Chapter 5 #2
“Team EJ don’t do no corny ass fists bumping.” I held out my open hand, and she giggled, placing hers in mine. “We shake on it.” Her hand was so soft, I almost didn’t want to let it go. I thought she knew it too because she didn’t pull away immediately after the shake.
“You mind if I cook something for dinner?” She glanced toward the stove. “I can whip him up a quick snack for when he wakes up too.”
I raised a brow. “You sure? I didn’t expect to have you in the kitchen on your first day. But if you insist, do ya thang.”
“I don’t mind at all. I love to cook. What’s his favorite meal?”
“Oatmeal. But he don’t fuck wit’ nobody oatmeal but my mama’s. I won’t even tell you what he did to me when I tried to make him some.”
She stood from the island. “I’m up for the challenge. Any dinner requests? I mean, you gotta eat too, so you can give me something you both like for that.”
“Steak bites, mashed potatoes, and spinach.”
“Dang, you must’ve been thinkin’ bout that since last night,” she joked.
“I have.”
“Okay. Give me a tour of your cabinets and fridge, and I’m on it.”
It was a good thing that we were fully stocked with everything she needed because she was able to get started right away.
I sat back, watching her wash her hands before moving about the kitchen like the house was her second home.
She was polite, asking before she took out a pot or reached for something we hadn’t already set out.
We talked while she cooked, getting to know each other.
The conversation flowed effortlessly. It wasn’t forced with meaningless words just to fill the silence.
Thyri told me about her son being a star player on his high school basketball team with the potential of being in the league someday. I could tell she was proud of him.
“You have vanilla extract?” she asked while stirring the oatmeal on the stove.
“Cabinet on your right. What’s your backup plan if he don’t like it?” I questioned, as she mixed in a few drops of the vanilla extract.
She turned slightly with a smirk. “You hating already on my first full day?”
“Hey,” I said with my hands up. “I’m just saying EJ will spit that shit out if he not fucking wit’ it. He did it to me, and I ain’t looked at oatmeal the same since.” I shook my head, thinking back to the surgical clean up I had to do.
Laughing, she turned the stove off. “I don’t need a backup plan, Enzo. I got this. Trust me.”
Her laughter did something to the room. The only way I could explain it was the feeling of a void being filled, oddly enough. Hearing my phone ring from the living room, I got up to answer it. Seeing Aura’s name on the caller ID, I took the call in my room.
“What’s good?” I spoke, closing the door behind me.
“Work,” he replied. “You busy?”
“How long is the job?”
“Are you busy?” he repeated.
“Does it matter? You called for a reason. How long is the job?”
“A few hours. Meet at the diner in an hour to go over details.”
“Copy.”
Ending the call, I grabbed my personal phone to call my mother. I knew she was gon’ get on my ass about the last minute call, but I needed her.
“Daddy,” I heard EJ call out to me.
“Here I come, E.”
After a few rings, her phone went to voicemail. I called again, placing the phone on speaker, as I changed into a pair of black jeans, black hoodie, and pulled a pair of field boots out the closet. Again, the phone went to voicemail. This time, I left a message for her to call me back.
“Daddyyy!” EJ yelled out again impatiently.
Walking out of my room, I met Thyri making her way down the hall.
“May I?” she asked, stopping in front of EJ’s door.
“Go head.”
She pushed the door open, and EJ’s head whipped in our direction.
“Hey, EJ,” she greeted.
“Hi, Tyri.” He smiled, showing his small teeth.
He remembered her name. That meant something.
“I hungry.” He rubbed his stomach, making Thyri laugh.
“Her name is Thyri, EJ. Thyri is your new nanny. She’s gonna watch you when Daddy not home.”
“I made you oatmeal,” she said. “You wanna try it out?”
“Yes!” he replied, excited.
“Okay, come on.” She held her hand out to him, and he went to her without hesitation.
I watched from the entryway, as she propped him up in his booster seat at the island and placed a bowl in front of him. I silently prayed that he didn’t vomit. Leaning over the island, she handed him the spoon and a napkin while grinning.
“EJ,” she spoke in a soft tone, “if you don’t like, you can spit it out in this napkin, okay?”
Examining the oatmeal, he nodded feverishly.
Thyri glanced up at me, flashing a quick smile, and crossed her fingers. EJ ate a spoonful, twisted his mouth as he chewed, then took another. We both looked on in silence, me wondering how she’d cracked the oatmeal code and Thyri basking in her first win on her first day.
“It’s good, huh?” She pushed further for confirmation.
EJ gave her a thumbs up and a head nod.
“Looks like Grandma got competition.”
“Nah.” She giggled. “Not competition. Teamwork makes the dream work, remember?”
I smirked and nodded. “That’s what they say. But I gotta make a quick run. Something came up. I’m waiting on the call back from Moms, so she can come and hold him down, while I’m gone.”
“Oh, okay. I can stay until you get back. I can work on dinner, hang with EJ, and put him to bed if you’re back too late.”
“You sure?”
I studied her face, and she flashed a genuine, confident smile. “Positive. My son isn’t home, so EJ will really be keeping me company. If you still wanna have your mom come, that’s fine too.”
“Aight. That’ll work. If I’m out too long, I’ll give you a call.”
“Sounds good.”
Walking over to EJ, I ruffled his head. “Daddy be back, aight? You’re gonna stay with Thyri.”
“Okay. I finish, Daddy. More please.” He held up his empty bowl, and Thryi took it from him.
“I got you. Tell Daddy we got this, EJ. We bout to have some fun.”
“We have fun, Daddy.”
“Save some fun for me too, man. Oh, and Thyri, the code to the alarm is 0627. I’m gonna arm it when I leave out.”
She nodded. “Got it.”
Confident that EJ was in good hands, I grabbed my coat and headed for the door.
“Hey,” she called out, peeking around the corner.
“Wassup?”
“Is he allergic to anything?”
“Nah. He straight.”
“Okay, cool. We’ll be here when you get back. Be safe.”
The last part of her statement hung in the air and followed me to my car. The thought of a woman waiting at home for me with my son had never crossed my mind… until now.