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Chapter Twenty-Five
Leo stopped to grab Macy from Rose before we headed upstairs to his room to pack.
Rose gave me a gentle hug. “Welcome to the club.”
“Thanks,” I said, hugging her back before Leo pulled me away.
Macy ran up the stairs ahead of us as I chased her, snapping at her ankles playfully.
When we finally reached their room, Leo grabbed her and sat her on his lap. “We’re gonna take a trip for a while.”
“I come?” she said, looking up at him with sad eyes.
He nodded. “This time, you’re coming too, baby girl.”
Her eyes widened dramatically, and I giggled. “I come!” she beamed, jumping off his lap and running over to her bed.
She struggled to drag out a small bright pink suitcase with white daisies, flinging it open and proceeding to fill it with toys.
“Woah, woah, there kid.” Leo laughed. “You need clothes, not just toys.”
“I’ll help her,” I offered, crouching down beside her as she looked confused. “You get your stuff,” I told Leo over my shoulder as I took Macy’s hand a directed her over to the small set of drawers that were also painted pink.
I pulled them open. “What do you want to take?”
“Dwesses,” she answered seriously.
I laughed. “Okay, dresses. Maybe we should pack some shorts and pants, too?”
“Yes. And shirts.”
Handing her one thing at a time, she placed them carefully inside her suitcase, after emptying out the stuffed animals and blocks.
Turning to the side, I caught Leo looking down at us. He hadn’t moved.
I smiled. “What?”
He shook his head. “Nothing.”
I pushed off the floor. “Pick a few toys to take, and then grab your toothbrush and hairbrush,” I told the little girl before walking over to Leo and sitting beside him on the bed.
“Strange, to have someone helping do this kind of shit.” He scratched at his beard. “I mean, sometimes the girls around here would help, or Carly. But this feels…”
“Different,” I offered.
His eyes met mine, I wanted to smooth away the frown on his features. “Feels good,” he corrected.
“You’ve done amazing with her.”
Leo scoffed. “Can’t take all the credit for that. She’s been shifted around, passed off to whoever was free. Haven’t been there for her like I should have.”
“You’re not any different to any other single parent, Leo.” He laughed, but I continued. “When it’s just you, and you need to work in order to support her, there’s really no other option than to pass care on to others. It happens, you shouldn’t feel guilty for trying to provide for your child and give her the life she needs.”
He didn’t answer, his eyes watching Macy as she scurried into the bathroom, returning with a handful of soaps and shampoo and everything but her toothbrush and hairbrush.
He laughed, the deep rumble in his chest causing me to smile.
Macy froze for a second, looking at her father with a wide cheeky grin before tossing everything into her suitcase and heading back for more.
