Wyatt

Wyatt was on his way to work, but stuck in heavy morning traffic. Usually, this would have made him frustrated. He didn't have much patience for the congestion on the highway. He was the guy who would raise his hands up and honk his horn, just to try to gain another car length toward his destination. For whatever reason, though, this morning was different. Even though he was on his way to an important meeting, and there was a chance he'd be late, he wasn't even worried.

His belly was full of the coffee that Lily had made, his daughter was taken care of and there would be dinner on the table when he got home. Right then, there wasn't a whole lot else that he wanted. It was perfect really. It was easy. Lily was making everything so simple and even though it was only Monday, he was already feeling like her time there was going by too quickly.

I wonder if I should hire her after this week is up, just for the extra help around the house, he thought. I mean, I can't fire Mildred, but maybe they could both work for me. Or maybe I could have Lily work on Saturday and Sunday, so that Mildred could have the weekends off.

There was more to his reasoning of wanting Lily to work for him than the fact that she took good care of Maggie, though. Whether he wanted to admit it to himself or not, he liked it when she was around because it made his life feel a little more normal. That was something he hadn't felt since Caroline had passed.

It's just so nice waking up in the morning and having a young woman in the house, he thought, pulling off of the highway and onto the frontage road, which would take him to his office. There's just something about it that feels so good. Maybe it makes me feel young again or something. I'm not sure what it is exactly.

His thoughts immediately went to earlier that morning, when he'd stepped into the kitchen to see Lily in her pajama pants and tank top. He hadn't even consciously thought about it, but he had definitely checked her out. When she'd turned around, his eyes dropped right to that firm ass of hers, noticing the diagonal lines from her panties underneath.

Just the thought made him get a little bit hard under his slacks. Mostly because it reminded him of Friday night, when he actually got to see her in her panties.

Damn, she looks good, he thought, shaking his head. It's almost like torture, though, because I can't have her. I can only look, I can't touch. I feel like a diabetic in a candy store. Everything I want is right in front of me, but I can't have it.

Just the idea of doing something sexual with Lily made Wyatt feel guilty, just like always. He wished he didn't feel that way, but he couldn't help it. All he could think about was Caroline and how her feelings would be hurt if he ever did anything sexual with another woman.

“I wish I could just talk to you, Caroline,” Wyatt whispered to himself, driving into the parking garage of his building. “Maybe you wouldn't think I'm crazy for being interested in Lily after all. I just don't know.”

After parking, he hopped out of his Lamborghini and headed into his building. He had exactly one minute to spare before his meeting started.

* * *

Wyatt closed the door to his office. His meeting with the investors had gone really well, putting him in a great mood. He kicked his feet up on the desk and put his hands behind his head. There were little moments like these when he felt really great about everything.

I should think of something fun to do with Maggie this week, he thought. I haven't taken her to do anything in quite some time. Maybe I'll talk to Lily and see if she has any ideas of what we could do. I heard that the Renaissance Fair is in town. We could always check that out, I suppose.

A knocking game on the door of his office and he sighed.

“Never a dull moment around here.” Wyatt dropped his feet off of his desk and sat forward. “Come in.”

When the door opened, a familiar face popped into the room. “Morning, sunshine.”

Wyatt raised an eyebrow and laughed. “Hey, David. What's up, man?”

David stepped into the office. He was wearing a black suit with a bright red tie. He looked like he was about to run for president.

“Not too much going on.” David closed the door behind him and then plopped down onto the chair on the opposite side of the desk from Wyatt. “Besides the fact that I just talked to Cindy, your secretary. My God, she's looking good. Have you noticed the rack on her lately? I swear those boobs are getting bigger. You think she's pregnant, or is God just making them bigger so that I have something nice to look at when I stop by?”

Wyatt rolled his eyes. “David, don't talk like that about Cindy. She works for me, man. You know I'm not allowed to look at her like that, even if I wanted to.”

David leaned in. “What do you mean? Are you telling me that it's a crime to take an innocent glance at a nice set of tits?”

Wyatt shook his head. “No, I'm not saying that at all. I just don't need a sexual harassment case to deal with. I've got plenty enough on my plate as it is. Plus, I actually have a lot of respect for Cindy. The girl works harder than I do and that's saying something. I guess I see her as more than just a pair of tits.”

“Well, more for me to look at then.” David smirked and leaned forward, bringing his elbows to the top of the desk. “I'm trying to think of the best way to tell you this, but I'm worried about you, Wyatt. Look, I understand why you don't want to be caught checking out your own secretary, but I haven't heard you speak about any girl since Caroline.”

Wyatt brought his gaze up until he locked eyes with David. “So what?”

“I don't want you to get defensive,” he replied. “I'm just looking out for you. I loved Caroline, too. She was the best woman I've ever known and I think she was perfect for you. I also think that she would want you to be happy.”

“What do you mean?” Wyatt leaned back in his chair. “I am happy. Look at me. I'm smiling right now.” He forced the outside of his lips into a smirk.

“You aren't happy, Wyatt. I know that sometimes I still hear you laugh and joke, but underneath all of that there's still an obvious pain. I'm not stupid and I've known you for a long time. I consider us brothers. I know you better than you know yourself sometimes. It's clear to me that you still haven't fully grieved over your wife. It worries me, man. You can't just shove that shit down and think it will go away. It's going to kill you.”

“What are you getting at, David?” Wyatt asked, feeling suddenly a little annoyed.

As much as he respected David and did consider him to be his best friend, there were times when David was a little overbearing. The guy definitely didn't have a filter on what he said. He was no bullshit and didn't beat around the bush. That was one reason why Wyatt trusted him, but it was also the same reason that he didn't always turn to him for sensitive matters.

“I just want you to be happy,” David said, a look of genuine concern in his eyes. “I mean it when I say that I'm worried about you. We used to go out and have fun. Remember all of the good times we had? I'm not saying you need to relive your youth or anything. In fact, you don't need to because we're still young. I can't even talk you into going to see Raccoon's game with me any more, though. I had court side seats on Saturday and even that wasn't enough.”

“I told you, something more important came up that night,” Wyatt said.

“Yeah, you mentioned something about a date with two ladies,” David said. “I know you were bullshitting me, though. You just didn't feel like leaving the house.”

“That's not true,” Wyatt said. “I did have a date with two ladies. Of course, one of them happened to be Maggie.”

David raised an eyebrow. “What about the other one?”

“The other one was Lily,” Wyatt said. “She's a...” He paused for a moment, trying to find the right words. David didn't know the situation with Lily and how she was Maggie's surrogate mother. In fact, David had never even met Lily before, which had been completely intentional. Wyatt knew that David would have tried to seduce her just like he did every other beautiful woman and he didn't want that for Lily. He wanted to protect her and keep her safe from guys who wanted only to sleep with her.

“She's a family friend,” Wyatt continued. “We've known her for a few years. I'm having her take care of Maggie while Mildred is out of town.”

“Oh really?” David smirked and raised his eyebrow a little further.

Wyatt was familiar with that look of his and knew that his best friend's gears were turning.

“What?” Wyatt asked.

“A lady friend?” David replied, the smirk still plastered across his face.

“No, just a family friend,” Wyatt said.

David seemed disappointed by the response. He sat back in his seat, letting out a sigh. “So you missed the game for a family friend? Something doesn't add up here.”

“Look, Lily had made dinner that night and Maggie had helped. Both of them were really excited about it and looking forward to having meet eat with them. I felt bad running out on them just to see a basketball game. Besides, I don't know why I'm telling you all of this. I'm a grown man. If I don't want to go and see a game, I don't have to. I shouldn't need to justify my reasoning.”

“The Wyatt I know wouldn't sacrifice court side seats for a dinner with just anyone,” David said. “Lily must be pretty special.”

“It was more for Maggie.” Wyatt was starting to get a little defensive. He hated when David pried like this. Even if he didn't really have any bad intentions, it was still pretty annoying. “I need to spend as much time with her as I possibly can. She's growing up quick and she doesn't have a mom any more. I'm supposed to be playing the role of not just one parent any more, but two. Do you have any idea how difficult that is? It's going to get harder, too. I can't imagine how it's going to be when she gets into her teens. I don't know a damn thing about what girls go through growing up.”

“You're missing my initial point, Wyatt,” David said. “I realize that you're up against some challenges, but your own happiness matters, too. Do you think Maggie wants her dad to be sad all the time? I'm just saying, I think you need to try to get out more. Life is about balance. You work and you hide out in your house. That's all you do any more.”

So what? Wyatt thought. I love my job and I love my home. What's wrong with doing that? Seems to me like that's what most people's goals are, to be able to work and come back to a nice home. I think I'm living the dream.

“Yeah, well, you're single and don't have kids,” Wyatt said. “Trust me, things change pretty quick once kids are involved. Your priorities change. You can't just go out and party whenever you want to any more. To be honest, though, I'm not sure if I'd want to do that sort of thing regardless of if I had Maggie or not. I'm too old for that shit. I turn thirty-five in a couple of months. I'd be perfectly happy if I never had to experience another hangover again in my life.”

David chuckled. “Now that's something we can agree on. I'd love to never experience another hangover again. The only problem, is that I don't think I'm ready to give up on booze just to have that experience. Not yet anyway.”

“Maybe some day, huh?” Wyatt asked.

“Definitely some day,” David said. “For now, though, I'm having way too much fun.”

In some ways, Wyatt envied David's ability to stay carefree. It was as though David was still in college, just living for today with no sense or worry of tomorrow. On the other hand, though, that sort of lifestyle felt a little stagnant.

How long does someone really want to live like that? Wyatt asked himself. I guess as long as he's happy, he'll continue doing it.

“So, did you end up watching the game at home on Saturday then?” David asked. “Or have you at least read the paper? You know what happened, right?”

“Yeah, I know what happened,” Wyatt said. “I don't live under a rock. Lily, Maggie and I watched the game at home. The Raccoon's are headed to the playoffs.”

“Exactly.” David's eyes lit up. “That means that I'm going to have two very important tasks to take care of in the coming weeks. The first one, is getting my hands on some playoff tickets. That shouldn't be too difficult, since everybody has a price and I have enough money to pay that price, regardless of what it is. The second part, though, could be much harder.”

“What's the second part?” Wyatt asked.

“Getting you to come with,” David said, standing from his seat. “I'll figure out a way, though. Don't you worry about that. You know me. When I set my mind to something...”

He kept talking, but Wyatt managed to tune him out. His mind went back to home and he began thinking about Lily once again. He wondered what she and Maggie would be doing that day, once Maggie had finished her dance lessons. He was also curious what Lily was going to be making for dinner and if she'd remember to use a little less salt this time. In the very far reaches of his mind, there was something else he was thinking about, too. Part of him hoped he'd come home that evening and accidentally run into her again while she was wearing only panties.

“Hey, are you listening?” David asked, tapping on the desk.

Wyatt focused once more and nodded. “Yeah, yeah. I'm all ears.”

“I said, that when playoffs come around in a few weeks, I'm going to take you with me even if that means I have to hire some bodyguards to come and physically remove you from the house,” he said, and sounded surprisingly serious about it. “I mean it. You're coming.”

“We'll see,” Wyatt said. “I can't make any promises.”

David shrugged. “Alright, well I'll let you know when I have the tickets.”

“Sounds good.” Wyatt gathered some papers that were scattered on his desk. “Well, I should get to work. I've got a few loose ends to tie up before lunch.”

“I'll get out of your hair,” David said. “I'll be around, though. I'll probably swing in later this week, if for no other reason than to check out Ms. Cindy, The Secretary, again. For now, though, I need to go to bed.”

“To bed? It's ten in the morning,” Wyatt replied.

“Yeah, and I've been up all night, too.” David turned to leave, then glanced over his shoulder. “Those party girls in their early twenties. I'm telling you, man. They're impossible to keep up with. It's like they can go for days and never sleep. Not that I'm complaining. Some things are worth staying awake for. Still, though, I've got to get some shut eye today or I might just die.”

Wyatt laughed and shook his head. “Go home and get your beauty rest, buddy. I'll catch up with you later.”

David left the office and shut the door, leaving Wyatt in peace.

That guy is a character, he thought, resting his chin onto his fists as he gazed at the paperwork on his desk. I suppose he has a point, though, as much as I hate to admit it. It would probably do me a little bit of good to get out more. Maybe, just maybe, I'll take him up on the offer to go to the Raccoon's game if he actually manages to get tickets. If Maggie doesn't want me to leave that night, though, then I'm not going. No way. She's my priority.

Wyatt's cell phone buzzed in his pocket and he pulled it out to see a text from Lily. His first thoughts went to the worst case scenario immediately. It was his fatherly instinct, telling him that something must be wrong. That maybe something had happened with Maggie. So he was relieved when he actually opened the text to see that Lily was simply asking him if there was anything in particular he'd like to have for dinner.

Her text read: I'm digging through the pantry and wondering what you'd like for dinner tonight. Maggie voted for macaroni and cheese, but I'm thinking you might like something besides that.

He smiled as he glanced over the text, then responded: I'm up for anything. Maybe chicken? I hear that goes well with mac and cheese.

Lily responded with a simple smiley face. Wyatt set the phone down onto his desk and pulled the paperwork toward him. He had a whole lot to get done during the rest of the day, but the mountain of work didn't scare him. It never did. Especially when he knew he'd get to come home to his daughter and a home cooked meal.

I just hope Lily remembers to go easy on the salt this time, he thought, chuckling to himself.