I nod and stare down at the texts.
Finn:
Please let me see you and Skye. Let me prove to you that I’ve changed, that I want this
I am begging you, Maya
Even if I have to get down on my knees, I will
My eyes close, and I exhale sharply. Ethically, it’s wrong to keep Skye away from her father because she deserves the choice if she wants to know him or not. I shouldn’t get to decide that for her. But at the same time, I need to know that she’ll always be in a safe environment.
Maya:
Are you sober?
Yes
I have been for two months
You can see my AA confirmation emails if you wish
I blink at the messages. It’s something I mentioned to him previously, but he just laughed in my face and told me that he didn’t have a problem. We both knew that wasn’t true.
When I don’t reply, another message comes in.
I don’t want to miss out on anything that involves you and Skye
Please can I see you?
I lower my head and calm my racing heart. Alice and Jade are fussing over Skye, which gives me a moment of privacy, but I know they’ll be bombarding me with questions as soon as I put my phone away.
I need more time
Okay, I’ll be waiting until you’re ready, even if that’s years
I deserve it after everything I’ve done
I shove my phone away and stretch out my fingers before my friends turn to look at me.
“What was that about?” Jade asks.
“He’s asking to see me and Skye.”
“What did you say?”
I flick my gaze between the pair of them. “I need more time. I’m scared to give him a chance and put my trust in him again. But Skye deserves a father, especially if he’s willing to put in the effort. I’m just gonna see how things go.”
“Despite what he said before?”
I chew on the inside of my lip and choose not to respond.
Even if those words still haunt me, there’s no way he could have faked the emotion on his face when he saw Skye in my arms. It told me a lot about his thought process, and his heart visibly shattered before me.
“Give yourself that time,” Alice says. “You’re allowed to think this through. He put you through hell, Maya.”
I inhale a deep breath. “Yeah, I’m gonna dwell on it before I decide how to deal with this.”
“You’ve got this, mamma,” Jade says with a tender smile. “And we’re not going anywhere.”
