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After convincing Tom to invite me over for dinner, I started devising a plan of how to break the news. Since Jadon and Allie would be there, we would have to have the conversation and hash this out. Allie would have nowhere to run. Tom would definitely be mad, but seeing his grandson’s father step up when he found out he had a kid would show maturity. Responsibility.
Besides, it’s not like I even knew. She knew who I was and apparently cyber-stalked me all this time. She could have told me, but she didn’t. That’s on her.
How else would she have known that I had a few experiences in college when I wasn’t working or studying? Bet she didn’t check on that, though. Only focused on whatever my friends tagged me in, I’m sure.
I have to hand it to her, though. She took on a lot so young. I would have been reluctant at first because she probably had him in the middle of my freshman year and during that time, I didn’t care about anyone but myself. I was studying and getting laid at dorm parties.
If we met at Spring Break, we made him in April. So he was born… January? December? That’s how it works, right?
I find Tom’s house easily and notice the tricycle on the grass in the front. There aren’t too many toys outside, and the front looks maintained. Tom takes care of his house. I’m glad my son has grown up in a safe home.
My son. Yikes.
How is that kind of conversation supposed to even start? I mean, I practiced possible openers, but I’m hoping maybe she’ll break first. Or that Tom will notice. I mean, most of our interactions have been outdoors, so Tom hasn’t noticed my eyes yet with my sunglasses on, but he definitely will inside the house.
I knock on the door and Tom answers with a friendly smile and handshake. “Hey, come on in,” he waves me inside. “You’re in luck. Allie took Jadon so we can eat actual food tonight,” he laughs.
That little…
So she wants to play hardball. I can play hardball. I excel at a challenge, especially if I see something I want, and I absolutely want to rectify this and have some sort of involvement in Jadon’s life.
Game on, Allie.
“Actual food?” Vaguely, I remember an affinity she had for cereal or something.
“She and Jadon are vegans. Tonight,” he holds a pair of grill tongs, “we get meat!”
It’s a good thing I chose not to bring Katrina because even I am still processing this while Tom and Jadon still don’t know. Plus, Katrina isn’t very subtle and would probably freak out. I need her to freak out when it’s just the two of us in my house, so no one else will see her probable meltdown.
Also, I don’t know that she would hold in her adult language in front of Jadon, and he clearly doesn’t need to learn Kat’s favorite four-letter words. Finally, she’s expecting marriage and all that, so me having a kid with someone else won’t exactly sit well with her.
“I got the grill on out back. There’s beer in the fridge if you want some. Otherwise, there’s water and juice.”
I nod and head to the kitchen while Tom heads outside. In the kitchen, the fridge is covered in drawings and pictures. There’s one of Allie when she was little with a woman. I’m guessing her mom. I’m pretty sure Tom’s wife died since I haven’t heard anyone talk about her. There’s another one of Allie holding Jadon as a baby on a couch. She looks tired, but content with him in her arms.
There are a couple pieces of paper with crayon all over, drawn by Jadon, and then I see something I wasn’t expecting. There’s a picture of Allie and Jadon with some guy who has Jadon on his shoulders and is kissing Allie on her temple like they’re the picture-perfect family. So that’s the boyfriend.
He looks like a tool.
“Hey, you lost in there?” Tom calls out.
“No, just getting some water. I’ll be right there.”
Dinner and conversation flow as Tom and I get to know one another better. He tells me about his college days, then how he met Allie’s mother and followed her home and married her. He started as the assistant coach for the football team and then needed the extra income to pay for his wife’s medical bills, so he worked double-time to coach the basketball team.
“That’s a lot of hard work, Tom. So why are you giving up the football team now?”
“Well, I got the team into a competitive spot over the years, and have been trying to get the basketball team up, so I knew I needed to choose them. But after Allie had Jadon, I wanted to help her out more since the guy wasn’t around, and I won’t have her pay for daycare and babysitters when she’s trying to pay her way through college and everything else. Not after everything she went through.”
“Oh, did she ever say anything about him? The guy, I mean,” I ask, wanting to see where he stands on the issue and what lies she probably told about me being a horrible person. Granted, I wasn’t my best self that night.
“Not much, just that he went to Bear Valley and dumped her out of his car after he was done. She said he never even asked her name before he took everything from her. I swear though,” his features darken from his seat. “If I ever find him, he’s getting acquainted with my knuckles in his damn face.”
Shit. Maybe I should work on this slowly with Allie before telling Tom. He won’t be pleased with me when he finds out, but if I can establish a friendship beforehand, maybe he’ll understand.
“Enough about that jerk, though. Tell me, what have you been up to since you beat us for the state championship that year?”
Fuck, I feel lost right now. “Well, I got my degree, but college wasn’t that exciting.” Normally I wouldn’t mind talking about all the girls and parties, but that sounds like a terrible idea, considering Tom may still want to hit me if he thinks I abandoned them for pussy.
