I checked the time, and it wasn’t too late, early compared to the normal hour I went to bed, but my kids would have been in bed a couple of hours prior.
They should have been, at least.
Opening the front door, the sound of the television resonated around the foyer. I didn’t recognize the music, but as I turned the corner, I thought I remembered the show being called Wild and Crazy Kids. Alex was lying on the floor in a makeshift bed of couch cushions and blankets. Tucked in, wrapped in her arms, were Molly and Eloise. One on each side.
Pulling my phone from my pocket, I snapped a picture of the group, thankful for the light from the TV, so I didn’t have to worry about the flash. That image was going to be a keepsake.
Slowly, I approached the group and kneeled beside them. I attempted to wedge my hands underneath Eloise’s slight frame without waking Alex, but just as I lifted her in my arms, Alex’s eyes blinked open.
“Nate?” she asked in that sleepy voice I was growing to love.
“Yeah. Sorry. I’m just going to carry them to bed.”
“What time is it?”
“Not late. It’s like ten.”
“Oh.” She gently slipped her arm from beneath Molly’s head and rolled off their pallet. “Let me help you.”
“No, no. I’ve got it. I’ll be right back.”
I made quick work of tucking Eloise into her bed. She barely squirmed as she settled in. I repeated the motions with Molly, who immediately tucked her stuffed bear under her chin before rolling onto her stomach.
Downstairs, I found Alex back on the now remade couch with a glass of water. She apologized for dozing off. I told her it was fine. That’s what slumber parties were for anyway. Not that I was ever allowed to go to any growing up.
When I prompted her about what chaos they got into, she laughed, then plunged into the details of eating too much popcorn and painting each other’s nails. I was warned that each girl had a different color on each finger, courtesy of Tami, who came stocked with an entire makeup and nail kit.
“We had a great time.”
“I’m glad. I wish they had someone in their life like this long before now. I’m pretty sure their mother’s idea of girl time was showing them her pageant crowns and sashes locked inside a glass cabinet.”
Thinking of Sasha reminded me that I ignored her calls for the last two days. After everything that happened with Eloise, I wasn’t in the right frame of mind to talk to her.
“That’s really sad. But maybe look at the way she grew up. It may have been all she knew. Her mother may not have been very affectionate or loving.”
I didn’t like Alex speaking about my ex, but it was an interesting take I hadn’t considered. I met her mother twice, and she was as cold as the tip of Mount Everest.
“I don’t want to talk about my ex.”
“I know. But you should,” she said, and I felt my eyebrows reach my hairline as I sputtered. “Nate, she’s still their mother, no matter what’s on a piece of paper. Despite how awful she was to you and the terrible way she abandoned them, you should still try to talk kindly about her. Your words are going to be their only memory of her.”
“I don’t like this conversation.”
Alex chuckled as she settled against me on the couch. I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and held her close.
“You don’t have to like it. I’m just telling you what I think. You’re their father, after all.”
Closing my eyes, I rested my head against the back of the couch. “She wants to see them. She keeps sending me these messages, pleading with me. Saying that she’s missing them growing up. Apparently, she bought a new condo with a pool and a view of the Hollywood Hills and wants them to visit before school starts.”
“How do you feel about that?
“I feel like she’s manipulating them. She knows the lies won’t work on me, but she’s showing them new and shiny things. We just got over the adjustment period of living with me when we moved here. We haven’t even broken ground on a new house yet, and I feel like she’s trying to pull them away.”
Alex remained silent for a few beats. I brought my head up and turned to face her. She nibbled on her bottom lip as she stared at the television screen. “Can she contest the parental rights and guardianship?”
It was strange to hear my biggest fear vocalized by someone else. Despite all the legal work I’d done to ensure that it couldn’t happen, the fear still simmered in the pit of my stomach.
“No. My lawyers made sure when all the paperwork was signed that she couldn’t contest it. Ever. Those girls will always be mine.”
