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“Time sure does fly,” Someone says. “Just the other day.”
There’s a moment of silence. Everyone seems to be deep in thought. The team has been together for years and as such, I imagine they share a lot of memories. I hope to have that one day.
“Are single guys invited?” Connor says.
“Yes of course and ask the ladies to bring along their single friends. We need to get these morons married off,” Brad jokes.
“Hear that. Ace?” Connor says. “We’re invited.”
“Count me out of that group,” I say and then turn to Brad. “Thanks for the invite. My daughter would love it.”
Silence follows and I realize that I’ve just dropped a bomb. I’ve never mention Luna of course. Now they’ll probably peg me as a secretive guy.
“I didn’t know you had a daughter,” Collins says.
Neither did I, I think to myself. “Her mother and I just recently got back together. Her name is Luna. She’s sixteen months old.” I hear the same pride in my voice as there was in Brad’s when he spoke about his daughter.
We talk families for a while. It’s clear that these guys are big on family and a lot of their social occasions involve each other’s families. There’s a lot of reference to different occasions. There’s nothing like being part of a wider family.
We have three more calls that afternoon. A fire in an apartment building on Third Street, a medical emergency in a restaurant, and a road accident involving a truck.
It’s a twenty-four-hour shift and that night as I lay in my top bunk bed, my mind drifts to Luna and Lexi. My girls. I’m excited about the future. Just as I’m settling down to sleep, a call comes on and a collective groan goes up.
It’s the alarm for an elderly care facility.
“Want to bet that it’s a false alarm?” Brad says.
He’s right. Apparently, a new caregiver set off the smoke alarm by mistake. We return to the station, glad that it was a false alarm. A fire in a facility for the elderly would be a disaster.
***
My shift ends in the morning and later that afternoon, Declan and I meet at the Alma cocktail bar. I get there twenty minutes before he does just so I can get to chat with Lexi.
She smiles and leans on the counter when she sees me. I look like a besotted fool as I stride toward her. When I reach the counter, Lexi plants her hands on the edge, tiptoes, and leans forward to kiss me.
“Is that how you greet all your customers?” I tease her as I slide into an empty bar stool.
“No,” she quips. “Just my favorite ones. What are you having today?”
“I’ll have a beer,” I say and lean forward as though I’m confiding in her. “I can’t handle anything stronger. I have to go see my daughter after this.”
Lexi's eyes fill up with tears. “You’re already an awesome dad. She’s a very lucky little girl.”
She gets my beer. “How was the shift? We missed you last night.”
“It went well. We’ve been invited to a little girl’s birthday barbecue on Saturday. I reckon it’s a way to include everyone. Guys with families and the ones without. My status changed. I’m one of the ones with a family, thanks to you and Luna.”
“We’d love to go,” Lexi says.
“It will be our first outing as a family,” I tell her.
“Yes, it will,” Lexi says softly.
A couple sits on the other end of the counter and Lexi goes to serve them. I try not to stare at her as she works, though it’s tempting. Lexi's smile comes easily. She’s super friendly and within seconds the man and woman are talking to her like she’s an old friend.
Just then, I feel a tap on my shoulder and without looking I know that it’s Declan. I stand up and we man hug.
“You’re early,” I tell him. Declan is terrible with time. He’s always late.
“I’ve changed,” he says and grins. “I’m always on time these days.”
Lexi comes over. I’m excited to introduce her to Declan.
“Lexi, this is my brother, Declan,” I tell her.
She smiles at him politely. “Hi.”
“Bro, this is Lexi, she’s my girlfriend and the mother of my daughter,” I say. I hate to drop it on him like this but there’s no other way to say it.
Declan turns to me. Before he can speak, I nod and grin like a fool. “She’s sixteen months old and her name is Luna.”
“Congratulations!” Declan claps my back and then smiles at Lexi. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“Likewise,” Lexi says. “Can I get you anything?”
“A beer would be perfect. Thank you,” Declan says. He turns to me. “Tell me about her.”
“She’s perfect and she looks like her dad. Finding out about Luna has changed me,” I tell Declan, and then proceed to tell him a mild version of how Lexi and I met and how she got pregnant and had Luna while I was in Afghanistan.
