No. He won’t, because he’s never going to find out.
“Go and get cleaned up,” I say as I put the cooked ground beef into a bowl and slide it across the island.
Movement across the yard catches my eye, and I watch as Mom lets herself out of the pool house.
Noticing me, she lifts her hand in a little wave, but she doesn’t come over.
She’s a fucking angel.
Honestly, I don’t know what Sutton and I would do without her.
From the moment Sutton’s mom left without a backward glance, my mom stepped up.
She already had Dad to look after, but that didn’t stop her.
She allowed me to continue playing the game I love, all the while knowing that my daughter was being cared for.
The thought of employing a nanny and trusting them with my baby girl is terrifying.
And there was very little chance I would meet anyone and leave the job to them.
Mom is our guardian angel.
Tonight, she’s going out with the group of friends she’s made here.
She was reluctant at first, but I refused to let her follow us here and then just hide away in the pool house.
She deserves to get out and enjoy herself. She deserves friends. Hell, if it happens, I’d love for her to find someone again. Of course, it’ll be weird as fuck to see her with someone who isn’t Dad, but she deserves to have that kind of love in her life again.
“I’m ready,” Sutton squeals, sliding across the kitchen tiles in her socks.
Hopping up onto the stool beside me, she immediately dives into dinner.
She makes up two tacos before diving in as if she’s the one who’s been training for our first exhibition game all day.
We spend the evening hanging out watching ESPN. I can imagine it’s not what most dads and daughters do together on a Friday night. But to us, it’s perfect.
“You’re coming to my game Sunday, right?” she asks, hope in her eyes.
“Of course.” She asks me that before every game she knows I’m home for. As if I’d miss a single one.
I live for Sutton’s games even more than I do my own.
Her smile grows.
“Good. I’m better when you’re watching.”
“The feeling is mutual.”
With Sutton tucked in bed, I take another shower in the hope of washing the day off me before dropping my ass to the couch again.
Unease continues to drip through my veins. Questions over what I should do next race through my head.
The sensible side of my brain tells me to just ignore it all.
She told me very confidently that it was one nightand one night only.
So what, I now know who she is?
