I wanted to argue with her, but she was right. Sooner or later, I would have to relinquish a little bit of control where my child was concerned. It would be a big learning curve, and time was running out for me to adjust. I needed to get with it and find my rhythm fast.
Taking Daire’s advice, I wandered into my hardly used bedroom and sat down on the edge of the mattress. She was correct that I was tired and could use a nap. However, I didn’t lie down. Instead, I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket and pressed that damn number I’d kept since the start of time. It was almost as if I couldn’t stop myself from calling her. I knew I really wanted to hear the sound of her voice.
I wondered if I would ever get used to her finally answering my calls. Before the shock settled, I blurted out, “Remy, come and have coffee with me tomorrow.” She didn’t respond until I whispered a very desperate sounding, “Please.”
Remy
I NEARLY TURNED back and ran to my car three or four times on my way to the coffee shop located fairly close to my loft in LoDo. When Hyde asked me to meet him, my initial reaction was no way in hell. But when he said ‘please’ and sounded so scared and lost, I reluctantly agreed. However, I picked a place that was my home turf. This coffee shop was located in the warehouse district and belonged to a chain of the buildings that my dad revamped and updated over the years. It was also close to Hudson Wheeler’s original custom car and motorcycle shop, where my brother spent most of his free time. I’d worked as a barista here for a year or so when I was younger, much like I’d worked as a bartender, florist, personal shopper, dog walker, landscaper, and a professional up-cycler. If there was a creative, hands-on job that kept my mind and body busy, I’d done it. Lately, I’d settled into website development and graphic design, which put my fine arts degree to use, and was probably the career I’d stuck with the longest. I had a friend who hooked me up with a few independent authors, so I’d been playing around with book cover design and branding, which I loved. It was fun to work with other creatives and artists, bringing their vision to life. It gave me a sense of accomplishment none of my other short-lived careers had, but still, this coffee shop was very familiar, and I felt comfortable with the vibe. I’d need it to get through a meet-up with Hyde.
I thought it was pretty ironic that everyone in my life was so worried that I would get attached to him and constantly seek him out now that he was back, when the exact opposite had happened. I was doing a pretty good job forgetting about Hyde during my day-to-day, but he seemed determined to have our lives collide every chance he got. If only I was slightly more immune to him, I would be able to deny him when he pleaded to keep me close and implored me to see him.
Calling myself every kind of idiot in the book, I knocked my knuckles against my temple as I stepped into the busy café. I waved absently to the girls behind the counter and shouted ‘hello’ to the owner, whom I’d known since I was a teenager. This spot was a favorite for all the Archers, and I couldn’t even begin to count the hours we’d spent doing our homework here or bringing our crushes by when we’d started to date. This was even the spot where my cousin Ry and his girlfriend had broken up and later cleared the air. Aston worked at her dad’s garage across the road, so both my brother and Ry had spent hours gazing out the window watching her come and go when they were younger.
My gaze immediately went to one of the back corners where Hyde was sitting. His gaze was glued to his phone, and even with the space separating us, I could see the tension radiating off every line of his big body. He looked stiff and nervous, and not any more excited to be here than I was.
Wondering why I agreed to give up my afternoon to do this, I made my way over to where he was hunched over his phone and a cup of plain black coffee. I plopped down in the seat across from him with a dramatic sigh. One of the staff yelled across the distance, asking if I wanted my regular drink, and I nodded.
Hyde lifted his head, and I immediately felt pinned in place by the intensity of his green gaze. He looked worried, and maybe even a little ill. It took me a second to realize he was sitting in this corner all by himself. He didn’t have his daughter with him. Suddenly, the importance and purpose of this little outing made much more sense.
“You left Hollyn with your new manny?” I asked the question and smiled my thanks to the girl behind the counter.
Hyde’s dark eyebrows darted up, and the corner of his mouth quirked upward as he asked, “Manny?”
I shrugged and took my drink from the barista when she stopped by the table a few minutes later. “Yeah. A male nanny. A manny. I think that’s what they’re called.”
He finally smiled a real smile, and my breath caught in my chest. I forgot how drastically a bright, big smile transformed his usually stern and somber face. He always looked so serious, but when he smiled, he looked years younger and about a hundred times more attractive.
“I just call him Campbell. That’s his name.” He tilted his head to the side and quipped, “But I’m not sure if it’s his first or last.”
“Ohh… a single name sounds mysterious. No wonder you’re so uptight about leaving Hollyn alone with him.” I pointed a finger at him. “You could’ve just told me that was why you wanted to meet up.” I would’ve said yes right away. Not that I would’ve been able to reject him after he said ‘please’ in such a soft and serious way.
His smile slipped a little, and he looked away from where our locked gazes. “Maybe I wanted to see if you would come, regardless of the reason.”
An awkward silence fell between us after he dropped his words like a bomb. That’s what I used to do, run to him whenever he called, and even when he didn’t. I couldn’t decide how I felt about him wanting to see if he still had that same power over me. It felt like a test, and I wasn’t sure if I passed or failed. I guess it would depend on who was doing the grading.
“How has the new guy settled in? Is he getting along with Daire okay?” I tried to ask my cousin how things were going over at the Fuller household, but for once in her life, she was stingy with the details. The queen of gossip had clammed up, which was telling.
“He’s very good with Hollyn. It’s easy to tell he’s familiar with babies. He said he raised his siblings from the time they came home until they were all school aged. I feel like I can learn a lot from him. He’s pretty quiet and doesn’t really interact with either me or Daire. All his focus is on Hollyn. When he gets off work, he sort of disappears into the basement or takes off with my Uncle Benny. I didn’t realize the two of them were so close when he recommended Campbell for the job. It makes sense, though; he kind of reminds me of a younger version of my uncle.”
I snorted and swirled my straw in the whipped cream on the top of my drink. “Then no one is going to mess with your kid.” I copied his head tilt. “Not that it makes leaving her for the first time any easier. How bad do you want to get in your truck and race home right now?”
This time when he smiled, it was brittle and thin. “It’s literally taking every ounce of self-control I have not to bolt for the door. I’ve texted twenty times and called around ten. I feel like I’m going to crawl out of my skin, and the one sip of coffee I took tasted like acid.”