Page 68 of Wylder Ranch
THE DUKE: Actually, never mind, I’m not subjecting her to this shit.
MILES THE GREAT: Okay, I’m going to the stables. Last chance to join me. Otherwise, I’ll see you all at family movie night.
I reread his last message four times before I realize he’s talking about today and slap a hand over my face. How can it only be 7 a.m. and the day’s already gone to shit?
ALEX: Family movie night?
MILES THE GREAT: It’s Friday, Al. We all agreed that this week would be movie and pizza because Holiday’s got a screener of that new Christmas film.
I definitely didn’t agree to that. I’d remember. I might have forgotten it was Friday, but I wouldnothave forgotten anything that involved Christmas movies. Theymust have decided it last week when I excused myself to stay in with Everly and Haven.
I wasn’t ready to subject Haven to our weekly family supper quite so soon.
All I wanted to do today was take Haven on a date. The only reason I picked my phone up in the first place was to ask Clementine if she’d babysit Everly so we could get dressed, go out and enjoy dinner without one ear on the baby monitor.
Now my first date with Haven will involve my entire family while I live through the nightmare of a Christmas film.
THE DUKE: We’re also bringing pumpkin pie as a final taste test before Thanksgiving.
MILES THE GREAT: Sign me up for that focus group.
Urgh.
I’ve had enough.
Glancing at Everly still sleeping peacefully, I want to apologize for bringing her into my crazy family. Because we are crazy.
Miles especially.
But thinking about Everly and Miles in the same headspace reminds me that he was the one to come find me when Haven arrived. He and Clemmie were the ones who picked up the pieces when I stormed away.
You know what they say, you can’t pick your family, and as much as they annoy the fuck out of me, I wouldn’t trade them for the world.
I don’t even need to look that deeply to know how lucky I am to have them.
They could have given me a hard time about Everly, and the way she arrived into the world, but they’ve taken to her like she’s a miracle baby years in the planning. Even my mother.
The long and the short of it is that as much as I want to take Haven out, she’ll have to settle for movie night as our first date. Our second date can be the two of us.
I manage a lightning shower before Everly wakes up, and when she does, I change her, get us both dressed, and fill her in on the events of last night.
“Big night, last night, baby girl.” I grab her toes and blow raspberries on them until her cheeks crease with chubbiness. “Daddy kissed Mummy. And if I play my cards right today, I’ll be kissing her a lot more.”
It’s hard to imagine what life was like a mere few weeks ago when my mornings belonged only to me, and I didn’t start my day with her smile, because it’s an arrow straight to my heart. She’s so perfect and tiny, it’s still a marvel that she’s half of me. That I was part of her creation.
It’s overwhelming to the point of debilitation. Sometimes I just stare at her and fifteen minutes have passed, or I’ll be thinking about something she did—grab my finger, for example—and I’m choked with tears before I can blink. I should ask Hendricks if this is how he felt because I’ll have to start allowing for more time in my schedule.
I’ve also discovered that I enjoy dressing her. I like clothes, but I’ll buy the same shirt / jeans / chinos in five different colors, have them tailored to my body, and Bob’s your uncle. It’s easy and I don’t have to think. I walk into my wardrobe and pull out the first things I see.
Thanks to my mother, Everly has more clothes than I’ve ever had, and I suddenly care about which pair of tights goes with which dress, or whether the stretchy pants match her sweater.
If this is what Clemmie calls a girl dad, then I’m nailing it.
I finish today’s look with a pair of pink spotty socks edged in lace and scoop her up with a big kiss. “Come on, sausage. Let’s go and see what’s for breakfast.”
I don’t hear any movement from Haven’s room when I press my ear to the door, but I’m craving those pancakes she started last night.
Blackberry is waiting impatiently on the kitchen table and purrs loudly at Everly as she lies in the bouncer while I get her bottle warmed. A sharp bark at the back door has me rolling my eyes, and when I open it, Dolly is there waiting.
