42. Ryan
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
Ryan
Over the next week, Paige and I see each other almost every day. I come by after my shift. We joke around, do some gardening in her backyard, have sex, and eat dinner together. I wanted to take her on an actual date, but Chrissy is spending the weekend with me, making it harder.
It was weird not telling Paige exactly what I’m doing, but all of us are so protective of Chrissy, it’s a force of habit.
My first thought was what if she wanted to meet her?
The idea didn’t fill me with panic as it probably should have, but it’s not my decision to make, it’s Parker’s.
I can’t break his trust by letting his kid meet people he doesn’t know, even if I’m entranced by them.
“Have fun.” I mock-salute Parker after taking Chrissy’s sleepover bag and popping it into my trunk.
“Oh, you know I will.” He winks. From what he told me after padel, he’s going to San Francisco for the weekend. Knowing him, the little field trip will involve at least two women, not necessarily at separate times.
“We’ll have fun too!” Chrissy exclaims.
She’s the smartest, funniest eight-year-old girl, and spending time with her was one thing I missed dearly while I was living in the city. She sits in the back, making sure to fasten her seatbelt.
Her bangs are getting too long for her face, so she shakes her head to move them out of her eyes.
Her honey-blond hair reminds me of the mom she never got to meet.
She was one of Parker’s one-night stands, but instead of disappearing forever, she returned nine months later, freshly post-partum, carrying baby Chrissy in her arms.
Except she didn’t even name her. Parker did that.
She told him she hadn’t planned on being a mom and left him with a newborn, a diaper bag, and a panic attack.
Wes and I both rushed as soon as he called.
We were angry and suspicious, but Parker refused any suggestion of doing a DNA test. He was shocked and afraid, but from the first second he saw her, he knew he’d take care of her forever.
Within two hours, us and his family all banded together and set up the nursery. Just like that, Chrissy became a part of his, and by extension, my family.
“What are we doing this weekend, Uncle Ryan?” she asks from the back seat.
“Have some faith, will you? Today we’ll go to the park, but tomorrow I have a surprise for you.”
“Really?” In the rearview mirror, I see her green eyes widening.
I let out a chuckle. “Yes, really.”
After a full day at the park, we eat the dinner Mom graciously made for us and settle into the basement. I’m not much of a gamer, but I got a PlayStation for my weekends with Chrissy. She’s obsessed with Minecraft, so we boot up two joysticks and start building a new house.
My phone pings with a text, and I drop the joystick on the couch to see who it is. My mouth forms a grin when I notice it’s a photo from Paige.
“Missed a spot,” the text says, and the photo shows a small pile of weeds she obviously pulled from the flower bed, sitting in the middle of the lawn I mowed the other day.
Me
I guess you’ll have to hire me again.
“Is that a girl?” A small, feminine voice makes me jolt in my seat. Somehow, I hadn’t noticed Chrissy sticking her nose right into my business.
“Sort of.”
She scrunches her nose. “What do you mean, sort of?”
“Well, she’s a girl. But she’s not my girlfriend if that’s what you mean.”
Her mouth parts. “But you want her to be?”
Kind of, yeah. “What difference does it make to you?” I cross my arms in front of my chest, taunting her with a smirk.
“I’m just asking. Dad told me I can have boy friends, but only as in boys who are friends. I don’t think it’s the same as having boyfriends.”
“You’re right, it’s not.”
“Do you want her to be a girl who is your friend or your girlfriend?”
I’m not sure why this eight-year-old is giving me therapy sessions, but I blurt out, “Girlfriend.”
Chrissy flashes me her brand-new incisors and the gap where her canine should be. “You should ask her then. Oh, you can make her a card like Tommy did to Melanie for Valentine’s Day.”
I huff a laugh, shaking my head. “Yeah, maybe. We can talk more about it tomorrow, but it’s time for bed now. We have a long day ahead of us.”
“You have to tell me where we’re going.” She places her small palm on top of mine.
“I don’t think so.” The corner of my lips tips into a smirk. “But the sooner you get to bed, the sooner you’ll find out.”
She lets out a loud, annoyed groan. “Fine.”
I turn off the PlayStation as she stomps her way upstairs to get ready for bed. She’ll love the amusement park I have planned for us tomorrow, but a part of me wishes Paige was with us. Maybe I could talk to Parker, and next time she could join us.