***
Fifteen minutes later, her redbrick school comes into view on the corner of Octavia Street, not too far from my gym on Fillmore. She tugs on my hand. “You never told me what else you’re doing today. After you work out with your friends. What will you do tonight?”
I stiffen momentarily.
This is a quandary.
Do I bring up my date?
She’s only six, so she doesn’tneedto know.
I’ve certainly dated here and there since Abby was born withoutsharing, since again, no need to. I’ve even had a couple girlfriends, but nothing that lasted too long. Dating has never been a huge issue.
Except for once.
During the last off-season, I broke up with someone I truly didn’t realize I’d beendating—a single mom, Cassie, who I met at Abby’s old gymnastics studio. Cassie was fun, clever, and the mom of a girl Abby liked in her class, a kid named Izzy. Cassie and I hit it off as we watched the kids cartwheel, so when Cassie asked about meeting for a playdate the next weekend at a local park, I said sure.
We met and the girls clambered up monkey bars as Cassie and I chatted.
She suggested we do it again the next weekend.
Abby liked the idea, so I said yes. More swings and slides for them, then the girls were hungry, so we all grabbed lunch. Cassie got the girls their own table, and the two of us sat and ate grain bowls together.
Hmm.
It felt a little too date-y for my taste, but maybe that was a normal parents-after-a-playdate activity.
And again the next week. The girls were hungry, we went for Thai food, and while we waited, Cassie was flirty, and handsy, and all kinds of suggestive.
At the end of the night, she asked if I wanted to come over once the kids went to bed.
Whoa.
I said no thanks, but I was happy to help the girls get together.
Cassie said I was a dick.
Thenshe added that she didn’t want the girls to have playdates again. A few days later, Izzy told Abby she didn’t want to hang out with her anymore because her mommy didn’t like her daddy.
Abby decided she didn’t want to run into Izzy again at gymnastics, so she stopped taking classes over the summer, and was, admittedly, a little bummed about both the classes and Izzy de-friending her.
Maybe it was my mistake, or maybe it was a tangled mess of hurt feelings.
But I don’t want to fuck up again, especially now that Abby has found Gym Buddies and is having a blast there.
Dating and single dad-dom aren’t easy to balance. Hell, some days, finding an opening in the secondary is easier than figuring out modern dating.
So, I’m not sure if I should tell Abby I’m seeing someone tonight.
Weirdly, I kind of want to.
But it’s probably too soon.
“Seeing the guys at the gym, then we’ve got game film at the stadium and a team workout,” I say. I give her a kiss, we say goodbye, then I take off for the gym.
I run at a light jog to Fillmore, wincing only briefly when my hamstring protests. I should have stretched better.
Once I reach the gym, I hit the mats on the floor first, stretching out my creaks and sore muscles. Not everyone’s here today,but it looks like we’ve got a foursome. Cooper warms up on the treadmill. Jason racks weights.
