Chapter 15 – Jordie #2
I giggle as he steps back and lets me look through. Matching his energy, I hold up a penguin outfit and pretend to scrutinize it. “Very distinguished, but I believe I require something with a bit more panache this evening.”
He points to a bright-yellow monstrosity. “Can I interest you in a smiley-face motif?”
I tut. “Yellow is so gauche.”
“Mmmm, then I think this might interest you.” He removes a bright-red set and holds it in front of him, gesturing with one dramatic hand at the swirly horn on top of the hood.
“I like to call this one Silly Sprinklepants. As you can see, it embodies the magical spirit of the unicorn, which I think you can appreciate.”
Pretending to clutch my pearls, I gasp, “Silly Sprinklepants is simply divine. I must have it.”
His grin gleams white from his muck-covered face. “And you haven’t even seen the best part.” He turns the red fuzzy outfit around to reveal a brightly colored rainbow tail. “The pièce de résistance.”
My body is shaking with laughter as I take the unicorn outfit from him. “Sold!”
His smile fades into something more serious. “Thanks again for staying, Jordie. Reece has been seeing the hype commercials the league is putting out, and she’s decided you’re her favorite player, so this really means a lot to her.” He pauses. “And to me.”
“You seem like a really good dad, Phoenix.”
“I try.” He points to his face, still handsome even beneath the thick layer of mud. “I know this all may seem ridiculous, but Reece doesn’t have a mom in her life, so I try to be… everything for her.”
I can hardly breathe at the vulnerability in his voice. This man is nothing like what I thought. He’s just a single dad doing his best to make his daughter happy.
“I didn’t have a mom growing up either, but I did have two wonderful fathers. I don’t think it matters, as long as the kid feels loved and supported.”
Phoenix’s lips curve upward, leaving small cracks at the corners. “I’m glad you had them. How long have they been together?”
I return his smile. “They’re not a couple.
Dad and Pops were both married to my mother at different times, and when she left, they shared custody of us four kids.
” My fingers stroke lightly over the softness of the pajamas as I remember.
“We spent one week at Dad’s house, and then one week at Pops’s.
It was nice having two homes, and it worked out well for our parents too.
If one of them was sick or had to travel, the other was there for backup. ”
“That’s an amazing story, Jordie.”
I wonder what happened to Reece’s mother. Did she die or simply leave like mine did? But I feel it would be rude to ask.
“I guess it is, though it was just my reality growing up. I don’t feel like I missed anything by having two fathers and no mother.
” With a shrug, I add, “I don’t like to assign traditional mom and dad roles, but if I had to, I would say Dad was more of the father, and Pops took on more of the gentler stuff.
Dad’s a mechanic, so he taught me to check the oil in my car and change a tire.
Pops is a college English professor, so he was big on reading and education.
I feel like it made us all pretty well-rounded. ”
“That’s what I want for Reece as well, but there’s just me.” His head rocks side to side a couple times. “Though that’s not completely true. I do have my mother to help out. And my little sister, Perri, just graduated from college, so she’ll be around more.”
Perri. His sister.
Images of the blonde woman from Phoenix’s office that first day come back to me. No wonder he seemed familiar and affectionate with her. She’s his damn sister, not his lover. I feel like an ass on so many levels for jumping to conclusions and acting cold toward Phoenix.
So, without thinking twice about it, I step forward and wrap him in a hug. “You’re doing a great job with Reece. You obviously love her, and she’ll always remember that her dad dressed up in a ridiculous pink bunny outfit to have spa nights with her.”
His chuckle rumbles his chest beneath my cheek, and his long arms wrap around me. He’s warm and very… firm, and the embrace feels better than it has any right to.
“Thanks, Jordie. I’m doing my best, but sometimes it helps to hear that I’m doing something right.”
Embarrassed at my impromptu show of emotions, I step away, my body suddenly cold at the absence of his bigger one. “Thanks for letting me stay and intrude on your evening with your daughter.”
A strand of hair has escaped my ponytail, and Phoenix sweeps it away from my face, his fingers brushing against the shell of my ear. My eyes are glued to his, and despite his girly headband, muddy face, and goofy pajamas, I feel an intense attraction toward him.
“We’re happy to have you. We do this once a month, so feel free to come back anytime.”
“Do I need to bring my own pajamas?” I tease. “Like a BYOP party?”
He grins, further cracking his mask. “If you want, though I don’t mind sharing mine with you.”
It seems intimate, and I don’t hate it.
“I think I’ll wear the tiger-striped ones next time,” I announce.
“Excellent choice.” He backs toward the doorway. “I’ll just let you get changed. Do you want me to wait out here for you?”
“I can find my way back,” I tell him, and I’m pretty sure that’s true, though I could probably get lost if I got turned around in this massive home.
Ten minutes later, I’m downstairs with my very own mud mask on my face. I sit on the couch to let it dry while Reece and Phoenix debate which movie to watch. I’m surprised they’re selecting from an actual stash of DVDs instead of streaming something.
They finally decide on the classic The Fox and the Hound, and Phoenix gets it queued up while Reece and I wash our faces.
“Wow, our skin looks so pretty,” she muses, kneeling on the countertop of a downstairs bathroom to look at us in the mirror. Then she turns and plops down on her butt to face me. “Daddy said it’s important to be prettier on the inside than on the outside.”
I smile at this precious kiddo. “That’s true.”
“And that if we comp-a-ment somebody on how they look, we should also comp-a-ment them about something else too.” She peers up at me with her big blue eyes. “I think you’re really fun, and you’re an amazing football player, Jordie.”
My heart is officially a mass of gelatin wobbling around in my chest. “Well I think you have a kind heart for inviting me to your spa night, Reece. And you have the brightest personality that lights up the room.”
Reece beams up at me. “Daddy is right. That made me feel happy inside.”
“Daddy’s always right.” The voice comes from behind me, and I look up into the mirror to see Phoenix leaning one shoulder against the doorframe with the softest smile on his face.
This man… this man is truly teaching his daughter her worth. That she’s more than an adorable nose, chubby cheeks, and blue eyes. And that makes him all the more attractive to me.
Which is a very dangerous sentiment.
Phoenix is nine years my senior and a single dad. We’re at completely different phases of our lives. It would never work.
So I pick up Reece and smile at her very attractive father. “We’ll get out of your way so you can wash your face.”
In the living room with Reece on my hip, I wander around and look at the various family photos scattered about. The little one keeps up a running commentary on who everyone is.
“And this one is Uncle Helix. He’s Daddy’s twin.
I stay at his house sometimes on Tuesdays, and we cook and swim and have so much fun.
And that one is Uncle Remi. He lives in London, and I got to go there once.
Have you ever been to London? It’s in England, and you have to fly on a plane to get there. Have you ever been on a plane, Jordie?”
I grin at her excitement. “I have been on a plane, but I’ve never been to London. Did you like it there?”
Her little bow-shaped lips curve up, showing off the dimples she shares with her father.
“I liked seeing Uncle Remi, and I liked the scones at the bakery, but I didn’t really like the tea.
Did you know apartments in England are called flats?
But I don’t know why because there were stairs, and stairs aren’t flat. ”
We continue until Phoenix returns and announces it’s time to eat.
“Are you sure you have enough?” I whisper, following him to the kitchen. “I know you didn’t expect me for dinner.”
“I made chili,” he says. “By law, when making chili in Texas, you must make enough for an army.” He flashes me a faux-apologetic smile. “I don’t make the rules, Jordie; I just follow them.”
The Hale kitchen is nothing less than I would have expected, massive, with high-end appliances, including a vibrant teal La Cornue range. I only recognize it because I saw a celebrity chef talking about the craftsmanship of La Cornue on TV once. It costs more than my truck is worth.
The countertops are a muted teal quartz with tiny gold flecks, and a large kitchen island with a double waterfall sink takes up the center of the space.
I watch as father and daughter go about their mealtime prep routine.
Phoenix gives Reece age-appropriate tasks, like getting the cheese from the refrigerator, that make her feel like she’s part of the process.
“We’re having Frito pies,” Reece announces as I grate the cheese. “You have to eat it in the bag because it tastes better that way.”
“I agree,” I tell her. “When I was little and used to go watch my brother play hockey, the arena served Frito pies in the bag. That was my favorite thing to eat there.”
Phoenix slices open individual bags of the corn chips, lengthwise, and we take turns adding our chili and cheese into our bags. Phoenix and I also add chopped onion to ours, but Reece declines, deeming onions “icky-poo-poo.”