AllFreeNovel
Share Us
But the surprises haven’t finished yet.
“I’m worried about the logistics of this,” she whispers as if she were making a confession. “I couldn’t talk with my sister today. I need her help to come to get Davi at my home before I leave around six every morning, then….”
“There is no need,” I reply, my hands suddenly feeling sweaty.
“What do you mean?” Her gaze is full of curiosity.
“Everything works better when you have a partner to share the load with.” Melanie opens her pouty mouth to argue, but silently, I ask her to let me finish lifting my hand. Here we go. “I rented a house just ten minutes away from the camp’s entrance. I’ll take Davi every morning with me, drop him off at the daycare, and pick him up after work. You have nothing to worry about.”
Melanie is silent, just looking at me with utter astonishment. Her mouth is so wide I’m surprised her jaw isn’t touching the floor.
“You did what?” She finally cries. People from the tables around us turn their attention to our corner.
I’m about to open my mouth to reply with a red-haired lady comes to stand by the table. “Oh, this is a surprise.” The same woman who’s made it her mission to bring food daily to the construction site, flirting shamelessly with me, and any other man who wanders around, greets us.
“Ruthie,” Melanie says, clearly annoyed by the intrusion.
“I know you,” Davi adds from his chair before giving his waffle another bite.
The woman’s eyes are on us as if we are some kind of mystery she has the privilege of solving. “So the word around town seems to be the truth.”
Melanie and I look at each other confused. What is this woman talking about?
“What do you mean?” Melanie finally asks.
“Seems like you have a type, don’t you.” She points at me, then at Davi, who’s too busy playing with his food to pay attention to the exchange. The poison dripping from this woman’s voice is evident. “Black hair, dark eyes… obviously, your kid got that from his father’s genes. I wonder where the man could be.”
“Right here,” Davi offers, and at the same time, Melanie’s back tenses. “David is my Daddy!! Right, Daddy?”
I give Melanie a quick nod before replying to my son. There is nothing hidden under the sun, my mother used to say. Let alone when it’s right there for anyone to see.
“That’s right, champ.” I don’t give a fuck about what Ruthie—or whatever her name is—thinks of this. I only care about Melanie’s feelings.
“This is interesting,” Ruthie replies, ready to get the full scoop, but it seems like Melanie has plans of her own.
“As you can see, Ruthie, we are busy here having dinner. If you’ll excuse us….”
Even as annoying and nosy as the woman in front of us is , she takes the cue. A few seconds later, and after giving us a death glare, Ruthie turns on her heels and stomps away.
“That felt good,” I say while the three of us look at the now-empty space.
“Wait until tomorrow,” Melanie warns with arched eyebrows. “Small towns are infamous for the gossip. I predict that at nine, you will have many visitors, all ready to look at you like a circus freak.”
“I can handle it,” I reply. In my mind, that isn’t a big deal. If people want to talk, I’ll put on a good show. “I’ve seen worst. Being the circus….”
“Circus?” David interrupts me with excitement. “I want to go to the circus to see the animals.”
My boy and how he sees the world full of innocence fascinates me.
“We talked about it before,” Melanie says, caressing our son’s face softly. “We don’t like animals in captivity… they belong to their homes as….”
“As I belong to you, right, Mommy?”
Their sweet exchange makes me smile. Melanie has done fantastic work raising Davi. There is no one like her; now I plan to make sure she takes for herself. She deserves it.
Then, and just then, I’ll collect the benefits.
Chapter Thirteen
