season.
I’d studiously avoided Lila that week. I felt bad blowing off a fourteen year old who I’d admittedly missed as much as her father all these years. I remembered the precocious tomboy well and the thought I’d never get to be step-Ryan hurt as much as the fact my sister may end up with that honor.
But I wanted my sister to be happy. She deserved it after putting in the good fight. Happy Ever After was not an illusion I’d ever bought into. The situation with Brady confirmed that for me, him being the only man I’d ever allowed myself to think of in that light. And that had been many years ago.
So whenever I saw Lila, she’d wave and I’d wave before fleeing to my car. I knew it was probably obvious the way I walked just a bit faster to get to my car whenever she was around. I should have been ashamed of myself. Okay, so I definitely felt ashamed of myself. But I couldn’t get attached. Now that I knew who she was, my heart couldn’t take the hope again and she was definitely like a flint to that particular flame.
I was relieved when I got home that Thursday to find she was not out practicing her racing, as she normally did at that time of afternoon. I assumed that was the hour she’d told me her nurse went home and before her father got home from work. Apparently, she’d earned the right to one hour of unsupervised time after being such a trooper. I’d’ve insisted she get more than an hour if I’d had a say over it. Then I’d remember her spill in the park and would scratch that thought. I’d probably padlock her bedroom door during that hour.
After I’d showered and had settled in to finish some work I’d not gotten to before I left my office, there was a knock on my door. I was distracted enough that I didn’t think to question who may be visiting me on a weeknight. Mistake.
I opened the door to a breathless Lila. My eyes grew wide. “Delilah?”
She scowled, still trying to catch her breath. “ Lila . I haven’t gone by that since I was little.”
I put my hands up in surrender. “My bad. Lila. What are you doing here?”
“Well, I wanted to come say hi since you’ve been running from me all week.”
Damn teenagers were too smart for their own good these days. “I was not—“
“Whatever.” One of her grand, teenager eye rolls.
“Okay. Yes, I’ve been avoiding. I’m a dick.”
“Agreed.” She smiled wickedly at my quirked eyebrow. We sat looking at each other for a minute until she motioned her hands in front of her as if to say come on, asshole . “Aren’t you going to invite me in?”
“Oh,” I said, jumping out of the door and motioning her in, against my better judgment, but the kid looked worn out. “Shouldn’t you be practicing or something?”
“I just walked my wheel-chair up the stairs backwards to visit your ass and you are trying to get rid of me?”
“Backward—What? Should you say ‘ass?’”
She leveled me with her gaze in a way only my mother had been capable of doing up until now. I shrank under that heated green gaze. “Well, who’s gonna tattle?”
“My lips are sealed,” I promised. I flourished my hands to indicate her clunky, everyday wheel chair. “You really walked that thing up four flights of stairs?”
“Five if you count that our landing is an extra flight down.”
“Good lord, child. Do you want something to drink?”
“No. What I want is for you to come have movie night.”
It was my turn to give her that leveling gaze. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Oh, c’mon. My dad’s been whining about missing you for years and you guys finally see each other again only to hide? I thought teenage boys were dumb.”
“It’s a little complicated, Lila.”
“Whatever. You guys were friends right?”
I nodded.
“Well, he won’t mind if you watch after me. He said he’s going to be late so that’s why I just spent forty minutes working my way up the stairs. I didn’t tell Vera and he’ll be pissed
I’d studiously avoided Lila that week. I felt bad blowing off a fourteen year old who I’d admittedly missed as much as her father all these years. I remembered the precocious tomboy well and the thought I’d never get to be step-Ryan hurt as much as the fact my sister may end up with that honor.
But I wanted my sister to be happy. She deserved it after putting in the good fight. Happy Ever After was not an illusion I’d ever bought into. The situation with Brady confirmed that for me, him being the only man I’d ever allowed myself to think of in that light. And that had been many years ago.
So whenever I saw Lila, she’d wave and I’d wave before fleeing to my car. I knew it was probably obvious the way I walked just a bit faster to get to my car whenever she was around. I should have been ashamed of myself. Okay, so I definitely felt ashamed of myself. But I couldn’t get attached. Now that I knew who she was, my heart couldn’t take the hope again and she was definitely like a flint to that particular flame.
I was relieved when I got home that Thursday to find she was not out practicing her racing, as she normally did at that time of afternoon. I assumed that was the hour she’d told me her nurse went home and before her father got home from work. Apparently, she’d earned the right to one hour of unsupervised time after being such a trooper. I’d’ve insisted she get more than an hour if I’d had a say over it. Then I’d remember her spill in the park and would scratch that thought. I’d probably padlock her bedroom door during that hour.
After I’d showered and had settled in to finish some work I’d not gotten to before I left my office, there was a knock on my door. I was distracted enough that I didn’t think to question who may be visiting me on a weeknight. Mistake.
I opened the door to a breathless Lila. My eyes grew wide. “Delilah?”
She scowled, still trying to catch her breath. “ Lila . I haven’t gone by that since I was little.”
I put my hands up in surrender. “My bad. Lila. What are you doing here?”
“Well, I wanted to come say hi since you’ve been running from me all week.”
Damn teenagers were too smart for their own good these days. “I was not—“
“Whatever.” One of her grand, teenager eye rolls.
“Okay. Yes, I’ve been avoiding. I’m a dick.”
“Agreed.” She smiled wickedly at my quirked eyebrow. We sat looking at each other for a minute until she motioned her hands in front of her as if to say come on, asshole . “Aren’t you going to invite me in?”
“Oh,” I said, jumping out of the door and motioning her in, against my better judgment, but the kid looked worn out. “Shouldn’t you be practicing or something?”
“I just walked my wheel-chair up the stairs backwards to visit your ass and you are trying to get rid of me?”
“Backward—What? Should you say ‘ass?’”
She leveled me with her gaze in a way only my mother had been capable of doing up until now. I shrank under that heated green gaze. “Well, who’s gonna tattle?”
“My lips are sealed,” I promised. I flourished my hands to indicate her clunky, everyday wheel chair. “You really walked that thing up four flights of stairs?”
“Five if you count that our landing is an extra flight down.”
“Good lord, child. Do you want something to drink?”
“No. What I want is for you to come have movie night.”
It was my turn to give her that leveling gaze. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Oh, c’mon. My dad’s been whining about missing you for years and you guys finally see each other again only to hide? I thought teenage boys were dumb.”
“It’s a little complicated, Lila.”
“Whatever. You guys were friends right?”
I nodded.
“Well, he won’t mind if you watch after me. He said he’s going to be late so that’s why I just spent forty minutes working my way up the stairs. I didn’t tell Vera and he’ll be pissed
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