Alana tapped Becca on the nose. “It means you have to be goodeveryday of the year and it all adds up.”
Becca pushed her bottom lip out and crossed her arms. “But it’s fun to be bad.”
“Oh boy,” she said her eyes wide. “Good luck there, Brennan.”
“Thanks.” As much as he was dreading those teenage years, he had hoped he wouldn’t be alone for them.
Alana put Becca on the floor, toed off her shoes. She took her jacket off and hung it up and then picked up her bag.
“Do you have gifts for me?” Becca asked. He wanted to chastise his daughter for being rude but told himself to dial it back. She was three. Christmas was tomorrow.
“I do,” she said.
“Can I open them now? My mom came to visit and she brought me gifts and I got to open them early.”
“That was nice of her,” Alana said. She looked at him and caught his forced grin over the visit. No reason for his daughter to know Rene’s appearance wasn’t fun and games.
“I got more coloring books and paints. I painted you a picture and drew you one too.”
“You did?” she asked.
He saw Alana blink a few times, her bottom lip came out with it. A genuine tender look full of emotions from someone who cared what his daughter did.
“It’s supposed to be a surprise,” he said to Becca.
“Oops,” Becca said. “I’m just so excited.”
“If Daddy doesn’t mind, then why don’t you open your gifts?”
“I don’t,” he said.
They moved to the couch and he reached over to grab the two gifts under the tree for Alana.
Alana handed Becca the first of three boxes, then pushed one over to him shyly.
His daughter was tearing into the box like an octopus on crack.
“It’s a Bluey drum set!” Becca squealed.
“You didn’t,” he said, his eyes narrowing.
“Sorry. It’s the only Bluey thing they had and she loves music.”
“She does, but this is next level painful.”
He couldn’t fault her though, with how happy Becca was. It was the kind of joy he hoped his daughter had with the gifts he got her.
Brennan supposed he could always hide it or take the batteries out until Alana was around.
“I’ll make it up to you,” she breathed when she handed another box over.
He nudged her thigh with his, then leaned closer. “I look forward to that.”
Becca’s arms were flying again and this time it was a box full of activity books and crayons. That was more like it and there was wiggling and squealing over that gift too.
“She is excitable,” she said.
“She is,” He couldn’t ask for anything more. And he knew damn well his daughter could have had more of her mother’s selfish personality, but he hadn’t seen a touch of it once.
