okay. Ace and River struggle with different things, and it’s always been up to me to make sure they're okay. So, Cam and I were driving around one day, and I stopped here. It took us three years to get it how we wanted it.”
She stares at me for a moment long enough to make me fidget under her gaze and question what I've just admitted.
“Hey, King?”
“Yeah, Bird?” Her cheeks are flushed, like whatever she is about to say embarrasses her.
“Do you think you can give me a hug?” Sparrow softly asks.
Not wasting a single second, after three big steps, I am wrapping my arms around my bird. When we were younger and she would feel herself getting overwhelmed, she would want a hug. Even though she is over a foot shorter than me, she fits perfectly in my arms.
“Thank you, King,” Sparrow murmurs against my chest.
Silly woman doesn’t realize I would do anything she asked.