Chapter 12
Twelve
“You have a kid and realize what’s really important. It actually takes pressure off everything. Nothing will come before fatherhood for me, ever in my life.” —Austin Rivers
As Max drove to the barn to pick up Caden, he was more stressed than he’d been in a long time. Having to talk to his son about Chloe was the last thing he felt like doing.
His mom picked up Caden from school and kept him on weekday afternoons, so Max didn’t have to pay for after-school care. Count that as just another of the many ways his parents made his life easier. Usually, Caden’s homework was done by the time Max got there, too, which was an added blessing.
Today, he was also picking up Daisy, who’d spent the day at the barn under the care of his mother, George and Ringo while Max was at work. He would take her to work with him when she got a little older.
Max stepped into the mudroom and was greeted by a rush of boy and dogs.
As always after a long day apart, Max was relieved to see his little boy, to hear about his day and to have the evening together to look forward to. Tonight, he was worried about what he had to tell him and how he would take it.
“You ready to head home, buddy?”
“Yep. I just need to get my backpack and lunch box.” When he took off to do that, Daisy followed him.
“Those two are already best buddies,” Molly said. “Daisy was so happy to see him when he got home.”
“I’m glad it’s working out. Did she behave today?”
“She was great. Dude runs a tight ship and produces well-behaved pets.”
“Thank goodness for that.”
“I was surprised you took the plunge with the dog. I thought you weren’t ready for that.”
“I wasn’t until I was. Thanks for having her at Grammy Camp while I’m working.”
“She’s no trouble. Ringo and George like the company.”
“I’m going to talk to him tonight about Chloe.”
“I wondered what you’d decided to do about that,” Molly said.
“I’m taking your advice and telling him the truth.”
“You can never go wrong with the truth.”
“I hope so.”
“How’d you leave things with Lexi?”
“We’re going to keep in touch and hopefully see each other again soon.” Max looked around the corner to make sure that Caden wasn’t coming back yet. “He was a little chilly to her.”
“Was he? That’s not like him.”
“That’s what I thought, too. Lexi says he’s threatened by her because he’s hardly ever seen me with a woman.”
“Lexi is very wise. Caden could see right away that she means something to you.”
“It worries me that he might not go along with it if Lex and I decide to give it a whirl.”
“If you love her, he will, too. You just need to give him time to get used to her.”
“I guess so.”
“Do you still love her?”
“I think I might.”
“I told your father that I haven’t seen you smile like you did around her since the last time she was here.”
“I haven’t felt that way since her.”
“Feels good, right?”
“Yeah.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Just a lot of things up in the air. She has a doctor’s appointment on Wednesday that she said is routine, but is it ever routine after what she’s been through?”
“Take your lead from her. If she says it’s routine, it’s routine.” Molly paused before she added, “That sweet girl grew into a lovely woman. Your dad and I would be thrilled to see you two back together.”
“That’s good to know.”
“Take it a day at a time. Things will work out the way they’re meant to.” She handed him a bag. “Dinner.”
“In case I forget to tell you every day of my life, you’re the best, and I love you.”
Molly hugged him. “Love you, too, and your little guy, who keeps me laughing.”
“I couldn’t do this without you.”
“I wouldn’t want you to. I get as much as I give from you and your son.”
“Best mom ever.”
“Thanks. You know that means a lot to me.”
“It’s the truth, and numerous other witnesses can attest. Cade! Let’s roll.”
Caden came into the kitchen dragging his backpack, lunch box and coat.
Daisy was right behind him. She came over to say hi to Max.
He bent to scratch her ears. “What do you say to Grammy?”
“Thank you, Grammy. See you tomorrow at pickup.”
She bent to kiss Caden. “I’ll be there.” To Max, she said, “Call me later, if necessary.”
“Thanks. For everything.”
“You got it, pal.”
He drove home thinking again how lucky he was to have his mom and the rest of the family supporting him.
Whatever she’d made for dinner smelled incredible, and he couldn’t wait to taste it.
Nine days out of ten, she had dinner ready for them when he went to pick up Caden, another thing that made life so much easier for him than it would be otherwise.
“Can we play with my new toys tonight, Dad?”
“Yep. And this week, we’re making a pile to donate, okay?”
“Okay.”
Years ago, he’d begun teaching him that not all boys and girls were as lucky as he was, and he needed to share the toys he didn’t play with anymore with other kids.
It was important to Max that Caden always know how fortunate he was and to pay it forward by giving back to others.
With as many aunts and uncles as Caden had buying him gifts for every occasion, that was a lesson Max felt was important, and he knew his siblings felt the same way.
When they got home, he let Caden and Daisy run around outside for a little bit before he brought them in to wash up and eat.
Over dinner, which was rigatoni with sausage and his mom’s homemade sauce, Max waited for an opportunity to talk to him about Chloe.
“Hey, Dad?”
“What’s up?”
“Are you going to marry that girl Lexi who was at my party?”
“Uh, I don’t know. We’re just kind of talking and maybe dating a bit now. She lives in Texas.”
“Oh, good.”
“Why?”
Caden wrinkled his nose. “I don’t like her.”
Max was shocked to hear him say that. “What? Why? You like everyone.”
“Not everyone. I don’t like her.”
“Caden… Come on. Be nice. I like her.”
He shrugged. “That doesn’t mean I hafta.”
“It would mean a lot to me if you’d give her a chance. She’s been nothing but nice to you. She hadn’t even met you and she got you a birthday present.”
“She did that so you would like her more.”
“That’s not true. She wanted to give you something you’d really like.”
“I guess.”
“I want you to be nice to her. I mean it. I’d be very disappointed if you were rude to any of my friends. You got me?”
“Yeah, okay.”
Jeez, Max hadn’t seen that coming, especially when he had something else he needed to talk to Caden about. He forced himself to press on with that, even though he was still shocked by what Caden had said about Lexi. “So there’s one more gift you need to open.”
Caden had sauce on his cheeks, which only made him cuter than he already was. “Who’s it from?”
Here goes, Max thought. “Your mother.”
Caden gave him a curious look. “I thought I didn’t have a mother.”
“Everyone has a mother. Yours decided a long time ago that it would be better for you if she wasn’t in your life. Do you remember us talking about that before?”
He nodded. “You said it wasn’t because she doesn’t love me.”
“Right, it was that she didn’t feel like she could be a good mom to you.”
“But she sent me a birthday present?”
“She did.”
“Can I open it?”
“I’ll get it while you clear the table.”
Max brought the box to the kitchen and set it on the floor next to the table.
“Did you already open it?”
“Not the present, just the box.”
“Is it okay if I open it?”
“Sure.” Max helped him to wrestle the large, wrapped package out of the box it had been shipped in and put it on the table that Caden had quickly cleared.
He glanced up at his father, uncertainty etched into his cute little face.
“She sent a note with it. Let’s read that first.” He opened the envelope addressed to Caden and handed it to him to read out loud.
“‘Dear Caden, happy seventh birthday! I can’t believe you are already seven! I want you to know that I think of you every day and hope you are happy and doing well. I know I have no right to ask to see you, but I’d love to if you can find it in your heart to forgive me for not being there for you these last seven years.
It’s up to you and your dad, but I’d really like to see you sometime.
Your dad has my number, and I hope to hear from you. In the…’ What is that word?”
“Meantime.”
“Oh. ‘In the meantime, I hope you had a wonderful birthday. With love from your mother, Chloe.’” He looked up at Max. “She wants to see me.”
“So I heard. How do you feel about that?”
Caden shrugged. “Fine, I guess.” He eyed the gift.
“It’s okay, buddy. You can open it.”
He tore the paper off the box and gasped at the picture of the remote-controlled truck they’d seen in a store in Rutland a while back. “That’s the one you said was too expensive!”
“So it is.” Max silently fumed over Chloe intruding on their perfect life by sending an over-the-top gift and asking to see their son after years of silence.
“Can I play with it?” Caden asked.
“Let me see if we have the batteries we need.”
“They’re taped to the box. Look!”
Max tipped his head and saw the batteries. “Well, that’s handy.” He spent half an hour extracting the truck from the packaging and putting batteries in the truck and the remote controller, which he handed to Caden when he was finished.
The minute Caden pushed a button, the truck roared to life, which made Daisy bark and snarl at the invader.
Caden’s belly laugh was the best thing Max had heard all day.
As the truck was run from one end of the house to the other and in circles in the living room, Daisy chased after it, barking like a fiend while Caden laughed his head off.
Max watched the scene unfold as bitterness churned in his gut.
“It’s really cool, right, Dad?”
“Sure is.”
Caden stepped into the kitchen and held out the remote controller. “You want to try it?”
“Maybe tomorrow.”
“Are you okay?” Caden asked, his white-blond brows furrowed with concern.
The best thing about having a son was getting to play with him. Max always wanted to try whatever new toy Caden was excited about, and they loved playing video games together.
“Yeah, buddy, I’m good. But let’s talk some more about your mom wanting to see you. Do you want me to set something up with her?”
“How do you feel about it? I mean, you know her, and I don’t.”
He was so smart sometimes that it took Max’s breath away. “I feel conflicted.”
“What does that mean?”
“I’m not sure how to feel. She wrote me a letter and told me that she’s done a lot of work on herself and is in a much better place than she was when she left.
I’m glad to hear that, for her sake, but I’m not sure what it means for us.
” Max realized he was probably saying too much, but he was still struggling to explain this situation to himself, let alone a seven-year-old.
“I talked to Grammy and Gramps about it, and they said I should be honest with you, tell you she’d asked to see you and let you decide what you want to do. ”
“Um, well, I guess it would be cool to finally get to meet her. I mean, all the other kids have moms, so it would be nice to know mine.”
Max’s heart broke at his sweet innocence. “Then that’s what we’ll do.”
“Only if it’s okay with you, too. I don’t want you to be upset or anything.”
“I’m not upset, buddy. I just want to do what’s right for you.”
“You always do.”
“You think so?”
“Yes! I have the coolest dad ever. All my friends think so.”
If he’d ever received a better compliment, Max couldn’t recall when. He held out his arms to his son, who came to him and surrounded him with so much love. “No matter what happens, it’ll always be you and me against the world, right?”
“Yep.” Caden pulled back to initiate the elaborate handshake they’d developed over the years.
“Love you.”
“Love you, too.”
“Now go take a shower.”
“Do I gotta?”
“Same question every night followed by the same answer.”
“Dad?”
“Yes?”
“When will I get to see my mom?”
“I’m not sure yet. I’ll call her tomorrow and set up a time.”
“Okay.”
“If you take a shower and use soap, I’ll let you stay up to play for a little while longer, and there might be ice cream, too.”
“Yes!” Caden’s fist pump was the last thing Max saw as he flew out of the kitchen to shower while Max did the dishes and wiped down the counters and table.
That had gone as well as could be expected, he supposed.
Caden had processed the information and decided what he wanted to do.
It was only natural that he’d be curious about the mother who’d been absent from his entire life, and Max knew it was in his son’s best interest to have a relationship with her if that was possible. But he didn’t have to like it.
And what the hell was he going to do about Caden disliking Lexi?