Chapter Twenty-Four
Emily
That morning I went to work from my new house, and when I parked at the same time that Terra was parking, I got out and giggled.
“Great timing. Hey, ex-roomie. How are you?”
“Hey, Em. It’s weird not driving in with you. Although, we practically live on the same road. We should totally take turns in driving every day.”
“That’s not a bad idea, actually. Okay, great, I’ll come pick you up you tomorrow.”
“Deal! So, how’s the new place? You’ve had two nights there now already.”
“It’s great. I battled to sleep the first night, but last night I slept like a baby.”
We walked inside, and I asked her if anything had happened with Brady, but she said that he was very polite, very sweet, but also very quiet. She said she had no idea whether or not he liked her or wanted to see her again.
“Which only makes me like him even more, of course,” she said and sighed dramatically.
“Naturally. I tried to find out what his type was from Grant but even he has no idea. You have your hands full with this one. Hopefully he’s worth the effort.”
She shook her head. “If he’s interested, then I’m here, but I’m not going to run after him if he doesn’t want to. So, we’ll see. So, how you feeling? You know, after the phone call. I’m sorry for bringing it up, but it’s good to talk about things. You know that’s my philosophy in life.”
I nodded and walked over to the coffee machine to make us both a cup. I handed her one and sat down. As much as I had tried not to think about it, it had been on my mind ever since he had called. And if there was one person I didn’t mind talking to, it was Terra. I shook my head.
“I don’t know what to do. I keep thinking about it. I keep playing the phone call over and over again in my head. I can still hear his voice. It’s weird. I mean, I waited for that call my whole life. But I never really thought it was ever going to come. Maybe I should just meet up with him. At least hear him out. I’m not sure I’ll be able to really let it go until I do.”
“Are you even sure that it’s him?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, just hear me out. I was thinking about this the other day, and the more I thought about it, the more of a possibility it seemed to me. What if it’s not even him? What if it’s some weirdo trying to freak you out?”
“Some weirdo?”
“Have you ever considered that it might be Brett? That dude got so creepy on you. I wouldn’t put it past him.”
I shook my head. “No, I could hear it wasn’t Brett.”
“Have you ever spoken to Brett on the phone, though? Some people sound different on the phone. And he could’ve been putting on a voice.”
“You’re freaking me out now. I don’t think it’s Brett, though. Look, I have no idea if it’s really my father or not. But I think I need to make a decision whether or not I want to see him. Either I tell him no, and I forget about it for the rest of my life, or I just go and see what he has to say. I’m still undecided.”
She sighed. “Yeah, I guess I don’t blame you. That’s a big decision. Well, I’ll support whatever you do. Just be careful. And don’t let this guy mess with you. You’ve done well without him your whole life. Don’t let all that unravel just because he’s suddenly decided he wants you in his life. I love you lots, Em. And you’re an incredibly strong person.”
I smiled. “And you’re a good friend. I promise to be careful. I’m still not sure what I’m going to do, anyway.”
“Take your time, Em. There’s no point rushing this. Better to do it in your own time when you are ready. After all, he’s the one that kept you waiting for so long. That’s if it’s even him.”
“That’s true. Okay, I’ll take my time. I’m not even going to think about it right now. Which reminds me, I better go and prepare for the first client. I have a new girl coming in today.”
“Oh yeah, I forgot about that. Good luck! I better go too. See you later,” she said and walked to her office.
Betty Lindon was a small little girl with long blonde hair and a smile that lit up the room. She was seven and had a problem with her pronunciation. I’d had a long discussion with her father on the phone and he’d explained that she’d been like ever since she started to speak. When she got excited or upset about something, her speech got worse, and neither he nor his wife knew what to do. Someone had suggested they take her to a speech therapist, and he’d called me to ask if I could help. It was Betty’s mother that dropped her off. She was a thin woman, with blonde hair similar to Betty’s, and bright-green eyes. I took an immediate liking to her.
“Thank you so much for helping Betty,” she said to me. “She’s a good girl, and very hardworking, so I’m sure she’ll thrive here. We just weren’t sure how to help her. We’ve actually been homeschooling her, but she’ll be going to a real school next year, and we wanted to make sure she was ready to interact with the other kids. Sometimes people have trouble understanding her,” she whispered so Betty wouldn’t hear.
“She’s in good hands with me,” I said.
“Her father will be here to get her in two hours. His name is Reed. You’ll know it’s him right away. Betty looks so much like him.”
When she left, I turned to look at Betty. “It’s lovely to meet you, Betty. My name is Emily. Today we’re going to get to know each other and see where you stand. I always make my first session two hours long just so that we don’t feel rushed. Would you like me to show you what I do?”
She nodded, and I took her around the room showing her everything, and making sure that she felt comfortable. I showed her the drawings that some of the other children had done and then sat her down to explain what a speech therapist was. I wanted her to understand that having a speech problem didn’t at all mean that there was something wrong with her. That was the most important part of the process for me. Once they realized that they could overcome it, they put a lot more effort into it.
The two hours went by quickly, and I enjoyed my time with Betty more than I did with some of the other kids I worked for. She reminded me a lot of Wendy. Good natured and willing to put in the effort. It always amazed me how hard kids worked and how determined they were to fix their problems. I often wished that adults could be the same. Her father, Reed, came to get her a few minutes before the end of the session. His wife had been right: it was obvious to see that he was Betty’s father. I opened for him and let him in, and then I laughed as I watched Betty run toward him.
“DADDY!” she screamed and jumped into his arms.
He swung her around and kissed her gently on the forehead when he put her down. He took her hand and asked her to show him around. Betty walked around as if she knew the place well, and told him all about what she had done in the lesson. She was excited, and her speech was all blurred, but her father understood every word. Afterward, he smiled at me.
“Thanks so much, Emily. I can see Betty feels right at home here.”
“She’s a lovely girl. Such a pleasure to work with. You’ll see, she’ll be talking up a storm in no time.”
“I don’t doubt it,” he said. Then he looked at his daughter and squeezed her hand. “You did very well today, Betty. You made me very proud.”
Little Betty looked up at her father and grinned. It was obvious that she saw him as the most important man in her life. And I could see why. The way he was treating her was the way she would expect every man to treat her in her life. With love and respect. What a lucky girl she was to have a father like that in her life.
I watched as they left. They walked all the way to the car holding hands, and I could see her talking enthusiastically to her father the whole time. Most of all, I couldn’t help but notice how attentive he was to her. The love between them was obvious. And just then I couldn’t help but wonder how different my life would’ve been had my father never left me. I needed to know if the man on the phone was really who he said he was. And if he was, I wanted to know where he had been all these years and why he had left me.
Later that day, at home, I cradled my phone in my hand. I opened up the text message that he had sent me and thought about what I should say in reply. Then I thought about the conversation that I’d had with Terra that morning. What if she was right? What if he wasn’t my father? What if this was just some sick prank by someone who meant me harm? I didn’t think so. But how could I be too sure? If I was going to meet this man, then I couldn’t do it alone. I’d need someone with me in case anything went wrong.
I called Grant.
“Hey, Em. I was just about to call you, actually.”
“You were?” I smiled. “That’s nice. How was the first day? Wait, actually, don’t tell me. You can tell me in person.”
“In person?”
“Any chance you want to come over now?”
“I could think of nothing better.”
“There’s mac and cheese, by the way. I have leftovers.”
“Oh, then I’m definitely there.”
“Thanks, Grant. I actually need to talk to you about something.”
“You do? About what?”
“Ah, I’d rather talk to you about it in person.”
“Be right there!”