Page 1 of Forbidden Hearts
one
ASHER
“All her clothes are here, and I didn’t leave anything at my place, so there should be no reason to use the key, but it’s here just in case. The numbers for her pediatrician, audiologist, speech pathologist, and occupational therapist are all listed in the binder,” Sara, my ex—if you can call her that since we never dated—says as I make faces at Olivia, my daughter. “You should consider moving her to the room next to yours and giving the nanny the upstairs, but I’m sure you’ll ignore that suggestion. There’s also a bag with her school supplies. I put some of her favorite snacks in another bag as well as some other—Asher! Are you even listening?”
I turn to Sara, making sure Olivia can still see my lips. “Yes, I’m listening. Yes, I know all of this. Yes, I will make sure Olivia goes to school, brushes her teeth, puts pants on, and eats.”
“And the room?”
“I’m not moving her room. She loves her room more than the one at your house.”
Sara doesn’t look amused by my response. She turns to Olivia and signs while speaking the words so I can hear, which is what we do whenever having a conversation with Olivia.“Your father is a turd. Make sure he doesn’t miss your appointments and follows the schedule in the binder.”
Olivia smiles.“I love you, Mommy. I will take care of him.”
“Hey, I am a grown-up who can take care of everything,”I sign and speak back.
They both laugh. “Sure you are, Ash. Now, this binder has everything. I worked hard on it, so please make sure you follow it.”
She’s absolutely nutty with her demands for perfection and detail. I’d much rather let things go with the flow. She’s always been this way though, which is why we are much better off as friends who just happen to have a daughter.
We were a casual, fun thing. Neither of us wanted a relationship, but that’s exactly what we have now—a lifelong, co-parenting friendship. It works for the most part.
“You know, I am a really good father. I’ve taken care of her since she was born.”
Sara eyes me. “You’ve never had her like this. Not for months while I was out of the country.”
“We’ll be fine. We can’t mess it up with your binder in hand,” I say with a smirk.
She rolls her eyes and then moves to Olivia with tears forming. Great. This is going to be an hour-long goodbye that will make Sara late for her car and make it so the driver has to drive like an asshole to get to Philly on time for her flight. She’ll probably ask me for a police escort because she’s already cutting it close with her time.
Not that I blame her. I would be losing my mind if I had to leave Olivia for this long.
For the next five and a half months, Sara will be on assignment in Israel. She’s filming a documentary about something she mentioned, but I tuned out. I do know that it’s an amazing career opportunity for her, and that means my three nights a week are now full time. God help Livvy and me.
But we have the binder, so we’ll survive according to her mother.
Sara crouches in front of her.“I am going to miss you so much. I love you with my whole heart. Be good for Daddy.”
Olivia’s eyes shimmer with tears.“I will miss you. Can we video call?”
She nods.“As much as possible. I will be very busy, and there is a time difference, but I will try to call daily.”
“You’re going to miss your flight,” I remind Sara about that pesky thing called a plane schedule.
“It can wait.”
“Yes, but it won’t.”
Sara rises, wiping her cheeks. “I want daily updates either by text or email. I want to know how she’s doing and how you’re surviving. God knows you’ll only be alive thanks to the nanny.”
I clutch my hand to my chest. “I’ll miss you too, dear.”
She laughs. “Do you have your childcare all set? You went through the agency I told you about and made sure the nanny knows ASL?”
“Was that what I was supposed to do?”
She huffs. “Of all the men . . .”
