Chapter 36 - Ezra
Daddy’s home.
I woke Callie around five wanting her again. I had to prove to myself this wasn’t just a dream. Christ, I will never stop wanting her. She drifted back off to sleep afterwards with a smile on her face but I stayed up to shower and get dressed. I have a very important meeting this morning, one of the most important ones of my life.
Drawing a deep breath, I knock on his bedroom door. Callie said he’d be up by now.
He’s groggy, still in pajamas, as he opens the door. Sleepy eyes and sleepy little voice. “Ezra?”
“Good morning, Bump. Would you want to have pancakes with me?”
Slowly, he nods.
Then, an instant later, he’s hurtling toward me at full speed, making some sound between a hoot and a sob as I catch him. Hugging him tightly, I’m overcome with emotion as well. “I’ve missed you, Bump,” I croak around the lump in my throat.
He hugs me and then pulls back to look up at me, expression serious. “Don’t go away again, okay? You have breakfast with me and you stay, Ezra.”
“Okay.”
“Does Mama know you’re here?”
“She knows.She invited me.”
He nods. “You left and I was sad.” His bottom lip puckers and I feel like dying when I see that so I hug him yet again.
“I’m sorry. Every day, I’ve wanted to be here with you, Bump.”
“You promise?”
“I promise.Cross my heart.”
His smile blooms to life, reminding me so much of his mother with the way he lifts his chin and giggles. I still see flashes of my brother as a kid in him but I see me in those green eyes. Wyatt is part of all of us and he’s also his own person, a person I’ll devote my life to raising into a man and loving for all my days.
After I carry him to the kitchen, we work together, stirring batter and heating up the griddle. I have him standing on the stool caged between my arms, my heart as ready to burst as it was last night when Callie told me she loved me. How did I get this lucky?
My eyes can’t stop drinking in the sight of him. I’d swear he’s grown an inch since I last saw him. Nothing has ever felt more like home than being in this little kitchen making breakfast with this boy. His mother is it for me, she’s been it for me for years even when I thought I’d never see her again. Now that I’ve found her again and discovered him, they’re my everything. No money, no fame or success could take their place. I thank Callie for making her own choice years ago and having this child. I thank her for being so strong. But, they’ve got me to lean on, too, now. And, I’ll never let them go.
We talk about simple things. He tells me about Rex, the nice driver with the dinosaur name. I tell him Rex is going to be around for a while and ask if that’s okay. He says sure with all a child’s nonchalant acceptance.
“I’m going to be around, too, but I’m going to be around for keeps, Wyatt.”
“Like my daddy?”
“Yeah.”
“Pop-Pop says it’s a big job.”
“He’s right but that’s the job I want. I want to marry your mama. I love her and I love you. I want to be your father. Would that… would you be okay with that?”
I wait with bated breath for his response until he solemnly nods. “I want that, Ezra. I want you to stay with us. Can we live in your fancy place?”
Chuckling, I tell him we can live anywhere we want. “A place with a pool or a big backyard or anything you and your mother want, Bump, I’ll make that happen. But there’s one thing we need to do.”
“What’s that?”
“Buy some more hummingbird feeders. I think your mother would like that.”
He nods rapidly as we dish up our pancakes. We agree to take some to Callie in bed, wanting to surprise her.
While I’m pouring juice, Wyatt turns thoughtful again. “Mama told me about the man who came. She told me his name. She told me he’s your brother.”
“Yes, he is.”
“She said he lives in Boston. I don’t think he’s coming back here, do you?”
“No, he has some troubles he needs help with. He’s gone to see to that.” I don’t say more. I’m not capable of saying more this morning. Thankfully, Wyatt isn’t expecting more.
“Can I go to work with you today instead of going to preschool, Ezra?” His pleading expression makes me want to say yes instantly but…
“Let’s talk that over with your mother and maybe instead of work or school today, we can all spend the day together, just the three of us.”
“Just the three of us,” he repeats, grinning from ear to ear.