Page 20 of Despite It All
Stevie cocks her head up to me. “But wait, do I call him Jett or Daddy?”
Jett and I glance at each other.
Therapy, definitely going to be paying for therapy.
I hesitate with my answer, unsure of what to say but then Jett speaks. “Whatever you’re comfortable with, Stevie. You don’t ever have to do anything that you’re not comfortable with. Even today, if you don’t want me to tag along with you and your mom, I won’t.”
Stevie purses her lips and scrunches her nose, processing his words. “I’ll call you Daddy,” she says adamantly. “It’s like a nickname, and I like nicknames. You can also play with us today.”
Jett looks at me, and I just shrug. Stevie has always been a go-with-the-flow kid, but she also has strong opinions when she feels passionately about something. I knew her deciding to call him Dad was going to be a toss-up. I wasn’t going to be surprised either way.
“Alright, sweetie, what do you want to do today?” I ask as I wipe more chocolate off her face.
“Can we go to the walking track and ride my bike?”
“Yes, we can.” I nod and take a sip of my coffee for the first time since sitting down.
“She can ride a bike?” Jett asks, impressed.
“It’s a training bike, it—”
“It’s so fun. It’s pink, and I can go so fast on it.” Stevie smiles a proudtoothy grin.
Jett and I both smile back at her. “The bike is at our house. You can meet me back there, and we can ride to the track together?” I suggest this because I know logically, it makes sense to not take two cars the whole day, but I also hope he doesn’t want to because being in his presence makes me have this weird feeling in my chest.
“Okay, sounds good.” Jett looks at me with those damn blue eyes.
My heart twists, and I can’t tell if it’s a good or bad thing. My lady parts have the same feeling, and that’s definitely a bad thing.
Chapter 6
I follow Wyla back to her house after we finish up breakfast. We pick up Stevie’s pink bike and load up in her car. Wyla is doing her best to appear calm and normal for Stevie, but I can tell the last twenty-four hours have taken a big toll on her. It definitely has for me, but I know it’s different. I’m gaining something incredible, and I know Wyla’s scared she’s losing it.
I don’t know how to reassure her that I would never take Stevie away from her. Hell, if we’re being honest, I’d take them both back home with me at the end of these two weeks if they’d let me. Stevie may hold priority here in how this unfolds but it doesn’t change the fact I’ve wanted to be with Wyla for years now.
But she can barely look at me without this painful look. I want it to fucking disappear. I want her damn smile and laugh all the time.
When we get to the track, I take Stevie’s bike out while Wyla gets her out of her car seat. Before we start, Wyla puts on Stevie’s pink helmet. How? I don’t know. Because Stevie was bouncing all over the place.
I can’t help but grin watching them together. When I saw them this morning, I thought my heart was going to explode.
“Let’s go!” Stevie cheers as she takes off on her bike. I glance at Wyla, and she shrugs with a soft smile playing at her lips before following Stevie.
We walk in silence for a bit, watching Stevie in front of us. “So, what else does she like to do? Tell me more about her.”
Wyla lets that hint of a smile grow. “She literally does not know a stranger. She will talk to any and every one. Going to the grocery store with her is a nightmare because she won’t let anyone pass without saying hello.”
I chuckle. “I imagine that slows the process down a bit.”
“She ropes us into at least a half hour conversation with an old lady every time.” Wyla shakes her head, then continues. “She likes to play with her babies. Her favorite movie isTangled.I’ve watched it hundreds of times. Anything pink or princess, she will absolutely lose her mind over. She takes a tumbling class once a week. Um, she loves art. Coloring, painting, you name it, she loves it. I know I’mbiased but she’s pretty good at it too. It’s the only time she has any sort of patience. I suppose she got that gene from Anna… honestly, I guess a few things come from Anna. The blonde curly hair, blue eyes, and freckles really seem to match, now that…” She trails off and that painful look comes back to her face.
I. Want. It. Gone.
“Yeah, it’s kind of hard to miss the resemblance,” I tease her.
Wyla tosses her hands up. “Well, she always calls you J. How was I supposed to know that my sister’s friend’s brother was my one-night stand who knocked me up when we were in a completely different state?”
I laugh. “I get it, not exactly a topic you can just grasp at straws for. It’s okay, Wy.”
