16. Ava
Chapter 16
Ava
The knock on the door makes me jump out of my skin; I’m feeling so nervous about this weekend. I open the door, and Emmy rushes through my legs.
“Finn!” she yells. His face drops, and my heart breaks a little for him.
“Emmy!” he yells back, brushing off the disappointment that I haven’t told her who he is as he picks her up and swings her around. He tries to lower her to the ground, obviously a little dizzy, but she wraps her legs and arms around him.
Her little fingers trace around his face until she stops her finger above his cheekbone and looks at his eyes. “I like you because we’ve got the same color eyes. Jacob likes my eyes.”
“Jacob is the boy she is going to marry,” I say, tickling her from behind. Emmy giggles. “But not until she is thirty, and then I still might not let you leave me.”
Finn laughs. “At least that’s a long time to plan the wedding.”
“Put me down. I drew you a picture.”
“Manners, Emmy,” I chastise.
“Pleeease and thank youuu,” Emmy drawls out her words as Finn carefully places her on the floor. She runs off yelling that she has to find her picture.
“She needed a car seat,” I say, pointing at the seat I borrowed from Jacob’s dad; he doesn’t need it again until next week.
“I bought one,” he says and smiles. I return the smile, happy he’s taking her needs very seriously.
“Impressed,” I say.
“I want you to trust me with her. I know how precious she is,” he says.
Stella pops her head around the door; she smiles our way. “Hi, how are you?”
“Good, thanks.”
“And your mom?”
Finn’s eyes lower to the floor; he shrugs. “Brave, but it isn’t looking good. I’m hoping meeting Emmy will give her something to fight for. She’s always wanted grandchildren, even when I was too young to have kids.”
“Yeah, I hope you all have a lovely weekend, creating nice memories,” she says, which makes me smile because Stella isn’t Finn’s biggest advocate.
I feel feverish when Finn slips into the driver’s seat after strapping Emmy into her car seat. It isn’t only because he looks gorgeous in his casual wear, a smart pair of black jeans and a slim-fitting sweater which he has pushed the sleeves to his elbows. His arms aren’t big; he’s lean, more athletic than gym bunny. But what makes my heart melt is him looking so damn responsible and loving as he plants a kiss on her forehead and then pulls the straps to make sure they’re locked in place.
He presses a finger on the button to start the car’s engine. It roars to life as his gaze sweeps over me.
Emmy starts watching a movie on the iPad he gifted her. Loaded with movies, all animals, of course.
I melt against the seat; it’s seeing him making little glances at her through his rearview mirror with a small smile on his face, and I know he loves her.
“You can tell her,” I whisper. “I think you’ve earned it.”
He looks at me with tears in his eyes and nods lightly.
We don’t talk much on the journey to his parents’ house, so when he leans over and laces his fingers between mine, my eyes meet his. He chews his lip nervously. “Will you do me a huge favor?” he asks a moment later. “For my mother’s sake, will you pretend we’re together?”
“Finn, she must know we aren’t.”
“I told her we were trying again, and her eyes sparkled. She just wants me to be happy, and if she thinks we’re together, that’ll make her happy.”
“I’m not sure lying to her is a good thing.” I sigh. “But okay.”
“Thank you. It wouldn’t be a lie if you agreed to give me another chance.”
“And we both know how that worked out last time.”
“I made a mistake; I thought you were back with Jameson.”
“I’m not even friends with him anymore.”
“He claimed you were marrying him.”
“He also worked out you were Emmy’s dad and wanted to adopt her before you found out.”
Finn glares at me, a displeased look that I swear in another dimension I would see fire breath out of his mouth.
The car pulls to a stop in a parking lot a little over an hour into the journey.
“Let’s get cake,” Finn says when he turns to Emmy. She’s sound asleep, still gripping her iPad. “Should we wake her?” he asks. “I wanted a coffee and have a chat before we get there.”
“I’ll carry her into the cafe, and we’ll get a coffee. She never stays asleep on an afternoon for long.”
“Is she not too heavy for you?” Finn asks, and I know he’s desperate to take her.
“She’s fine.”
We sip a silent cup of coffee each; the atmosphere is strange between us. Emmy is still asleep with her head on my lap and her body sprawled across the red fake leather bench.
“How do I tell her?”
“I don’t know. Wait until she wakes, and we’ll try to get there together. But if she looks upset about it, we have to stop.”
He nods. “I don’t want to upset her.”
“Only tell her when you’re ready to,” I say.
“I’m ready.”
We both continue to sip our coffees.
“Mommy, where’s my movie?” Emmy asks, pushing her head off my lap and gazing around the cafe.
“The movie is waiting for you. Would you like something to eat?”
Emmy’s eyes widen as she looks at the fridge full of cake. “Can I look?” she asks.
Finn jumps up and holds his arms out to her. Emmy jumps into his arms, and the two of them look at the goodies in the fridge. The smile rises on my face as I watch her taking her time deciding what she wants. Finn turns around and laughs at me.
I shrug my shoulders. I know exactly what she’s like.
“Look at this cake, Mommy. It’s so pretty.”
She’s picked a yellow cake, which is her favorite color, and the grin on her face is quite special.
“And a sandwich,” Finn says. “I did try to balance it.”
I smile at him. “Thank you.”
As Emmy eats her cake, Finn glances at me, and I at him. Emmy is oblivious as she tucks in.
“Emmy,” I begin slowly. “You know Jacob doesn’t live with his daddy?”
“No, only when his mom lets him,” she says, the cake balancing precariously in her fingers as she goes to take another bite.
“I’m sure that isn’t the case,” I say. “His daddy is a doctor, so he sees him on different days, that’s all.”
Emmy shrugs a shoulder. “I like his daddy because he lets him go to the park.”
“Would you like a daddy who takes you to the park?” I ask.
“Aunt Stella takes me,” she says, staring at the cake and taking a bite before I ask another question. She stops and looks at me. “Jacob said I don’t have a daddy, not like he does.”
I swallow, my eyes dropping closed for a moment. “You do.”
Her eyes flick to Finn. She knows; she already feels him. Finn’s mouth curls up lightly … nervously.
“And you're going to meet daddy’s family, your family.”
“Is Finn my daddy? Is that why his eyes are like mine?”
“Would you like Finn to be your daddy?”
“Of course, he buys me nice cakes.”
I shake my head. “If we didn’t stop for cake, would you be happy if I said Finn was your daddy?”
“Yessss...” she drawls. “He’s nice.”
“He is,” I say, taking a breath, but sometimes my daughter is a nightmare. “Can Finn... Daddy have a cuddle?”
“I gave him snuggles before he was my daddy because I like him,” she says. “Do you cuddle Daddy?”
I burst out laughing, not realizing this would be so difficult. “Yes, I cuddle Daddy too.”