Dominick
If I'd been a worrier, I would've bitten my nails.
Except I'd grown out of that stuff long ago. It took a lot to unsettle me these days, but waiting outside the office for mother and daughter to come back out was pushing the limit of my cool.
I guess finding out that I was technically a dad qualified as a lot, after all.
Of course, on some level I'd always known it probably had happened. That some family out there had to benefit from the donation, that there might be someone out there who looked a lot like me.
Of course, knowing that it had probably happened is quite different from actually meeting a flesh and blood child who had my eyes, or hearing her say that I'm her father. It was like the difference between knowing how to skate and playing hockey in front of thousands of fans.
It was the difference between knowing that tigers are dangerous and being cornered by one, desperately saying nice kitty over and over.
Besides, I'd always assumed that whoever used my donation would be a couple. That the kids would have two parents, that they'd never even know about the clinic or me. Ali was nothing like the abstract, hypothetical children I'd imagined. I never thought I would have an actual daughter, let alone one who wanted to meet me so much that she was willing—and able—to track me down at age eleven.
I have a daughter, I thought. Those four words had been echoing in my head constantly, over and over again as I struggled to make sense of what had happened.
The office door opened and Helena stepped outside, freezing the moment she saw me. "Thanks again for your help," she said a little stiffly, her voice full of uncertainty and confusion.
At that moment, Helena looked as small and fragile as her daughter. It was obvious that Ali still hadn't told her the news, and I had no idea how this was even going to work. Was I supposed to be the one to tell her? To intrude on a private family matter like that?
It felt all kinds of wrong.
Of course, it also felt all kinds of wrong to hide behind an eleven-year-old girl.
"You're welcome," I said cautiously, offering Helena my hand. She took it and we shook, her skin marvelously smooth and silky. I looked at her again, recognizing for the first time how attractive she was.
Hair up in a bun, angelic face. Kind of like a hot librarian. Smoking hot, actually.
And, of course, no ring on her finger either.
And just like that, I had two problems.
I wanted to kick myself. As if things weren't complicated enough already, being attracted to Helena made things that much worse. It's not like I was the dating type, and surely sleeping with her could only add an immense strain on an already difficult situation.
Of course, so would resisting the urge to try.
Either way, this was going to be harder than I thought.
"So," I said in my best attempt at a casual voice, scratching the back of my head. "Did Ali tell you why she was here?"
"Not yet," Helena said in the same quiet-but-polite voice she'd been using since noticing I existed. "We're going to talk about it tonight. But thank you again for your help."
It was obvious she wanted to leave.
"My name is Dominick, by the way. Dominick Henderson," I said, still trying to decide if a stranger should be the one to tell her the news. I glanced back at Ali. The terrified look on her face convinced me to act.
I bit my lip, knowing I was going to regret this.
But not as much as I would've regretted letting them leave without saying anything.
"Hey," I said in my best attempt at a conversational voice. "The place across the street has pretty good coffee, you know. What do you say we go there and get a cup? My treat."
Helena winced, and I didn't blame her. I'd overshot friendly and accidentally landed straight in flirty. Without meaning to, I'd basically dropped a bad pickup line on her in front of her daughter.
Our daughter.
Not that she knew that yet.
"I don't really think that's appropriate," she said, her voice polite even as her body language practically screamed no. Her eyes were wide, and her head was shaking back and forth rapidly as she spoke. "Besides, we need to get back—"
"I think we should do it," Ali said, interrupting her mother. "Come on, it'll be fun."
"Going to a coffee shop will be fun?" Helena asked, eying Ali suspiciously. "You don't even drink coffee."
"Well, I've been meaning to start!" Ali said, her already-rosy cheeks turning an even brighter pink.
"I'm not going to buy you any cookies or cakes there, if that's what you're after," Helena said. "You misbehaved very badly today and the last thing I want to do is reward that behavior."
"I don't think that she wants cookies," I said quietly, giving Helena an apologetic smile. "Sorry, I didn't mean to imply that…uh. Look, I just want to talk about what happened. With both of you."
Helena stared at me for a moment, her expression softening.
"This is important, mom," Ali said.
Helena broke eye contact with me to look back down at her daughter.
And then back up to me.
And then back down to Ali.
Helena's own face was getting progressively more pale with each passing second.
"What could possibly be important about coffee with a stranger?" she asked, her voice monotone and quiet.
This must be how I looked earlier today, I realized. Helena had finally noticed my eyes and the unique heterochromia that I shared with her daughter. It seemed some part of her immediately realized the implication, but she hadn't yet been able to admit it to herself. Not consciously, anyway.
Just like me.
"That's part of what I want to address," I said softly. "It's kind of a long story, and it's best if…" I began, stalling out mid-sentence to stop myself from the dreaded words just in the nick of time. With the possible exception of we need to talk, there was no phrase with more sinister implications than you should be sitting down for this.
"If we're somewhere comfortable," Ali finished for me. I looked down at her, frankly impressed by her quick thinking.
"Okay, fine," Helena said finally. "But it can't be too long. I have a lot of work to catch up on."
"No you don't," Ali interjected. "You're a teacher and summer vacation just started."
"What has gotten into you, young lady?" Helena asked.
Ali blushed again, lowering her gaze down to the floor as the three of us walked down the hall. She didn't say anything, but she didn't have to.
One way or another, Helena was about to find out.