2. Brooke #2
The second she spotted me, her entire face lit up, and my heart nearly leaped out of my chest. She quickly shuffled to her feet and called out, “Momma! Momma! It’s my momma!”
A big smile spread across my face as I watched her waddle over to me, practically jumping into my arms. This was the favorite part of my day. “Hey, sweet girl. Did you have a good day?”
Her little arms wrapped around my neck as she mumbled something that sounded like ‘yes, ma’am’. I hugged her tight and took in her sweet baby scent, and just like that, the tension I’d been carrying all day melted away. I kissed her on the cheek and said, “I missed you.”
“Me, too, momma.”
“You ready to go home?” She gave me an excited nod. “Alright then. Let’s get to it.”
After collecting her backpack and the stuffed monkey she couldn’t survive without, we headed out to the car. The moment I buckled her into her car seat, she propped her hand on her legs and announced, “I ‘ant… I ‘ant doo… doo-dles.”
“Noodles?”
“Um-hmm.” She nodded.
Last week, all she wanted was chicken nuggets.
The week before that, it was peas and carrots.
And now, we had moved into the noodle phase of the month.
I didn’t care. She could have noodles or ice cream.
Whatever made her happy. It had been a long and exhausting day, and I wanted to get my girl home and spend some time with her before bedtime.
Anslee babbled all the way home, and while I understood very little of what she’d said, I loved seeing her so happy and smiling. I wished I had more than just a few moments here and there with her. I felt like I was missing out on so much, but I didn’t have a choice.
I had to work. It was the only way I could keep a roof over our heads.
I wasn’t the only one who felt this way about leaving their kids.
I knew that, but it didn’t make me feel any better.
Anslee was growing up so fast, and I was missing it.
I’d missed her first steps, the first time she held a crayon, and even the first time she tried a bite of apple, which is why I tried my best to soak in every second I had with her.
By the time we pulled into the driveway, I was starving, and I had a feeling Anslee was, too.
As soon as I turned off the car, I got out and made my way around to Anslee, pulling her out of her car seat, along with all of her things and mine.
I barely made it to the door before Anslee started wiggling impatiently in my arms.
“Hold on, sweetie. I have to unlock the door.”
That did little to settle her. In fact, the second the latch clicked, she started inching to get down. As soon as the door opened, I lowered her to the floor, and she took off. Seconds later, I heard, “Ry-in!”
I smiled as her call echoed through the entire house.
I put my things down on the table, and just as I was kicking off my heels, Ryan stepped out of the kitchen with Anslee propped on his hip. He was tall, blonde, and unfairly handsome in his disheveled attire.
Like me, he’d been at work all day, but he didn’t look as tired as I did.
But then again, he was an accountant, and it was his slow season.
He wasn’t under the same kind of stress I was, so it wasn’t exactly surprising that he didn’t look like he was about to wither away into the soul-sucking abyss like I did.
At least, that’s what I kept telling myself.
Remembering our conversation from the night before, he asked, “Well, how did it go?”
“Better than I expected.” I reached into my purse and pulled out an envelope, offering it to him. “But before we get into all that, I got you these.”
“What is it?” he asked, already ripping open the envelope.
“They’re tickets to the game you’ve been talking about for the past month and a half.”
“You didn’t.”
“I did.” I smiled. “Now, don’t make it weird. I know you want to go.”
“Holy crap… These are amazing seats.”
“I know.”
“How much did you pay for these?”
“Doesn’t matter.”
“Brooke.”
“Just consider it repayment for the forty-million times you’ve listened to me complain about work.”
“That mean you’re gonna pay for dinner, too?”
“Not a chance.” I gave him a little nudge. “You know, you could take that cute girl from your office you were telling Jacob about last week.”
“You’re a nosy heifer, you know that.”
“I know, but it’s part of my charm.”
“Yeah, yeah. Keep telling yourself that.” He placed the tickets in the basket by the door as he said, “Now, tell me about today.”
“She’s giving me some more time.”
“That’s good news.”
“I thought so, too.” I gave Anslee a little tickle as I told him, “Someone has requested noodles for dinner.”
“Noodles? What happened to nuggets?”
“I’m sure they will be back, but for tonight, it’s on to something bigger and better.”
“Thank goodness. I was about to turn into a chicken.”
He leaned down and pretended to gobble her neck, and Anslee squealed and squirmed until her face turned red. I leaned against the kitchen table, watching them together, and the sight warmed my heart.
Anslee was a lucky little girl, and so was I.