I want her so bad it’s fucking killing me at this point. Every single day at the shop is torture. Sitting close to her, close enough to brush against her lips, to smell her perfume, and feel her hair hit my cheek… it’s all just torture.

She knows it. She knows what I want. But she’s playing the long, slow game. Not only that, but she’s obviously hesitant. I’m a dad. I’ve been married to a scornful woman. Those aren’t qualities that are necessarily number one on the hot list. Sure, it’s nice that I’m raising my daughter, but that’s about it. The novelty wears off pretty damn fast.

When I scroll through the shitty dating app, I only have one mission: to find her picture and swipe as fast as I can to the right. That’ll break the ice, right? Of course, I stop myself after looking at three women. The whole thing is absurd. I’m a grown man. If I want her that bad, I’ll take her myself.

The whole thing is going on inside my head, on replay during every moment. When I see Susan next, I can’t stop thinking about how different they are, about how Emily is the kind of woman I’ve been waiting to talk to for years. Who am I kidding? I’ve been waiting for this kind of woman for a decade now.

“You can take her, right? I mean, you told the judge you were readily available when need be,” Susan says. Her stance is hostile, as I sit calmly on the couch. Her hands violently press against the sides of her hips. Her dress is new, probably bought on the company’s dime at some high-end fashion store. She never wore that kind of stuff when we were together. She always said, “I don’t see the point.”

“Of course, I’ll take her,” I say. “But she’ll have to hang out in the shop. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m pretty swamped with work right now.”

“That’s why you’re hiring someone new right?” she quips back.

“Right,” I say. She doesn’t know about Emily yet. I’ve been waiting for the precise moment to tell her we’ve hired a new person on the team. Funny thing is, I know I’m digging my own grave by keeping it from her.

“How’s that going, by the way?” she asks. She loosens up a little, takes a short breath, and begrudgingly sits down next to me.

“It’s going alright. We had over fifty applicants.” I shrug.

“So, there should be some really qualified people. See, I don’t know why you stress so much all of the time. You’ll figure it out and get things done, just like you always have.”

Stress. What does she know about stress? “It’s the busy season, Susan. But you’re right,” I say. “We have some people we’re heavily considering.”

“Well, when the time comes, you come to me with the decision. I want to approve this with you. I don’t want to see our business fall by the wayside,” she says.

“Of course not.” I sigh. Our business. At this point in the game, agreeing with her is all I can really do. If I say no, it’ll be a battle until the end. She’s an Aries, after all, and I’m a Scorpio. Though I don’t really buy into that crap, I’ve found that it’s a deadly combo, nonetheless.

“I’ll grab Lisa now, if you want,” I say. “Where is she?”

“Sleeping,” she says. “You can wake her up if you want to.”

I check my watch and smirk. “Sleeping? Still? It’s eleven in the morning. She should be up watching tv or something by now,” I say.

“I’d rather her sleep than pollute her mind with nonsense,” she says.

I ignore her comments. Maybe cartoons polluted all our minds. I have no idea. All I know is that I’m grateful to be getting out of her million-dollar home right now. I quietly walk into Lisa’s room and she’s awake already, rolling around in her small bed.

“Look at you! You’re awake and everything!” I smile big and my eyes start to water. Every time I see her is like a breath of fresh air. There’s a lot of pain from this marriage, but Lisa holds the key to avoiding it. She’s my sunshine, forever.

“Thanks dad,” she says with half a smile on her face. The other half of her face shows a slight annoyance, the hallmark of being a teen.

I pick her up and kiss the top of her soft hair. “You ready for an adventure?” I ask her, struggling to keep her afloat.

“Dad, stop. I’m not three years old,” she says.

I ignore her protests, but set her down nonetheless. She’s right. She’s not a child anymore. We both walk to the stairs, hoping to avoid Susan, but she’s already downstairs waiting for me. “Don’t forget your phone,” she says, holding it out.

“Thanks,” I mutter.

“Tinder? Really? You’re going down a dark path, Michael,” she rolls her eyes.

“A bit nosy, no?” I grab the phone.

“Just trying to help you out, as always,” she snidely remarks.

“Great, thank you so much,” I say. I walk out and head into the car, with Lisa laughing the whole way. She has no idea.

“Well, kid,” I laugh with her. “It’s time to hang out with Uncle Hanson.”

“Whatever,” she says, staring back at the house, as we drive away.

Whatever. Thank God.

* * *

“Oh my God, is this Lisa?” Emily’s eyes widen. She exudes a deep glow as she runs over to see my daughter.

“Say hey, Lisa,” I say. How wet is Emily right now? Is it twisted to even think that?

“Hey,” she waves, still annoyed.

“Hey!” Emily squeals. Her smile is the cutest damn thing in the world. Her skin is creamy and smooth. Her lips shine against the incoming sunlight, red and plump. I need this woman. I need her now, in my office, but I don’t know how to broach the subject.

“Lisa, this is Emily Carter.” I smile. “She’s a new employee”

Lisa shrugs. But after a second, she glances back and nods. “Cool. Hey,” she says.

“Jesus, Michael. You can’t bring her around here,” Hanson says. “She’s too damn precious.”

“Hanson, stop playing around so much,” Lisa quips back.

“She’s my number one,” I laugh.

Emily smiles, but knows exactly how much distance to keep. I swear, she takes to her better than Susan. Susan’s main thing is to just ignore her most of the time and hope for the best.

“I love your lip gloss,” Emily whispers. “You’ll have to tell me where you got it.” She’s motherly. I can’t help but notice it. I shouldn’t be thinking these things. I don’t need a mother for Lisa. Susan has that taken care of… sort of. But when you have a child, it’s nearly impossible not to notice those things. It’s especially hard when your daughter becomes a teenager. At this point, I can barely even get a word in edgewise. Now, my observations are completely centered around this kid.

“I need to get a sitter,” I tell Hanson. “I have her for the next two days.”

“I don’t need a sitter,” Lisa says. “I’m practically an adult.”

“Yeah. She’s fine in here,” he says, while hammering in some nails.

Dust flies up around him and he coughs lightly. He puts on his facemask and looks up at me. “No way. My daughter isn’t growing up with sawdust in her lungs,” I tell him.

“She can hang out inside,” Emily says.

She’s right, of course. She’s not five anymore. Sometimes I forget. “Sorry, I guess I just forget how old you are sometimes,” I tell Lisa. “Did you ever have siblings, Emily?”

“Unfortunately, I’m an only child,” she says. “But I’ve always liked kids. Maybe it’s just a woman thing or something.”

Hanson laughs and shakes his head. “You should see Susan. She barely touches her,” he says.

“Come on, Hanson. No crap talking in front of the kid.” I sigh. He’s not wrong, but I can’t let him talk shit about my ex-wife all the time. It just doesn’t look good.

“I’ll take care of her,” Emily says, out of the blue.

“What?” I laugh.

“You said you needed a sitter. I can take care of her,” she says. “I mean, not during work hours, but after. It wouldn’t be a problem. I don’t really have anything to do at night.”

“What the heck,” Lisa says. “I don’t need a sitter.”

I raise my brows, ignore my daughter’s complaints, and place my hands in my pockets. Emily really is proving to be the perfect woman. “Seriously? I mean, I’d love that.”

“Yeah, just pay me hourly and we’ll be fine,” she says. I stutter a little, but she holds her hand up. “I’m only joking. I’d do it for free.”

“If you’re watching my kid, I’m going to pay you,” I tell her.

Hanson slaps his hand on a piece of wood. “I’ll take care of the damn kid if you’re paying!” he exclaims.

“You think I trust you around her? Give me a break,” I say.

“Fair enough,” he says.

“Let’s talk after work,” I say. “We could get a drink somewhere. Hanson can watch her for an hour.”

“Oh, so now you trust me, when it’s convenient for you.” He throws up his arms.

“Sounds good,” Emily says, with a slight blush.

I want her. I need her. And I’m getting her tonight.