Page 75 of Stolen Kisses

“I’m sure you’re wondering why I called you in today, Mr. Drivas.” I nod. “I wanted to speak to you about Kenny’s reading.”

“Theo, please. What about Kenny’s reading?” I read to her every day and I make sure whenever we’re out and about that I read signs to her. Lately, she’s started reading on her own, which I found surprising.

“Well, Theo.” She stops and smiles at me. “She’s doing really well with the basic decoding readers we’ve been using. I wanted to ask you if you’d be happy if we moved her onto some books with some more challenging words and concepts. I wouldn’t normally extend a child this early, but Kenny has remarkable skills. She doesn’t just read thetext,she understands what’s happening. Her comprehension skill is above the level I would exp—”

“Kaaaate, I’m so ex—” Emma barges into the room looking beyond beautiful. When she notices me sitting with Kate, she freezes in place. “Sorry, I didn’t realize you were speaking with a parent.” She turns to leave, but I stand quickly, shoving my hands in my pockets so I don’t reach out to touch her.

“Hi, Emma. How are you? How’re the boys?” I move closer to her as I speak. It’s an unconscious action on my part—I’m drawn to her like a magnet to metal.

“Hello, Mr. Drivas. I’m fine thank you and the boys are well.” She looks past me to Kate. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Kenny runs forward, throwing her little body at Emma’s legs. “Emmmmmaa!”

Emma chuckles, smiling down at my niece. She cups the back of Kenny’s head. “Hey, Kenny.”

I’ve never felt jealous of a kid before, but I feel jealous of my niece. I want to throw myself at Emma; beg for her forgiveness. Wrap my arms around her and never let her go. I want her smiles and gentle touches.

I can’t though, because I’m an asshole.

“Are we going to the park today?” She looks up to Emma with wide blue eyes, which are almost impossible to deny.

“Sure. I’ll send the boys to pick you up when we’re ready. Okay?” Emma doesn’t check if it’s okay with me, she knows I won’t stop Kenny’s excursions to the park with her and her boys. Kenny loves them all so much and it brings her so much joy.

“Okay.” Kenny’s satisfied with her answer, so she goes back to the puzzle shelf.

Kate smiles at her. “I won’t be too long. I’ll pop in when I’m done here.”

Emma nods, turning to leave without a backward glance at me. I’ve been completely dismissed from Emma’s life and while I understand it’s my own fault, I wish she would soften toward me. This is only the second time I’ve seen her since Kenny’s birthday and both times she’s been ice cold toward me.

I want to thaw that ice.

I want to see the warmth in her chameleon eyes when she looks at me.

I want to be able to wrap her in my arms.

Kate and I finish our meeting. I agree to support Kenny at home with the more difficult readers, as well as continuing our bedtime routine of reading different stories. It was something Mom always did for me and Kenny told me that Anna used to read to her every night, so it’s a no-brainer for me to continue the tradition.

Kenny and I stop at the library after school to pick up some new reading material, but Kenny’s in a hurry to get home so she doesn’t miss out on playing at the park.

* * *

I drop Kenny at school, before heading to Bruce’s place to install the ramps for his wife. He’s sitting on the front porch waiting for me. “Morning, Theo. You want acuppabefore you start?” He’s a cheery guy considering hiswife’sin the hospital recovering from a massive stroke.

“Morning, Bruce. Iwouldn’t say no. I’ll unload while you’re making it if that’s okay?” I put on my gloves as Bruce waves over his shoulder. I neatly stack the timber near my work area, set up a couple of sawhorses, and wrap my tool belt around my waist. I place the grab rails on the porch for now, so I don’t forget to install them before I leave.

Bruce brings out the tea and he tells me how his visit went with his wife yesterday afternoon. “So, do you have any kids?”

I shake my head. “Not biological, no. I’m raising my sister’s little girl. She recently turned five.”

“How’s that working out for you?” He takes another drink.

“It was tricky at first. I actually lost her on the first day I had her.” I huff out a laugh. “Scared me half to death.”

Bruce laughs. “Gotta have eyes in the back of your head with the little ones.”

“Absolutely. I had never had anything to do with kids before I took guardianship of Kenny. I’ve been learning on the job, reading as many books as I can, and YouTube is my best friend.” I laugh. When I look back to how I was when I first started looking after Kenny to now, I realize I’ve come a long way.

“We all learn on the job when it comes to raising kids and parenting. The most important thing they need is your love. Oh, and consistency. They need those two things to thrive. So long as they’ve got that, they’ll do well.” He pats me on the shoulder. “I’m certain you’re doing a marvelous job.”

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