Page 52 of That First Night
“Oh,” Avery says, as she notices Marc standing there and shoots him a cheeky smile. “Nice to see you again.”
“You two know each other?” Peyton and I ask at the same. My eyes bounce between the two of them and Peyton's jaw falls to the floor.
Avery smirks. “Yes, Sir. I’m his new assistant.”
“This was the new job you got?” Peyton asks. Shock is plastered on her face. “Wait. Marc Ford?” She shakes her head as realization hits her. “I should have put two and two together.”
We’re all cut off from the awkward conversation when James comes barreling into the kitchen screaming “Ms. Peyton!” He wraps his little arms around her legs.Fuck, my heart.
“Hey, buddy!” Peyton wraps her arm around his shoulders. “How was your weekend?”
“It was so good. But I missed you.”
“I missed you too, bud.” She moves so she can crouch down to his level and open up her arms for a real hug. James wraps his arms around her neck, and she wraps her arms around his tiny body. I swear my lungs have no oxygen in them. I don’t get the opportunity to watch the two of them interact often and seeing this makes my heart feel weird shit that it’s not used to feeling. My heart rate picks up and I can feel Marc's eyes on me as we all watch the display of affection between the two of them.
“I got you something at the store this morning,” she tells him.
“You did?!”
“I did,” she says before reaching inside a small bag. “Now you can’t have these unless Daddy says it’s okay.” I love hearing the word daddy come out of her mouth. “They are dinosaur gummy snacks! I know how much you love dinosaurs.”
“DINOSAURS!” he shrieks. “This is so cool! Thank you so much, Ms. Peyton.”
“You are so welcome, big dude.” She giggles.
“Are you home for good now? Are you staying for some football? Are you going to eat pizza with me? Are you going to play with my dinosaurs?” He rattles off question after question to her and all of us start laughing at his energy. He talks a mile a minute when he’s excited.
Her eyes look up to Kali and Avery like she’s silently asking them if they want to stay.Please say yes. No, wait. Please say no. My heart can’t handle this shit today. I watch both of them look at each other and give Peyton a soft smile. The three of them just spoke to each other with no words. Female friendships are weird.
“Yes, bud.” She looks back at James. “We’ll stay and hang out with you. Have you met my best friends?”
“No, but I’m your best friend too,” he says in the sweetest little voice but has a frown of disappointment on his face.
“You are,” she chuckles. “You are my bestest friend.”
“Hey, I take offense to that,” Avery smiles with her hands on her hips. “Hey, James. I’m Avery, but you can call me Ave.”
“That’s so awesome that I can call you a cool nickname,” James says. “Ms. Peyton says I can call her Pey. That’s so cool.”
“I think you’re so cool.” Avery laughs.
“And I’m Kali,” she says, extending her hand to shake his hand. “You can call me Kali.”
“Well, that’s not a cool nickname.”
“James—” I scowl. “Be respectful.”
Kali lets out a soft laugh and says, “How about you give me my cool nickname, bud?”
I can see the wheels turning in James’ head as he thinks about it for a second. My brain is on overload right now witnessing this conversation. How are these strangers to James so welcoming to my son? They must know how much Peyton cares about him. I didn’t have to see her and James together to know that she cares about him. My heart won’t chill the fuck out.
“I’m gonna think about it, Ms. Kali,” James finally says.
“Come on.” James starts tugging at all three of them. “I want to show you guys my dinosaur collection upstairs.”
The three girls giggle but follow James out of the kitchen and I stare at the entrance of the kitchen for what feels like forever. The thoughts of my nanny are consuming my mind. I can’t believe I have never noticed how the two of them interact together and how much James loves Peyton. Yes, I said love. Because he is three and loves everyone he meets. The way he ran into the kitchen and wrapped his tiny arms around her legs showed me everything I needed to know about how he feels.
“You’re so fucked,” Logan cuts my thoughts.
