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“I’m going to spend the day with her.”
With tomorrow being Gavin and Erin’s first day together in weeks, it seemed only right they had the time alone. Since they’d be gone most of the day, she’d made plans to spend time with Callie and her family.
Lifting the cup, she paused with it near her lips. “Do you and Amber’s fiancé get along?” If the man was at Amber’s apartment more than his own, Gavin must have run into him often. Even if he didn’t spend so much time there, Gavin would’ve made a point of meeting the man who spent time around his daughter.
“Todd isn’t someone I’d call to go hang out with, but yeah, we get along. He’s a decent guy. Amber and he are a good fit, and he treats Erin like a princess. I think he spoils her worse than I do.”
Gavin checked his watch every two seconds as they enjoyed their coffees and chatted about their day—or at least it seemed like every two seconds. Finally after what had to be the twentieth time, he stuffed his napkin in his empty coffee cup and pushed back his chair. “Ready?”
Half her latte remained, so she put the cover back on the cup and stood. Reaching out, she laced his fingers with her own. “I’ll finish on the way.”
They waited near the terminal exit as travelers walked past them, some alone and others in small groups. She’d not only seen the pictures Gavin had of Erin on his cell phone, she’d also seen the ones he kept in his home office and the one in his bedroom of them together. So she immediately recognized the young girl headed in their direction.
“She’s a mini you,” Leah commented.
She thought the girl resembled Gavin in pictures, but in person it was even more evident. From here she couldn’t tell the exact shade of Erin’s eyes, but her hair color matched Gavin’s to a T, and the shape of their faces was the same. She shared Gavin’s height as well. If Leah didn’t know any different, she’d easily assume Erin was eleven or twelve years old.
Leah switched her gaze to the two adults accompanying Erin. Amber was tall like her daughter and willowy, with light brown hair and a heart-shaped face. As they walked, she held Erin’s hand and listened to whatever her daughter was saying. Todd, Amber’s fiancé, looked vaguely familiar, but from where remained just out of Leah’s reach.
Everyone in the airport terminal knew the exact moment Erin spotted her father.
“Dad,” the girl shouted, and sprinted away from her mom. Her smile radiated so much happiness it was almost blinding.
Erin launched herself into Gavin’s arms and he picked her up off the ground. The smile on his face matched his daughter’s. “How’s my girl?” he asked before kissing her on the cheek and setting her back down.
Although he no longer hugged her, Gavin put an arm over Erin’s shoulders.
“Hungry. Can we get pizza on the way home? Or Chinese?”
He’d warned her that Erin would happily live on only pizza, grilled cheese sandwiches, and Chinese food if allowed. She hadn’t told him, but when she was about Erin’s age those had been her favorite food groups too. Even now pizza with a large helping of ice cream afterward were her go-to dishes when she needed some comfort food.
“We’ll see, Bug,” he replied as Amber and Todd reached them.
Gavin’s fingers wrapped around hers and gave them a quick squeeze before he stepped forward and gave Amber a brief friendly hug. After releasing her, Gavin turned toward Todd. “Congratulations on the engagement,” he said, shaking Todd’s hand before he moved back to her side, his arm immediately going around her shoulders.
Quickly Gavin went through introductions before they all started toward the baggage claim area. As they walked, he kept her hand locked in his right hand while his left held his daughter’s. Erin entertained them with details of her vacation, starting with the flight down to Florida weeks ago. By the time they reached the baggage area, she’d only made it through the first two days of the trip.
Leah stood by his side and his daughter was within arm’s reach. The only thing that could make the moment better was if they weren’t standing inside the airport. But at least they wouldn’t be here much longer. He had Erin’s two suitcases in hand, and Erin was in the process of saying bye to Amber and Todd.
Erin gave first her mom and then Todd a hug before turning and skipping back to his side, the unicorn-shaped backpack Todd had carried off the plane for her slung over one shoulder.
“Do you need to use the bathroom before we go?” She’d insisted she didn’t have to when her mom had asked on their way to get their luggage. Since the ladies’ room was right across from them now and he’d rather not have her announce ten minutes after they got in the car that she needed to go, he asked again.
“Nope. I went on the plane.”
Some things he could force her to do; using the bathroom wasn’t one of them. “Okay, this way then.”
Erin spent a lot more time at his apartment in Providence than here, but she knew her way around. When they walked in, she immediately dropped her backpack on the floor and zipped down the hall to the bathroom.
The anticipated announcement that she needed to go had come fifteen rather than ten minutes into their ride home, but it had still come. It had taken considerable effort not to remind her that he’d asked before they left the airport.
While Erin used the bathroom, he brought her bright yellow suitcases and backpack down to the guest bedroom she used whenever she visited. Unlike her room at his other home, which she’d helped decorate, this one was an identical copy of the one across the hall, right down to the dark gray comforter and bare hardwood floor. During her last visit in April, she’d asked if they could make this room more like her one in Providence. He’d promised they could, but they’d been so busy with other activities they never got around to shopping.
Until now, he hadn’t thought about her request since.
Gavin made a mental note to get some shopping in while she was here so she could change things up in the room and switched off the light.
He met up with Erin in the hallway as she came out of the bathroom. “Where’s Uncle Harry?” she asked.
