Read Online Mazie Baby by Julie Frayn - Free Book Online

pumpkin?”
    “If you want to, Daddy.”
    Cullen sat beside Ariel at the
table, her textbook open, pencils sharpened. He kept his shit together, didn’t
yell when she didn’t understand, and found ways to show her how to do it right.
She didn’t get it all, but he had made a difference.
    Mazie picked up the last dish and
turned to watch them do homework while she dried it with the damp dish towel.
She froze. He’d slid their chairs together, his arm around Ariel’s shoulder. He
stroked her hair, his cheek resting on the top of her head. Every few seconds
he buried his nose in her hair and inhaled.
    He glanced up and caught Mazie
watching. He straightened his back and scooted his chair away, his gaze shifted
from the math book to the floor to his hands. Anywhere but her face.
    “It’s getting late,” she said
through grit teeth. “Ariel, say goodnight to your father. He has to go.”
    “What about our drink?”
    She shook her head. “No. Not
tonight.”
    ~~~~~~~~
    The subsequent week brought daily
texts filled with apologies and declarations of Cullen’s undying love for Mazie
and Ariel, and one that body-slammed her with guilt.
    I’m nothing without you. If I
lose you, I’ll just kill myself. There’ll be noting to live for.
    He dropped in to visit, to cut the
grass, to offer his handyman services. Something he’d not done for years while
actually living there.
    Inch by inch he wormed his way back
home. She ignored the conditions of release, ignored the red flags and her own
voice screaming inside her head, it’s a trick, he’s a liar, run away ,
and let him in.
    He remained quiet and polite. Hell,
he was downright pleasant. By the end of the second week, she allowed him to
sleep on his own couch in his own living room. By the end of the third, they
were sharing their bed again. But only the bed. They lay with their backs to
each other like normal. But something had changed. Sleep found Mazie more than
usual. The edge she clung to grew less sharp as each day without pain or anger
passed.
    She watched him around Ariel. He
kept a polite distance, only touching her for good night hugs and the
occasional high-five. Perhaps what she thought was inappropriate was simply a
father missing his little girl. She’d overreacted. Over thought. He would never
cross that line. But no matter how often she tried to convince herself, that
damn gold A dangling from Ariel’s neck whispered a different story.
    Three Saturdays after being
arrested, Cullen ran some errands and arrived home hours later, his arms laden
with packages. Another shopping apology, trading stuff for forgiveness. Product
for understanding. Material things for love.
    He yelled for Ariel to come to the
living room. Mazie stood at the sink and dried dishes. The sound of ripping
cardboard and crinkling plastic was punctuated by the screech of the television
stand being dragged against the hardwood. She cringed. Would he blame her for
the damage that little trick would cause?
    Ariel’s footsteps bounded down the
stairs. “What, Daddy?” Her old self had eked back in. She could relax in her
home, not spend her energy anticipating the next time her father would hurt
her, yell at her, or punch her mother.
    Ariel’s scream pierced the air. Adrenaline
coursed through Mazie’s veins. The plastic bowl fell to the floor and she raced
to the living room.
    Cullen and Ariel stood in the
middle of the room, her arms around his waist, a huge smile on his face.
    Mazie stopped short, her chest
tight.
    “Thank you, Daddy, thank you, thank
you, thank you. Can we play?” Ariel looked up at him, adoration for her father
back full strength.
    Cullen caught Mazie’s eye. “Sure, pumpkin.”
He winked at his wife, stood aside and jerked his head toward the television. A
new video game console sat on the ottoman. Wires snaked across the floor and
into the TV. Packaging debris littered the floor. “It’s a Wii. For Ariel. But
we can all play.” He picked up a white