32. Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Two
Juliet
T omorrow, my baby turns seven years old.
I can’t believe it! I still remember when I was pregnant with her.
I used to talk to her throughout the day, telling her about how happy we were going to be and to not worry about a thing. I was going to fix everything for us, and I did well enough to build us a decently comfortable life.
I hope I can keep making her happy. She deserves the world and everything that I can possibly give her.
While Piper plays in the living room with her toys, I do some work on my laptop in the dining room, making sure that the schedule for the landscaper and cleaner is still set. I love this estate, and I want it well taken care of.
I can only hope that Leo doesn’t sell it to some company or some rich person who will treat this place like a vacation home, but it’ll be his decision. I’ll have no say, even if I pretty much grew up here and live here half the time.
My laptop dings with a new email notification. I click on it and open a long email from the local city council.
We are pleased to invite you to the Evergreen Heights Honor Gala because you have given back to your community through donation or volunteering.
This event will honor the people who have helped Evergreen Heights through crises over the past few years, including this year’s snowstorm and last year’s wildfire.
Location and time information follow, including a note that bringing a plus one is allowed and encouraged.
An eager smile lines my lips as I read over the email one more time to soak in the details. I’m definitely going to this, but who will my plus one be? I’m sure Lily and her husband got an email, but I don’t know if they’ll attend or not .
I’m not sure if Leo got an email or not, but he should still go. He has given back to this town too, even if most of it has been more recent..
I don’t want to go alone. I know that.
Noise sounds from the kitchen, and I lean back in my chair to see Leo digging through the pantry for something to snack on.
“Hey, are you doing anything next Friday?” I ask him, taking advantage of my eagerness for a much needed confidence boost.
I don’t even know if this is a good idea.
Leo thinks for a few seconds before shaking his head. “I’ll have to double check my calendar and see if there are any meetings that I need to attend, but I don’t believe so. Why?”
“The city council is throwing a special gala to thank everyone who has helped the town through disasters over the last two years,” I explain to him, nervousness threatening to break through the cracks in my confidence.
He may very well say no .
Leo nods as he opens a crunchy granola bar and bites into it.
“I was invited to attend, and it says I can bring a plus one with me,” I tell him, my speaking starting to slow down as I approach the main point.
Leo’s eyebrow quirks up. I’m sure he can put two and two together and figure out what I’m about to ask him.
I still feel nervous, though. It kind of feels like asking him out, and I’ve already kind of done that with the whole sushi dinner.
Look how well that turned out in the end.
“Would you want to come with me? You have to dress up and everything, but I know you brought a nice suit with you,” I ask him, trying to be casual.
I’m probably failing, though. I can feel the hot blush creeping across my cheeks.
“Really? You want me to come with you?”
“Yeah, I figured it could be…fun. And it would be good for you to come too,” I point out, scrambling for another excuse other than me wanting him by my side.
That’s dangerous territory to cross into.
“People should see you th ere. It’ll be good for whatever you decide to do with the logging company. ”
I also want him to witness how amazing the community is. I doubt that’ll sway him to stay, but any little thing could help.
Leo smiles and nods. “I’ll be your plus one. Thank you for asking me.”
He’s being casual about it. He just sees it as a good opportunity to boost his reputation. That’s all.
“No problem,” I tell him.
Silence trails my words as we stare at each other, waiting for the other to say something first. Why are we like this? It feels like we’re shy teenagers who don’t know what to say to their crush.
“So, I kind of went behind your back and paid the bakery for Piper’s cake.”
My eyes widen. “Leo! You didn’t have to do that. I can pay for her cake.”
Leo shakes his head. “I want to do things for Piper. She’s super cool, and you’ve had seven years to pay for stuff for her. ”
It almost feels like he’s trying to make up for lost time, but he doesn’t even know that he missed out on the first handful of years of her life.
“Leo…” My throat tenses.
“I know. I probably overstepped. I bought her a bunch of balloons and some party platters from that chicken fingers place that she likes,” Leo says with a sheepish grin. “And I might’ve rented that big event gazebo in the park for tomorrow. I just don’t want to cram a bunch of kids in your place.”
My eyes start to sting. He doesn’t even know that Piper is his daughter, and he’s doing all of this for her. It’s like he’s developing an attachment to her.
Why is he doing this if he’s just going to leave?
“You really didn’t have to do all of that, Leo,” I tell him.
It’s just going to hurt that much more when he goes.
“I want to help out,” Leo replies. “And if there’s anything else that I can do, tell me. Don’t try to handle everything yourself.”
I can’t rely on his help if he’s not always going to be here .
I hate being cynical, but it’s a defense mechanism. It’s hard to stop.
“I…”
My words stop coming when I hear a beeping noise outside.
Leo and I share a confused look with each other before hurrying to the foyer and out of the front door.
A big truck backs up toward the backyard.
“Who is that?” Leo asks me.
I shake my head. “No one I know.”
We rush off the porch and follow the truck into the back.
The driver parks and hops out of the truck. “Hey, folks. Is right here fine?”
“Fine for what?” Leo questions him.
“To inflate the bouncy castle,” the driver replies. “I got a buddy coming with the slide in like ten minutes.”
Leo and I both blink at him in surprise and confusion.
“We didn’t order this,” I tell him .
The driver reaches into his truck and pulls out his clipboard. He turns it around to show us a receipt. “This is the address, right?”
My eyes skim the page, finding the address to the estate toward the top. “Yes, that’s—”
I pause at the sight of Frank’s name on the receipt. He purchased all of this and he had them bring it here.
“Well, would you look at that,” Leo says as he crosses his arms. “He came around. Guess we are having the party here after all.”
I can’t believe it. Frank hates having people come over, but he’s willing to put his feelings aside just so that Piper can be happy.
My heart aches, and I can’t say a word as the driver waits for an answer.
“You can unload it right here. Maybe have your other guy put the slide over there,” Leo replies, pointing to another section of the large backyard.”
“You got it,” the driver replies before opening the back of his truck where a rolled up bouncy castle is tucked away .
“She’s going to be so happy. You guys made this the best birthday she’s ever going to have,” I tell him as happy tears sting my eyes.
Piper has had small parties before, but my place can only hold so many people and host so many activities. She has always had fun and been grateful for every single celebration, but this party will knock everything that we’ve already done out of the park.
Leo pulls me into a tight hug, his arms wrapping around my shoulders. “I’m glad he came around. He really does care about Piper.”
I want to tell him that his father cares about him too despite what he thinks, but that’s a very deep conversation for another time. Right now, I need to see Frank.
“I’m going to go talk to him. Can you supervise?” I ask him once we release each other.
“Absolutely,” Leo replies. “I’ll be here.”
I flash him a grateful look before heading toward the back door to the house. I’m glad Piper is at school right now because I really want this to be a big surprise for her tomorrow. I can already imagine her shocked but joyful face .
I make my way up to Frank’s bedroom and push open the door to see him watching television. Without a word, I stride up to his bedside and loosely loop my arms around his shoulders to not crush him. It takes everything in me to be gentle because my emotions are so intense.
This is the first time that I’ve ever hugged him.
Frank gently pats my back. “Are the inflatables big? They better be big. They promised me that over the phone.”
I laugh as tears well up in my eyes. I manage to blink them away before I pull back. “They’re about to inflate them, so we’ll see. I can wheel you over to the window so that you can see.”
Frank nods. “I want everything set up correctly. If we’re going to do this, we’re going to do it right.”
That’s the kind of person that he is. He doesn’t half-ass anything, especially when it comes to family. At this point, I consider him as that.
“Thank you,” I tell him. “She’s going to love this.”
The side of his mouth turns up in a small smile. “I hope she has a great birthday tomorrow. ”
“You’re acting like you’re not going to be there,” I say. “She’ll want to see you.”
Frank nods. “I have a present to give her.”
Piper is so lovingly spoiled. I can’t even describe how happy I am about that.
“Add it to the growing pile,” I tell him playfully. “Come on. Let’s get you out of bed.”
Once I bring his wheelchair closer, I wrap my arms around him and guide him into the wheelchair. I haul him and his portable oxygen tank over to the large bedroom window that faces the backyard.
“It’s getting there,” I say as we watch the bouncy castle slowly inflate. The other truck has also arrived to deliver and set up the inflatable slide.
Even with both of them being mostly flat, I can already tell that they’re going to be huge. Big enough for even Leo and me to enjoy if we wanted.
We’ll probably want to. Sometimes, we feel like those kids who treated this place like our own personal castle.
My hand rests on Frank’s shoulder. I have so much to say to him, but maybe a gentle touch is all that’s needed for right now. We’ve been through so much, and our relationship is pretty unorthodox and unexpected.
But that’s just how life is sometimes. It’s never what I expect.
Frank reaches up and puts his hand over mine, and we just stay like that for a while, saying what we can’t quite put into words.