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“There was no ketchup.” Ainsley appears back at the window in a huff. Her tiny breaths are fast and harsh.
Luke and I lean down and look into the picture window at the little girl with bright red cheeks and hair that’s sticking to the sides of her face.
“What is going in that kitchen of yours? You running a marathon back there?” he asks.
“I was playing a game. Every time I have to go to the kitchen, I run through the entire jungle gym. This little boy asked me to race him. I won.”
“That’s my girl!” he says loudly, and my eyes widen.
Ainsley doesn’t seem to think twice of it.
“Bet I can beat you too.” Her challenge is way too confident for her pint-sized frame.
“Luke’s a grown man. His size alone inside those tunnels would hold him back,” I state.
He throws down his invisible napkin or gauntlet. Honestly, I don’t know what kind of gesture it is, but it is one of determination. “Challenge accepted.”
Ainsley claps her hands and squeals as Luke struts up the stairs to the side of us, taking all three in one step. He follows the very excited little girl with a matching chin into the confines of the smaller jungle gym. The two start at a red tunnel. Ainsley allows Luke to have a head start since he’s, as she says, old and slow. He takes the concession.
“On your mark! Get set. Go!” she bellows, and Luke starts crab-walking through the tunnel.
I stroll around the playground to follow their progress.
Luke emerges on the other side first with Ainsley quickly behind him, barreling past to get to the slide. She’s at the bottom quickly with him practically walking down behind her with how much longer he is than the plastic slide, and he chases her around a bend.
Her legs kick up off the ground as she whizzes down the zip line. Luke lifts his feet, but he doesn’t move, his body weight holding the mechanism in place at the top of the zip line. He places his feet on the ground, crouches, and walks the ten feet to the end.
I let out a bark-like laugh and lift a hand to hide my smile.
Ainsley leads them up a chain-link ladder to the larger playground with a series of tunnels, drawbridges, and slides. A parade of children is also playing on the structure, so while Ainsley makes her way around, Luke has to do his best not to knock over kids as he tries—quite hard—to win this mini version ofAmericanNinja Warrior.
Seeing Ainsley is far in the front, Luke hops over the railing and lands about six feet below, racing alongside the structure to cut Ainsley off at the monkey bars. She blows air out of her nose at his cheating, but doesn’t let it deter her.
Luke walks the monkey bars while she uses all her might and muscle to get across behind him. When she does, she races him to the swings, which is their official obstacle-course ending spot. As she flies past him, his feet slow down in his obvious attempt to let her win.
The two are laughing. Luke leans forward with his hands on his knees to catch his breath. Ainsley is doing a dance of victory and kissing her bicep muscles, which are lined up in display.
She flops down on a swing, and Luke takes the spot behind her. He pushes her much higher than I’m used to. I raise an arm to get his attention and give the universalslow downsign to say not so high. He rolls his eyes, then decreases the power of his push and sets my daughter at a normal speed.
I have a desire to stand next to them, but my feet don’t move. With a deep breath, I take a moment and just let them be.
The flowers Luke brought Ainsley are still in my hand. The pinks and purples are stunning. They don’t really have a scent, but their beauty is unparalleled with their lush foliage and fern-like leaves. A charming little flower. Just like the girl they’re for and the man who gave them to her.
My teeth graze my lower lip.
I can’t believe this is happening.
I take a deep breath, and it’s temporarily bottled up in my chest. It’s a lighthearted feeling with a fluttering in my belly. I can’t let this hopeful sensation settle too long, for the facts of the past are too potent to forget.
“Jillian,” he breathed heavily into the phone. “Beautiful Jillian, who I was a fool for. My gorgeous girl with green eyes and the smartest woman I’ve ever met.”
“Are you drunk?”
“Not enough.”
It was easy to hear he’d been on a bender. Had it been easier to get him on the phone, I would have said we’d have this conversation another night. After weeks of trying to find him, I wasn’t losing my chance now. I had to make a choice soon, and time was of the essence.
“Luke, I wanted to tell you face-to-face, but you’ve gone out of your way to never see me again so—”
