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He grabs his cup of coffee and takes a drink, letting it sit in front of his mouth. “You’re different. You’ve grown up,” he looks at me as if he’s seeing me for the first time.
“I had no other choice but to figure out how to do things on my own. After all, I left and while it wasn’t extremely well thought out, I knew I had to take care of us. If I wasn’t able to do that, I’d be heading back here with my tail tucked between my legs. I was determined to stand on my own two feet,” I take a bite of my hash brown.
“You did well,” he nods to me.
The words hit me in the chest. I didn’t think his approval meant much to me, but in this moment, they mean everything. “Thank you,” I push out of my tight throat.
“No need to thank me, you’re one of the strongest people I know and I’m glad you’re the mother of my child. Regardless of what happens to us now that you’re back, I’m proud of you.”
“That’s all I wanted. To be able to stand on my own two feet, and for you to be proud of me,” I whisper. “I didn’t want to be my mom. I didn’t want to have to count on my child if something happened to you.”
“Then you’ve succeeded.” He gives me a smile, it’s got a hint of pride to it, and that’s worth more than anything anyone else could’ve given me.
I clear my throat. “Has Uber made it’s way out here, or is there a place nearby I can rent a car?”
“No need, I kept your old one, even have someone drive it every few days to make sure it still runs. The keys are by the door, and if you want to drop Gavin off at the Community Center, I got him a spot in the daycare reserved this week.”
That’s one of the biggest surprises. It was expensive, and we’d bought it in anticipation of the children we may have. “Thank you, Chance.”
“No need to thank me, let’s work together, for the better of Gavin. As long as we can do that, we can figure the rest out.”
* * *
Walking into the bank,I’m nervous. No matter how I’ve learned to stand on my own two feet, the nervousness remains. It’s been there since the beginning and I have no doubt it’ll remain there till the end.
“Hey Delia,” Hayden waves as soon as she sees me.
“Hey,” I wave back.
“What’s happening?” She asks, turning a pen over and over in her hand.
“I know this isn’t the way things are really done now, but I was wondering if there were any Teller openings? I have experience,” I pull a resume out of the folder I’m carrying.
Hayden doesn’t say anything, but the woman walking by me does. “Actually there is. I’m Kayla, head of this branch. We had someone walk out earlier this week. I haven’t placed an ad yet, but if you’re qualified and Hayden can vouch for you, consider the job yours. Hayden’s been my best hire, and if I can find another like her I’ll consider myself very lucky.”
I don’t want to put Hayden on the spot. She and I weren’t even close in high school. Turns out I don’t have to worry about it.
“She’s a member of the firehouse family,” Hayden inputs. “Married to Chance.”
“Oh the cute, EMT?” Kayla smiles.
“That’s him,” I try to fight back my irritation at her calling him cute.
Although who am I to judge? There’s absolutely no telling what he’s been doing the past two years I’ve been gone. And isn’t that a fucking depressing thing to think of right now?
“C’mon Delia, let’s go have a discussion.”
I follow Kayla. She’s the type of woman I’ve always wanted to be. Self-assured, doesn’t seem to be meek at all, and holds her head high. If I had as much confidence as her, I wouldn’t have left here to begin with.
She motions for me to take a seat in the chair opposite her desk. “This is your resume?” She questions as I hand her the sheet of paper.
“Yeah, I know it’s kind of old school, but I enjoy having them around with me.”
“Oh you worked in Old Hickory? I know the manager of that bank. It’ll be easy enough to check your references. What brings you back to Bradford? I take it you’ll be staying for a while?”
I swallow roughly, giving her the best smile I can. “Chance and I were having some issues. We’ve worked them out now and I’ll be staying here with him and our son indefinitely.”
“Perfect, I like to hire workers who hope to have longevity. I find the longer you work for me, the better we get to know each other, and the easier it is to work together.”
