Page 41 of Say You'll Stay

“Yeah, he said he’s just going to go wherever it is alone and just get some work done.”

Yeah, sure, he’s gonna work on the beach.

“Well, Jadon,” she bends down to meet Jadon’s eyes, and I catch a glimpse of her thighs up the skirt of her dress. “It’s time to get to bed and then tomorrow I’ll go with you and Lu—your daddy to meet Katrina and your grandparents, okay?”

“Okay,” he says while yawning. His general response so far is not what I expected at all.

“Let’s get you to bed, mister,” she says, reaching for him. Jadon grabs my arm and tells her he wants both of us to put him to bed.

Allie allows it, which is good because I can see their routine and try to mimic it when Jadon comes to stay with me. I already ordered him some furniture for the extra bedroom in the house and was planning to ask Allie her opinion on some bedding that he might like and other things I’ll need for him.

But I know I screwed up her weekend, so she might not be willing to help me. I don’t care so much about Ted, but I know her dad was right. She deserves to be happy and with someone that can make her happy. If that’s some tall blond asshole, then fine, I guess. She should have been able to go do whatever with him.

He seems off to me, but it’s her choice.

Allie reads Jadon a book and sings him a lullaby she made up until he slowly drifts off to sleep. She looks to me for confirmation that he is asleep, since his back is to her. When I give her the go-ahead, she picks herself up from behind him.

She is still in that dress from earlier and even looks cute with it wrinkled and with splashes of toothpaste from Jadon’s spit in the sink. In fact, it looks better that way.

Watching her with Jadon, I realize how cute they are together. They have their own little language, and words for things that they came up with. Jadon watches everything Allie says and does, mimicking her mannerisms almost perfectly.

Even though I’m sure she’s exhausted from working and raising a kid, Allie does it with grace. I’ve seen her get frustrated, but she never takes it out on the kid and whatever issues she’s handed, she fixes herself without waiting on anyone else.

Had it not been for me, this girl would be in medical school now. She’d be out having fun with her friends and enjoying life. Not reading bedtime stories and getting partially spit on by a little kid.

Or struggle with a boyfriend who isn’t perfectly matched for her.

She quietly closes his door and watches me for a moment. I’m ready for a tongue lashing since she particularly enjoys doing that with me, but it doesn’t come. Instead, there’s this tension between us. I can’t tell what it is, and I’m not sure if everything from earlier today remains.

“I, uh…” she sighs heavily, “I think I’m going to get changed.”

And the fact that she’s not mad at me right now makes things worse. “Oh, right. When you’re done, could you help me with something?”

“Just give me five minutes.”

This part of me wants to ask her what he said, or what’s going on in her head, but I don’t want to screw this up so soon. Instead, I nod and head down to the living room to pull out my computer with the tabs for everything I plan to get Jadon.

Allie makes her way down in some striped shorts and a tank top and it takes everything in me not to stare at her legs or the bare skin between her shirt and shorts. She doesn’t need an asshole creeping on her in her own home.

It’s no simple task, but I succeed right until she takes the seat beside me on the couch and her boobs bounce in her top. Fuck, she’s not wearing a bra.

“What did you need help with?” she asks me.

Finding the best way to hide the strain in my pants underneath this computer.

“I ordered a bed and dresser for Jadon, and they’re at my house now, but I need help finding stuff he would like in his bedroom. I cleared out my spare room the other night and put the furniture in it, but wasn’t sure what he would like or need.”

She nods and patiently spends the next hour helping me shop for him with no complaint. She kept trying to take the laptop, but I gripped it in place, needing it to cover something she really didn’t need to see. Eventually, she stopped trying to take the damn thing and just pointed to things. When she crinkles her nose, it’s a no. When she lights up, it’s an absolute yes.

With every passing minute, she leans closer to me. Does she have any idea what she’s doing to me? The smell from her hair to the soft skin of her thigh brushing against my arm sends every one of my senses into overdrive.

“You think he’s going to be okay tomorrow?” I ask her to stop my mind from going places.

“Well, it really depends on how they approach him. Like your dad, for example. I’m guessing he’s fairly laid back like you and is looking forward to meeting Jadon, right?” I nod. “He will probably enjoy having another grandpa. I’m assuming that Jen is friendly, so he will probably be fine with her, too.”

“And Kat? How do you think he will respond to her?”

“How do you think she will act toward him, Lucas? Will she be warm and friendly? If it’s anything other than that, he will shut down and want nothing to do with her.”

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