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“Well, we could go check out the arcade scene…or the bike rentals,” I suggested, feeling way out of my depth with them. I was an idiot for thinking they’d want to spend the day with me. I wasn’t their dad; they didn’t know me.
“Could we go see where our mom works?” Cole asked, perking up.
“Yeah, let’s go see where Mommy works!” Bella added a second later, scooting off the couch.
“Okay, let’s load up and go see where your mom works.” I went to grab my keys, stopping for a second to think about the rest of the day. “Cole, I know you’re bummed about swimming, but if I get you set up with ice cream, my iPad, and headphones, would you be willing to let me take Bella swimming?”
He tilted his head to the side, as if he was considering it for a second. “Deal.”
I grabbed my swim gear, Bella’s backpack, and my iPad with some noise-canceling headphones, and headed out.
I didn’t know why it mattered so much; I mean, it really didn’t in the grand scheme of things. I just happened to be going to visit Bexley, my ex, with her children. It was fine. Except when I exited the SUV, holding Bella in my arms, a pink backpack hanging from my shoulder and my right hand holding Cole’s while he hobbled down the path, I felt like it was a little bit of a bigger deal than I had originally assumed.
Especially when someone who recognized me snapped a picture of us. Thankfully, I made sure both Bella and Cole had on sunglasses while we walked, so they wouldn’t be able to identify them.
Heads turned our direction as we entered the center where Bexley worked, other customers in line murmuring to themselves while a few of the teenagers I’d seen before talked to each other in hushed tones. One in particular went running toward the back office with a determined look on her face, only to return a few seconds later with a massive grin.
Cole had started for the ice cream case, and Bella clung tightly to my neck as I walked after him. There were a variety of options under the sliding glass window that I knew would take the kid a while to sort through, so I decided to veer back toward the swimming gear.
“Can you swim, Baby Bell?”
She turned in my arms, eyeing the inflatable flamingo and donut ring. “Not weally,” she lisped.
“Should we get you a floatie?” I went to grab one with my free hand, picking up the inflatable toy, along with a set of water wings and two pool noodles.
“Hey…” A soft voice sounded from behind me, meek and unsure, and my heart rate spiked as I turned.
“Bex, hey…”
Bella picked her head up from my shoulder and leaned toward her mom. “Mommy, I’m going to swim!” she excitedly explained, and then Cole saw his mom and started limping over, carrying two ice cream items.
“Mom, look!” He held out his hands. “Ryan said I could sit, watch a movie, and eat ice cream while they swim.”
Bexley cradled Bella but reached a hand out, running it through her son’s hair with a smile. “Sounds good. You guys are going to have so much fun.”
I took a second to appreciate how perfectly Bexley’s khaki pants hugged her ass. I was sure she wouldn’t appreciate my thoughts on the matter, but it was on the tip of my tongue to tell her how good she looked in the simple uniform.
“Well, I better get back. Is she wearing her stuff under her clothes? Because she can’t go in the locker room alone…” Bexley explained.
I hadn’t even thought of that.
“Uhhh…” I started, but shit, I had failed at thinking that part through.
“It’s okay. Go on and change, I’ll take Bella with me into the girls locker room, and you can take Cole with you into that one. Have him sit on the bench while you change in the stall.”
Relief swept through me as I nodded and went up to pay for the ice cream Cole had, along with the pool gear I’d selected for Bella.
Ten minutes later, Bella stood in the hall outside the locker room, her hair piled high on top of her head and her mother smiling down at her. The intimacy of it pinched my chest, making me yearn for that image that kept replaying in my mind: a family of my own.
Admittedly, I had no idea what I was doing, trying to spend time with these kids. All I knew was they made me feel like something had shifted and come alive inside of me. I just wanted to have fun, and with a pair of water wings, two pool noodles, and a floatie in the shape of a flamingo, I knew we were off to a good start.
