Page 10 of Fight For Us
“Right. The menu is somewhere in the kitchen. I’ll grab it.”
“Should I check on the kids?”
“Sure. They’re around the corner. Lilly gets my bedroom when she’s here and I take the couch.”
She nodded and I realized I’d just invited this woman into my bedroom. Not in a creepy way, our kids were in there. But still, it felt weirdly intimate. She left her beer on the table and turned the corner, heading toward the sounds of video game music.
I dug through the junk drawer for the menu to NY Slice. This woman was from New York. No way was I ordering Domino’s like I normally would. As I cursed under my breath, I heard the unmistakable footsteps of my father clomping through the front door.
“For Christ’s sake, Wesley. You could have called me and told me you were home. You find Lilly?”
“Fortunately, yes. She wasn’t abducted on your watch.” I found the menu jammed in the back of the drawer and yanked it out. “What the hell, Dad? You fell asleep again and she went roaming the neighborhood.”
He groaned, dropped his keys into the bowl on the kitchen island, and pulled out a beer for himself. “It was only for a few minutes. I was watching reruns ofEverybody Loves Raymondand I must’ve dozed. Last I saw she was coloring at the table, complaining that she was bored. I was gonna take her for ice cream later.”
He looked genuinely distraught. My father was many things, but an attentive parent was not one of them. I had my motherfor that, when she wasn’t too busy bestowing her support on strangers.
“It’s fine. I gotta find a sitter for her, I guess. Or bring her to the restaurant. Can’t have her running off every weekend. I’d take off if I could, but Saturdays have been nuts.”
“I can watch her. No need to spend money on a sitter,” he grumbled.
I huffed and unfolded the menu. “I’m gonna order some pizzas for dinner.”
“Pizza again?” I narrowed my brows at him. The last thing I wanted to do after cooking most of the day was cook at home. “Sounds good to me,” he chirped.
Olivia came around the corner and I swear my father almost fell over. It took him a second to compose himself before he glanced at me for an explanation.
“This is Olivia. Her and her son Alex found Lilly roaming the beach.” I didn’t mention that it’s been weeks since we’d officially met. He’d hound me about waiting so long to bring her over for dinner. My father’s eyes widened. He may be in his sixties, but I knew he was still checking Olivia out. I anchored a hand on his shoulder and gave a gentle squeeze. “Olivia, this is my father, Walter Reed.”
She stuck out a hand and my father accepted it, shaking hers vigorously. “Call me Walt.”
“Ah, Walt, the dozing babysitter.” Olivia was quick-witted and I loved it. My face broke into a grin.
“It won’t happen again.” He tucked his head. “And don’t tell my wife. She’d never let me hear the end of it.”
I interrupted whatever pity party rabbit hole my father was about to spiral down. “I found the menu. You mentioned pineapple. Anything else you guys like?”
“Pineapple?” My father asked in a tone that implied I was about to feed him rat poison. I glared at him again and he cleared his throat. “Sounds good.”
“Pineapple pizza is great. Thank you.” She met my gaze with a half smile and my heart stuttered.
“I’ll call it in.” I reached into my pocket and took out my phone, flipping it open to dial the number.
“You have a flip phone?” Olivia asked, amused. I’d gotten this remark before and it never bothered me.
“Yup. Sure do.”
“Wow. I haven’t seen one of those since middle school.”
“Even I have an iPhone,” my father said. “Wes here is anti-technology. Or at leastnowhe is.”
“Okay, Dad. Why don’t you go turn on a show? I’ll let you know when the pizza gets here.” My old man would spill national secrets to Russia if he had the opportunity. If I hadn’t distracted him he’d tell Olivia my entire life story.
“Alright, no need to get testy. I know when I’m not wanted.” Finally, grabbing his beer, he went to his favorite spot on the couch and flipped on what looked likeLaw and Orderwhile Olivia held in a laugh.
“Kids alright?” I asked.
“Yeah, they’re having an epic showdown ofMario Kart. I’m glad Alex has someone to play with.”
