Siarra
When I woke up, a bit after 8 in the morning, I padded to the kitchen to find Addie just sitting at the table. When she saw me, she smiled.
“Morning Sia.”
“Good morning Addie, what are you up to?” I asked. I thought it was odd that she was just sitting in the kitchen doing absolutely nothing, quiet as a mouse.
She shrugged. “I woke up a little while ago.”
I frowned. “You could’ve watched TV or something.”
She blushed. “I’m sorry, I just didn’t think of it. I’m not usually allowed.”
I felt a migraine coming on. “No need to be sorry honey, you don’t have to worry about that anymore.” I gulped, that felt like a lie. I didn’t know what her dad was like or what the coming days or weeks… hell even hours had in store, so I amended my statement. “Those are things you never have to worry about when you’re with me.”
She offered me a beautiful smile. “Thank you.”
I nodded. “The TV in your room works too, as long as it’s not too late… like after bedtime, have at it. Now, are you hungry?” I asked.
She nodded. “I didn’t see any cereal though.”
Oh God! This girl was going to be the death of me. “If I’m busy, or sleeping, or anything and you need or want something important… you know like food, then you come interrupt me from whatever I’m doing.” I walked to one of the cabinets and opened it. “I keep the cereal here, but I can move it somewhere else… on one of the cabinets, maybe, so you can get to it. But I was thinking, how about some bacon, eggs, and toast?” I offered.
She nodded enthusiastically. “Yes please! Aunt Maggie never cooked. I’m used to cereal when we have some.”
I smiled. “Well you’re in luck because I actually love to cook. And now that you’re here you can tell me what you want to eat, and I can make that. Do you know what you want for lunch?” I asked.
“Anything is fine.” She answered in a whisper.
I wanted to growl and scream at her, but it wasn’t her fault. “I didn’t ask you that. I asked what you want.”
She thought about it for a minute and then gave me a shy smile. “I really like those chicken sandwiches that you make. Do you… do you think I can have that today.”
I nodded as I moved to the freezer. That was perfect. I had some cutlets that took like 2 seconds to defrost and I can throw them on the grill and they’re pretty much done. Come to think of it, I think I’ll go for one of those too. I took the chicken out for us and put the bacon on to cook slowly.
“Do you have a washing machine? I didn’t bring any clothes.” She asked.
Right. I checked the bacon, I’d have enough time to go through the bags with her then she’d be able to fiddle around with whatever she wanted and grab a shower before breakfast. I get ready in 20 minutes; 10 in the shower, 10 getting dressed so I wasn’t concerned.
I held a hand out to her. “I want to show you something.” She took my hand and followed me into the living room. When I sat down besides the Target bags, she looked at them both curious and confused.
I patted the seat for her to sit. “Last night, after you went to sleep I asked my neighbors to watch over you for a bit.” She tensed and looked at me warily. I’d have her explain that to me, but not now. “They’re nice people. A couple in their 80’s I’ll take you over there to meet them.” She relaxed so I continued to explain myself. “Yesterday I realized that you didn’t have anything that you needed so I ran out to grab you some things.”
I could tell by her expression that she didn’t know whether she should believe me or not. “Why?” she asked.
I frowned. “Because you’re a child and you need things and if you’re with me or I know about it, then I will make sure that you have them.” I explained with conviction. I wanted her to know how serious I was about that and how much I meant every word.
She seemed to relax more, and a little bit of excitement came over her. I grabbed the bags with clothes. “There are some clothes in here, go through them and find something for you to wear for the day then you can go through the rest of the things. I’d picked some stuff out, but I was to go back today. You can come with me to work, then we can go to Target and you can pick out things you like then I need to go grocery shopping… how’s that sound?”
She was still picking items out of the first bag. She was handling everything with delicate movements like she was afraid she might ruin them, or they’d disappear. She had a sweet smile plastered on her face. I pulled up the bag that had her gift in it. “I also got you a present… something I think you’d like.”
She was bouncing now with excitement. “You did?” she asked no longer hiding her enthusiasm.
I nodded. “Yes.” I pulled the iPad out of the bag and handed it over. She took it in her hands and turned the box over a few times with a blank expression. I bit my lip, maybe she doesn’t like technology?
Her eyes bounced back and forth between me and the box before she exploded. “Is this really for me? An iPad? Oh my God! I’ve never even dreamed of having one because I never thought I’d be able to get one. This is so awesome! Thank you Sia!” she launched herself at me and I fell back into the couch cushions. She planted sloppy wet kisses on my cheeks. “Thank you Sia! This is the best gift I ever got in my life!”
I chuckled. “You’re welcome. I can help you figure the thing out later if you want me to. For now, how about you pick out something to wear for the day and go grab a shower and things. If you need me to help with your hair and stuff I can.” I offered.
She was still bouncing off of the iPad. “I usually do my hair myself, but I’d really like it if you did it.” She looked up at me and worried her lip.
“Then I’ll take a stab at it. I’m going to finish breakfast and get our lunch and snacks together while you get ready.” I told her.
She reluctantly put the iPad down giving it a longing look before focusing intensely on her clothes. She seemed just as happy – well maybe not as happy¬ – for the clothes as she was for iPad, taking her time going through the pieces until she decided on something. My heart felt so warm and so happy that she felt so good. I’d never seen her so happy, ever, and the fact she’s going banana’s over a couple of pieces from Target made me more humble.
We were able to get out the house on time and over to the library. She went about her usual business, reading and talking with me while I did what I needed. The whole time though, there was something different. I couldn’t help but keep her in my line of sight. I usually watched out for her but now, I was looking after her. I liked that she didn’t hesitate to come to me to tell me she was ready for lunch or that she would like to have a snack. Normally, she waited until I came to her. Well I don’t know if she waited for me, she seems to be very unassuming, but she never sought me out for anything. She just simply took whatever I offered her, and I had to refrain from beating myself up for not recognizing that ages ago. Just thinking of all the things, I could’ve done differently, was a thorn on my side the entire day.
When we’d finally hit Target, she’d admitted it was her first-time shopping… ever. She was usually not home or stayed back alone whenever her aunt went out. She never had a say in what she got… but once she realized that I wanted her to be more open with me about what it was she desired she didn’t hold back. When she grabbed my hand in the store and held it I felt warm and fuzzy all over. It was an overwhelming feeling, I assumed this was love but I couldn’t love her. I couldn’t keep her. Eventually, I’d have to give her back no matter how much I didn’t want to.
She had wanted lasagna for dinner, but I had to tell her no. It was late by the time we got home and honestly that takes forever to make. I promised her though, that I’d make it on Saturday. Today was Thursday so that wasn’t far off. Since we had burgers last night, I opted for something equally quick but a bit more substantial. I wasn’t the biggest fan of instant Mac-n-Cheese, but it’d do for tonight. I made some steaks and broccoli to go along with it. My pretty girl had thirds. I’ve heard of love at first sight and things with adults in relationships that I didn’t believe in. But this, I was falling in love with this little girl so hard and so fast I didn’t know what to do with myself. By the time I went to sleep, I knew I wasn’t giving her up. I couldn’t be her mother… no one but her actual mother could be. But I would make sure I was in her life.
It didn’t matter her daddy was big, bad, and dangerous. It didn’t matter her mother was a piece of shit. It didn’t matter that the woman who’d she been living with, who was also her aunt didn’t give two fucks about her. She’d have someone who would love and care for her in a way that she needs. She’ll have me for sure; I wasn’t simply going to let her go.
*****
Pyscho
Two days.
Longest two days of my fucking life.
First, Rip runs into that stupid junkie bitch while on a run, and she offers to suck him off. I wasn’t exclusive or anything with the bitch. Honestly, I don’t give a fuck about her. I was fucking with her for two months. I didn’t know at the time she’d just gotten out of rehab and was ‘recovering’. The bitch was on parole for six months and had to take frequent tests, so she couldn’t indulge. She seemed normal enough. A warm place to stick my dick in outside of the club bitches that circulated like a fucking running train.
When Rip crossed her path, as he tells the story, he didn’t recognize her. He banged her, and she expected money. When he told her to fuck off, she bribed him with a secret. When she was explicit it had to do with the club he caved. Gave her enough for her fix and what’s the bitch tell him? I knocked her the fuck up – on purpose on her part. She had planned at the time to stay clean and was looking for some money. Now what went wrong? I’d give you this; Rip is not one for games. My man is all for information. You can’t give him a taste and not the whole thing, if you tried to fuck with him that way the boy will rip you the fuck apart.
She had remembered him, and I guess her plan backfired. She wanted more, but when he said the only offer was her life she relented real fucking quick. She returned back to her ways and knew I wasn’t going to give her fuck ass shit, so she didn’t see the point. She ain’t want the kid but it was a part of her hustle to get money out of unsuspecting strangers. She’d had my kid – a fucking daughter at that – when she realized the girl wasn’t going to be any sort of income for her she dumped her on her sister and hightailed it.
I knew her sister a bit. Met her a few times… should’ve fucking gotten the hint. She was an absolute bona fide junkie. Fuck, she put her sister on… that’s how my baby momma, Shelly, got into all that shit. She just wasn’t as hard core as Shelly turned out to be. Must be fucking genetic.
I’m scared as fuck to meet my kid. What the fuck? She’s probably all fucked in the brain with the shit her mom was using while she was pregnant. How the fucking hell am I going to deal with that shit? Having a child all of a sudden without any fucking prep was a thing of its own. What the fuck am I going to do with all this extra care and attention I would need to provide? I didn’t have the patience, to save a fucking life, in me!
I gripped the bars on my motorcycle. Fuck my life. I’m sitting in front of a library about to confront that sexy little bitch that had the balls to try to challenge me. She was definitely out of her fucking mind and I don’t know how I really feel about her being around my challenged daughter. Maggie told me something was wrong with the girl, but I’d never gotten around to figuring out what exactly was the issue.
Go figure, it took me two whole fucking days to find out who the bitch was that would know where I could find my own goddamn child, and the library was the last fucking place I could think of. Didn’t the uppity little bitch own it or something? Family money probably… she’s probably thinking my kid is a pet fucking project for her. That shit made my skin boil. I’ve got enough to take care of mine and I don’t need no snotty little bitch pointing her nose up at us. When I get back to the club I’d have to hold church to let the main members know about my new situation. Only the top people had any fucking clue what was going down in my life. I was private, but this was more than me. My child would have club protection and that information needed to go out. Not to mention that’s where I lived, law needs to be set on my little bitch being there.
I dismounted my bike and made my way into the old library. I kept myself in the shadows as I sought out my target. It didn’t take me long to find her, she was putting books away in the adults’ section… pure scum I assume. I crept up behind her not making a sound. I thought of how easily it would be to just snap her little fucking neck and disappear like nothing happened, but she had vital information that I needed. Once she told me what I needed to know, I’d get rid of the little bitch.
I waited until I was right behind her and checked our surroundings, alone. Fucking perfect. I leaned my head down, so she could know I was there… feel my breath on her. I couldn’t wait to taste her fear. She has to know who the fuck I am and what the fuck I’m capable of.
When I leaned forward and let my breath waft across her neck, she startled and the books in her arm clattered to the floor when she jumped. She spun around, hand clenching her chest. When she saw me, she began to settle… only for a second before her breathing escalated. I inhaled a deep breath loving the smell of her fear. It was intoxicating but I didn’t miss the hint of strawberry that overwhelmed every other scent. I tried to ignore it, but it made my dick stir. It was confusing, but I didn’t let that shit show on me.
“You scared me.” She breathed.
I smiled at her giving her my best sinister smile. Scared meant past tense she was still fucking petrified.
“Hmm.” I said. I usually like to play with my prey, but there wasn’t time for that. This situation was too important, and I am a lot of things… a hell of a lot of things, but a fucking dead-beat dad wasn’t gonna be one of them. “Where is she?” I asked bluntly.
At my question, I sensed her fear ease. I didn’t fucking like that reaction. I didn’t only like fear, but it was my upper hand. It gave me control of my victims and the fact that hers was fading was a horrible sign. I knew I had to take her shit before, but there was only so much a man can take before he snapped! Fine! There was only so much I can take before I snapped, and I had a really short fucking fuse.
“Why are you asking me” she challenged.
I scoffed. “You know who the fuck I am? If anyone knows anything I can find out and … what I’ve discovered is that you know. Now… Where. The fuck. Is my kid?” I asked letting the threat hang in the air.
I watched as she swallowed hard. “I won’t tell you.” She said on a whisper.
Fucking hell, this is why I don’t deal with women… they’re fucking stupid. “Do you know what happens to people who give me a hard time?” I asked.
She shook her head. “No, but I can imagine. It doesn’t matter, I won’t tell you.”
I must say I was intrigued. I could still see she was fucking afraid, but she was still unwilling to drop the dime on my daughter. In any other situation I’d say I admired her. Right now, she was just downright fucking annoying.
“Listen bitch, I don’t have time for your shit. Tell me where the fuck Addilyn is and I won’t slit your fucking throat.” I threatened.
Surprisingly she folded her arms and glared at me. “No. I don’t care who you think you are but I’m not going to do that.”
I growled. “You don’t have a fucking choice! Listen – “
I was cut off by a small voice. “Sia?”
Her fear returned, and her body shook. I was curious now, what the fuck? A child’s voice scared her and not my big intimidating ass with my reputation. She spun on her heels and dropped to a knee. “Yes?” she asked in a shaky voice.
I was able to see a little girl and I felt like I’d been knocked on my ass. She looked just like me… or my mother who I took after. She peeked at me and gave me a weird stare. She didn’t take her eyes off of me for a bit. Siarra looked back at me and gave me a glare in warning before turning back around and grabbing her hands. That was her, it had to fucking be.
The little girl turned her attention to the little librarian. “I was looking for you. Do you think I can have a snack?” she asked.
Siarra shook her head. “No honey, are you hungry?” she asked.
The girl nodded. “Yes, but this isn’t when you take lunch.” She said in a whisper.
I don’t know what Siarra did, but my girl looked embarrassed. Her blush gave her away. “What did I tell you?” she asked sternly.
Fuck this shit, this bitch was dead. I moved to take a step before my girl spoke up again, “to tell you when I needed something, no matter what you were doing.” She said solemnly. That stopped me in my tracks.
Siarra sighed. “I was putting books away, I can eat with you… is that what you’re waiting for?” she asked.
My daughter nodded. “Yes please.”
I don’t know what she did to make my daughters face light up. “We can eat now, but I need a couple of minutes okay Ad? These books need to go back, and I need to heat up the meat for our sandwiches, so they’ll be perfect.”
My daughter gave a blinding smile I felt in my heart. What the fuck was going on? If I didn’t know any better, I’d think that a mother was disciplining her child. I’m not going to lie; I’m worried as fucking hell. Something really wasn’t right about this entire situation from the fucking beginning. The one thing I did see though was that my daughter thought highly of this woman, and I’d have to guess the feeling was mutual. The way they interacted was so natural, and although there was a negative undertone to the librarians tone it wasn’t exactly a bad thing she was saying. The urge to knock Siarra off became a distant memory clouded by curiosity. For some reason, my girls trust in her instilled the same in me. If she was anything like her old man she’d have a good judge in character.
Addilyn ran off and Siarra turned back to me. She looked defeated now, and I couldn’t understand why that pissed me off. For some reason, I didn’t like that look on her. “That’s her.” I said. Not a question.
She nodded. “Look, I didn’t tell her anything about what was going on. I just asked her if she wanted to crash at my place with me for a couple of days. I’ll talk to her about it… but this isn’t the right time or place.”
I turned her words around in my head. I was stuck. I mean I knew she had a valid point, but I’ve been on edge since I found out about her. She needed to be with her fucking father. In the end I relented, letting my brain overpower my instincts. “Fine, but I want to see her. I need to talk to her.”
She nodded. “Fine. Come by my place after work. You can drop by around a quarter to nine.” She walked away from me to the front desk. I followed her and watched as she shuffled around for a piece of paper and a pen. She jotted something down and then slid it over to me. “There’s my address… and phone number.”
I slipped the paper into my pocket. I let my eyes scan around the room before they fell on my girl. I felt flutters in my stomach I’d never felt before. When I was able to pull my gaze away I turned back to Siarra. “Later.” I promised.
She shivered, but nodded. I took that as my cue to leave.
8:46pm, and I felt frozen on my bike. What the hell was I so nervous about anyway? It didn’t make any sense. It was a damn little girl and a bigger pain in my ass girl. I mean it’s not like I was in any type of danger or anything.
Fuck it. Let’s get this show moving. I climbed off my bike and took my time walking up to her door. I only hesitated for a minute before I banged my fist against her door. I could hear movement on the other side of the door before the locks clicked and the door opened.
Siarra stood on the other side. These nerdy as fuck glasses on her nose and the sexiest teddy bear pajama set I’ve ever seen. The shorts she had on gave me the perfect view of her ass when she walked back in. Plus, her perky tits were right on display – no fucking bra.
I cleared my throat to get my mind off my fucking dick for a minute and get to the fucking point. “So…?” I asked impatiently.
She huffed. “She’s watching TV in the living room. Let’s go.”
She began walking through her house with me right on her heels. She walked up to my daughter who was also in pajamas – hers covered in rainbows – and took a seat next to her and grabbed her hands. Addilyn gave her a confused look before her head shot up and she caught my eyes.
“Addie…” Siarra said getting my daughters attention. “That man…” she peeked over at me for a minute before returning all of her attention back to Addilyn. “He’s your dad. You see, he just found out about you and he would like to get to know you. Are you ok with talking to him for a bit?”
I could see her grip tighten on Siarra and when she looked back at me I could see anxiety. Fucking hell. “I don’t… I don’t have to go, anywhere do I?” she asked with a shaky voice.
Siarra shook her head. “No, you guys can sit right in here while I go start dinner and chat. I’ll be right in the next room.”
I frowned, fuck is that supposed to mean? This ain’t no fucking supervised visit. I started to tell the bitch off, but I saw Addilyn’s shoulders relax some. That apparently gave her some fucking comfort, so I bit my tongue. Honestly, I’m getting sick as fuck holding my shit back when I’m around these two.
Siarra ruffled my girl’s hair and went to stand. “Alright then, you guys talk, and I’ll be in the other room alright?”
Addie nodded in confirmation, but her gaze returned to me and didn’t move. Siarra hesitantly and slowly as fuck she left the room. I could tell she didn’t want to go but if her ass didn’t I’d push her ass out of here myself. When she was out of fucking sight finally I walked over to the couch. I didn’t sit down or reach for her afraid of making her uncomfortable. I was honest enough with myself to realize I was a fucking total stranger to her and I would hope to fucking God she would be cautious.
“Hi.” Yep, that was the smart as fuck shit that came out of my mouth.
She blushed. “Hi.” Her mouth opened and closed, and I waited for her to find the words she wanted to say. “Are you really my… you know, dad?” she asked. She wasn’t looking at me anymore; she was staring at her fingers.
“Yes. I just found out about you just a couple of days ago. Took me a bit of work to track you down. Your fuc – your mother told one of my friends about you.” Damn, I almost slipped.
She frowned. “I don’t know her…”
I sighed. “Do you mind if I sit next to you?” I asked,
She shook her head, but I could see she wasn’t entirely comfortable with it. I made sure to keep a reasonable amount of distance without it seeming like the grand fucking canyon. “How about you tell me about living with Maggie and school and everything, so I know what I’ve been missing.” I offered.
She shrugged. “Ok…” then she began and holy fucking hell… I thought I had an idea, but I wasn’t even fucking close.
*****
Siarra
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. I was a bundle of nerves. Why couldn’t I just build up the courage and the words I needed earlier to tell Addie about what was going on? We had been home for fifteen minutes already and I haven’t uttered a single peep. By the time I realized he was going to be here any minute and then the choice would be taken from me it was too late. He had been knocking on my door. What the hell had I been thinking, anyway, giving the man my address? I should’ve had him meet us somewhere very public and populated.
I decided to make some smothered porkchops with rice and string beans. That would keep me a bit occupied while I was waiting… only when it passed an hour and twenty minutes I wanted to pull my hair out. What the heck could they be doing all this time? I had to constantly fight the urge to go and check on them. I didn’t know how to feel really. I kind of felt like I threw her to the wolves, yet I also knew it was the right thing to do.
Finally, twelve minutes later to be exact, Psycho entered the kitchen. When I caught his expression, I frowned. He looked pissed and… beat. I started to open my mouth when I saw Addie bounce in after him. I released the breath I didn’t realize I’d been holding all of this time. She looked happy and comfortable so that could only mean that everything went well at least. She didn’t seem down and out like she does when she goes home, that’s for sure. That was a damn good sign.
“Is dinner ready yet?” she asked as she came to my side by the stove and tried to sneak a peek at what I was up to.
I smiled. “It is actually. I made some porkchops, green beans, and rice. That sounds good?” I asked.
She nodded enthusiastically. “It smells really good.” She said.
She looked to Psycho questioningly. “Sy, are you going to stay for dinner?” she asked nervously.
He gripped the back of his neck like he was uncomfortable and then gave me a panicked expression. I wasn’t sure if it was because he didn’t know how to say no, or if he was unsure he could say yes. I shrugged. “There is enough if he doesn’t have anything that he needs to do. He’s been here for quite a while already.” I said giving him the out… or in that he needed.
He relaxed. “I don’t get home cooked meals too often…” he got a wicked look and glanced down to Addie. “Is she a good cook? If not, then I can make up an excuse, so I don’t have to eat it too.” He gave her a teasing smile and my heart just about melted. Who the fuck knew a man like him had that in him.
She gave him a condescending look. “Oh, she’s the best cook. Everything she brings me is always good, you’ll like it!” she was clearly happy. I’m happy that I didn’t deny her this, although there was a voice in the back of my head saying this may not be a good idea.
He nodded. “Alright then, if you want me to… I’ll stay for dinner.” He cleared his throat. “But I’ll have to leave right after, I have something to take care of.”
Her face fell a bit when he said he would need to leave but she shook it off quickly. “Alright, I need to wash up and I’ll be back.” She announced before running off.
When she was out of the room Psycho cleared his throat. “Is this ok for you? That I stay? I can always make something up…” he trailed off.
I immediately shook my head. “No, no. she wants you here and I meant it when I said there’s enough food. Stay… for her.” I couldn’t believe I didn’t use my get out of jail free card, but it wasn’t really about me now was it?
I began taking out plates and things for dinner and I felt his close presence before he spoke. “Do you need help?” he offered.
When I spun around to look at him, I hadn’t realized how close he was to me. His scent invaded my senses… oh! He smelled really good. So good.
What? I can’t think stuff like that, get your head together woman. “I’m good, just grab a seat and we can all eat at the table.” I offered.
He nodded in agreement and I turned back to what I was doing. I could hear the scrape of the chair behind me then the footsteps of Addie returning. When I turned back, I could see that she grabbed the seat beside him and I wanted to smile but I held it back. It would appear, she liked the fact she had a willing parent around. I moved the food over to the table before taking a seat across from them. We all filled our plates and began to dig in. the growl that emanated from Psycho as he took a bite from the porkchop went straight in between my thighs. What the heck is happening here? Houston, we have a problem!
“This is amazing.” Psycho grunted in between bites.
Addilyn smiled then chuckled. “Told you so!” she said.
He nodded in agreement. “You did. I know I can take your word.” When he said that though, his gaze was firmly fixed on me. I frowned in confusion, but instead of asking questions, I shoveled food into my mouth.
There was a bit of idle chit chat, but it was mostly quiet. The only sounds were of forks scraping against plates and such. Addie and I weren’t even halfway done eating when Psycho loaded his plate up for seconds, damn near putting three times more food the second time around. I felt pride rise in my chest, but I tamped it down. He could be faking enjoying my food and just looking for an excuse to be with his daughter longer. I never really cooked for anyone other than myself. Even in the meaningless relationships I’ve had. Well, not until Addie entered my life. But she was a child, so it wasn’t the same… at least I think it wasn’t.
Psycho finished his food before us even though he’d had more. He wiped his mouth and got comfortable taking small swigs of lemonade. What was he playing at? I’ve been on edge waiting for the other shoe to drop. For him to tell me that he’s taking her away from me and out of my life and then I’d be left knowing there wasn’t a thing in the world I could do to stop him. He was, after all her parent.
When we were all done eating, Addilyn was the first to speak. “I’m going to wash up and go to bed if that’s ok.”
I didn’t know how to respond. Was he planning on taking her or would he let her stay another night. I stayed silent and looked to Psycho waiting for him. He finally looked up and noticed me staring before giving me a subtle nod. I looked back to Addie, “that’s fine. I’ll get the kitchen cleaned up.”
Addie and Psycho both stood from the table and awkwardly watched each other. After a few minutes, Psycho broke the silence with an extremely uncomfortable goodbye and Addie walked off. When she was out of sight, he cleared his throat. “We need to talk.”
I swear I heard a doomsday anthem play in the back of my mind. “Ok.” I said shrugging nonchalantly.
He leaned back against the cabinet. “So, I need you to keep her tonight.”
Wasn’t really shocked at that since he sent her off to bed, but I wasn’t really expecting it either. “That’s fine with me.”
He sighed. “Look, we had a nice talk. She told me some shit about… living with Maggie and there’s not a fucking chance she’s going back there. She also doesn’t know me, and it don’t feel right coming to live with me right now. She’d asked to stay here with you.”
I nodded. “I’m ok with that… but there’s one issue.”
He arched an eyebrow in challenge. He stuck his tongue into his cheek before responding. “Oh yeah?”
I nodded. “School is starting next week. I’m not her guardian or anything so you’ll have to sign her up and stuff. Probably put me down as a contact for them and give them the ok that I can drop her off and stuff.”
He mulled it over for a beat before nodding. “Ok… but I’m going to want to see her, so I’ll be coming by here. I gotta go, got shit to do tonight. But, I’ll be by tomorrow same time.”
He didn’t wait for a response, just turned on his heels and left.