Page 37 of Instant Bond

“Alright,” she answered lightly. I couldn’t tell if she believed me or not. “I’ll be back with you in a moment,” she said, before walking off toward my kitchen. She was probably writing about how I didn’t have any fancy organic food in the fridge.

“It’ll be okay,” Karter said softly, laying a hand on my thigh and squeezing it softly. “There’s nothing that could possibly make anyone believe you’re a bad dad. You know that.”

“I know, but… This place is old and falling apart.” I kept my home pretty clean, way cleaner than other people’s houses I’d been to, but still. My appliances were outdated and the wallpaper was peeling in the corners. I didn’t know what kind of petty things they would look for to count against me.

“Like I said, if they try anything they’ll have a team of lawyers up their asses so fast they won’t even be able to blink.”

I nodded, hoping she hadn’t heard him say that. I wondered if she would discover who Karter was, and if it would help or hurt my case.

After a few minutes passed, I realized I needed to go meet Ty at the bus stop.

“Should I leave?” Karter asked, when I voiced my concern. I really, really didn’t want him to. It was a weird way for Ty to meet him, but… The idea of being alone with the social worker made me squirm. It seemed he could tell how I felt, because he spoke again. “I can stay. I don’t mind. Whatever will make you feel more comfortable.”

“Stay,” I said, though my voice sounded meek. “Please.”

I let Kanae know that I was stepping out to get Ty, and that I’d be back in just a minute.

When his bus pulled up, he hopped off, chipper as always. I knelt down to give him a quick hug before asking him how his day had gone.

“Fine!” He chirped. Before he could go off on a tangent about what he’d done at school, I hurriedly launched into my explanation.

“Remember how I told you I made a new friend?”

“Yeah!”

“Well, he’s at our house right now. I thought you might want to meet him. Would that be okay with you?”

“Sure!” Ty answered, looking excited. “Is he nice?”

“Um, yeah. Very nice,” I lied. All that mattered was that he would be nice to Ty and I, anyway. His gruff and grumpy demeanor toward others didn’t matter to me. “And there’s someone else you’ll have to talk to.”

“Are you having a party, Daddy?”

“No,” I answered, laughing a little as we began walking. “You know how when you go to the doctor they might ask you some questions and you have to tell the truth no matter what?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, she’s kind of like that. Whatever she asks you, just be honest and tell the truth. You won’t get in trouble for anything, baby, I promise.”

“Okay,” he promised, looking curious. “I will!”

As we reached the door, my stomach was churning with nerves. Squeezing my eyes shut, I pushed it open. Ty pranced in before me. Nervous was not generally in his vocabulary. I froze as he let out a dramatic gasp.

“Mr. Donut!?” He cried out. “Mr. Donut is your new friend?”

“Mr. Donut?” Kanae repeated, an odd look darting between Karter and I.

“We met at a coffee shop,” Karter answered for me. “There was only one donut left in the flavor he wanted, and I gave it to him.”

“And it was really good!” Ty added seriously. “Thank you, Mr. Donut.”

“His name is not Mr. Donut,” I said, suppressing a light groan. “His name is…” What? Karter? Mr. Morrison?

“My name is Karter,” he said, once again charging ahead of my indecision. “It’s great to meet you, Ty. Your dad has told me a lot about you.”

“Well, he barely told me anything aboutyou,” Ty responded bluntly.

“Listen,” I interrupted, sensing it was going to turn into a whole thing. “This is Mrs. Jackson. She’s the one I told you about. She’s going to ask you some questions.”

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