Total pages in book: 63
Estimated words: 61542 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 308(@200wpm)___ 246(@250wpm)___ 205(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 61542 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 308(@200wpm)___ 246(@250wpm)___ 205(@300wpm)
“Is there anything wrong with being responsible?” I feel like he’s mocking me.
“Not at all. It’s a good thing, Katie,” he says. “You’re turning me into a better person, too. Notice how there’s nothing alcoholic on the table?”
“Yeah.” I nod.
“You want to stay alert for William in case of emergency,” he says.
I nod.
“I listen,” he says as he pours some tea into a mug and slides it across the table toward me.
“Thanks. So, what is it that you want to talk about? You mentioned something about a college fund, but I don’t think you were serious about that.”
“No.” Adam chuckles. Looking deep into my eyes, he says, “I just want us to sit down and talk. That’s all.”
“So, all this . . . is just for a talk?” I gesture at everything around us—the string lights, the candles, the string quartet . . . “This is a little much for a talk, isn’t it?”
“As it turns out, this is exactly what it takes for us to talk,” he says.
“What are you talking about? We talk all the time.”
“Yeah. About William. That’s all you want to talk about,” Adam says.
“That’s what the deal is. You’re free to come to my house, but it doesn’t mean anything for us—the two of us,” I say, as much to Adam as to myself.
“Sure, but deals get renegotiated all the time.”
“So, that’s what this is? A renegotiation?” I ask. The word feels jarring. That kind of boardroom jargon doesn’t belong in the romantic garden Adam’s turned my backyard into.
“Maybe,” he says. “Sure, we have a deal, but we can still hang out, right? Every once in a while, instead of William’s mom and dad, can’t we just be Katie and Adam?” he asks. “That’s all I want. What do you say?”
I stop to consider his words. That sounds . . . not threatening. We can just talk every once in a while. Yes. Why not? It can only be good for William if we communicate, right?
“Okay,” I say as I take a sip of the tea. My chest grows warm, and I have no idea if it’s because of the tea or the affection in Adam’s eyes.
“You have no idea how happy you just made me,” Adam says.
My heart flips.
Oh, no, what do I say to that?
Quick, change the subject.
“So, about the, uh, college fund,” I say, “I’ve actually prepared a savings plan. Maybe we can compare notes and—” My cheeks grow hot from his stare, and I stop talking. I turn my gaze toward him. “What?”
Adam laughs. The way he scrunches up his eyes and nose reminds me of William, and my heart squeezes.
“Nothing,” he says. “You’re adorable when you get embarrassed.”
Normally, I’d scoff and walk away from Adam when he says something like that. I’d distract myself with some task I need to do.
But now, sitting across from him in my backyard, there’s nothing else for me to do, nothing to distract me from the adulation in his beautiful, hypnotizing eyes.
“So, as I was saying, maybe we can plan for William’s college together,” I say.
“Sure,” Adam says, smiling.
So, while the string quartet plays in the background, we talk about tuition costs. Weird, I know. But at least I feel like I’m on familiar ground again.
Adam humors me, until he starts talking about the state of higher education.
“I completely agree that we should prepare something in case William wants to go to college,” Adam says. “But just for argument’s sake, do you think a college degree is still valuable?”
Both Adam and I graduated college during the same recession, but we’ve been lucky enough to do well, career-wise. He’s a lot more successful than I, of course, but I’m doing okay. We both know people who have just been treading water for years.
And so, we stop being co-parents for a moment. We’re just Katie and Adam now, and we’re talking again.
After the night of my birthday, Adam starts staying around after William’s bedtime.
We brew some tea and drink while we talk about not just William, but everything in the world. Absolutely everything—from work, to Sawyer, to the cat who likes to show up at the back door and stare at William.
At first, we do this a couple of times a week.
Then, it starts to feel like something’s missing when Adam goes home right after William’s bedtime.
It doesn’t take long for us to start making it a nightly habit to set aside a quiet moment to unwind together.
It quickly becomes the best part of my day. After taking care of people all day—as a nurse and as a mom—it’s the only time I get to just be me.
Adam’s right. I need this. And maybe he needs this, too.
One night, I find myself sharing a couch with Adam. Casually, I rest my feet on his lap while I tell him how tired I am.