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Right now, we’re both frozen in our spot, unsure how to answer the question Jordan just lobbed at us out of nowhere.
“What?” Kelsie asks, probably to buy herself time because I know she heard what her daughter asked.
“I heard Tilly’s grandma tell her grandpa that you guys are gonna get married. Does that mean Pierce will be my new daddy?”
Jesus. I need to remember to make sure Jordan or Tilly aren’t within earshot when I’m speaking. This is the second time Jordan’s overheard an adult conversation that wasn’t intended for her.
Kelsie moves the pot from the burner and turns the stove off. Then she calmly walks over to where Jordan is standing and kneels in front of her, while I stay where I am, having no clue what to do or say.
“How would you feel about Pierce and me getting married?” Kelsie asks.
“That means I get a brother, right?” Jordan questions, making me snort before I can hide it.
“Umm, maybe,” Kelsie says. “We would like to have a baby, but we don’t know if it will be a boy or a girl.”
“I want a brother, but a sister would be fun too.” Jordan shrugs. “But she can’t play with my Barbies without asking.”
“Okay.” Kelsie chuckles. “Aside from us having a baby, if we get married, it would mean moving into Pierce’s house with him—”
“And with Cinderella and the horses!” Jordan exclaims happily, remembering our conversation from the other day.
Damn, I love this kid.
“Yes,” Kelsie agrees. “Are you okay with that?”
“Yes, can we move now? I wanna play with Cinderella, and Pierce left her at home.” Jordan pouts, and I hide my smile. I’ve been around my niece and nephews as they’ve grown up, though I didn’t pay attention to much of what they said. I don’t know if all kids are like this, but Jordan is hilarious—although, based on the way Kelsie is chewing on her bottom lip, I don’t think she finds her as amusing. Probably because she hasn’t addressed Jordan’s original question.
“No, we can’t move now. Not until after we’re married.”
“When are you getting married?” Jordan asks.
“On Christmas,” Kelsie tells her.
“Really?” Jordan’s gaze volleys over to me. “Does that mean you’ll be my new daddy?”
This time the question is aimed at me, and I feel like I need to say something. Even though Kelsie is her mom, I plan to be a part of Jordan’s life, so that means answering her when she asks me something.
“You already have a daddy,” I tell her, joining them on the floor. I kneel like Kelsie until I’m at eye level with Jordan. “Trent is your dad—”
“But he’s gone,” Jordan murmurs, her tone filled with so much sadness that I want to wrap her up in my arms and shield her from all of life’s problems, so she’ll never be sad again.
“He is,” Kelsie says softly. “But even though he’s in heaven, he’ll always be your dad.”
“Okay,” Jordan mutters, her eyes falling to the floor.
“Hey,” I say, tilting her chin up to look at me. “I can be your friend.”
“I already got friends,” she mumbles before walking away, leaving Kelsie and me in shock and kneeling on the tiled floor.
“I don’t know what to say,” Kelsie whispers once Jordan is gone.
“You? I’m pretty sure that little girl just stole a good chunk of my heart.”
“She’s so little. She doesn’t understand. She sees kids with a mom and dad and siblings, and she wants what they have, but she’ll get past it.” Kelsie nods, as if trying to convince herself that what she’s saying is true. Then she heads back to the kitchen and continues to make dinner. Since I have no idea how to make this better, I do the same thing.
Once dinner is ready, Kelsie calls Jordan to the table and, thankfully, she seems to be in a better mood. She rattles on about her upcoming Christmas show, how excited she is to meet Santa at the Christmas festival this weekend, and asks when she can see Cinder.
After dinner, Kelsie says she needs to get Jordan ready for bed, and since I’ve hung around enough and figure the girls can use some alone time, I tell her I’m going to head home.
“Or you can spend the night,” she says softly, so Jordan can’t hear. “She sleeps all night in her own bed, so as long as you’re gone before she wakes up, we’re good.”
“Good afternoon, what can I get—” Kelsie’s words fade when she looks up and finds me sitting at the counter, and a beautiful smile spreads across her face.
“What are you doing here?” she asks, leaning over and giving me a quick kiss. “Not that I’m complaining, but you didn’t mention coming by when you were leaving this morning.”
She says the last part softly so only I can hear. Her cheeks flush an adorable shade of pink, and I wonder if she’s thinking about the way I woke her up this morning—with my tongue massaging her clit. After I made her come twice, I kissed her goodbye and snuck out before Jordan woke up.
