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Fifteen minutes to go and still three blocks. Like a bull in a china shop, I bowed my head and met the breeze blowing down the street. I was determined to meet my responsibility head-on. I barely made it in time to be early.
With my handbag over one shoulder and the box of six delicious doughnuts hanging from my hand by the red crisscrossed string holding the box together, I trotted up the broad steps and flew up the elevator. As I hit the doorbell, Alexis yelled out.
“Dada, Karly’s here.” Based on the few loud “yippees” thrown in for good measure, she was pleased to see me. If the broad grin on my face was any indication, I was delighted to see her too. Or was I pleased to see her hot dad?
The door opened. Damon stood there with his shirt hanging outside his pants and his tie draped around his neck. “Sorry for being late. The line was massive at the bakery,” I said as I stepped inside and handed the box to Damon. I slipped my coat off my shoulders and hung it in the closet under the stairs.
“You’re not late,” he replied as he walked in front of me toward the kitchen and dining area.
“Yeah, but I cut it close.”
Damon chuckled as he directed Alexis and Clara to their seats. He held his arms out and replied, “It’s not as if I’m ready, is it?”
I kinked up the side of my mouth in a bashful smile and agreed that he looked half-dressed. I pictured myself doing his tie for him and pecking him on the cheek as he left Alexis and me to go off to work.
I sat at the table and pulled on the red bow as Damon prepared the two mugs of coffee for us and a glass of milk for Alexis. I opened the box, and Alexis pointed to the whipped cream mountain.
“Clara wants this one.” Alexis’s eyes were as large as those of a goldfish. She licked her lips in anticipation.
Mental note to self: order two, or maybe three, whipped cream next time. “I thought Clara didn’t eat human food,” said Damon.
“Just today!” said Alexis. Her cute voice made us both grin. Alexis used her finger as her spoon for the whipped cream. She offered each fingerful to Clara before sliding it into her own mouth. Each taste was followed by a satisfied, “Aaaah! Very nice.”
Damon didn’t have as much success at keeping his filling, either on his plate or in his mouth. A giant blob of chocolate sauce oozed from the doughnut and deposited itself right onto his clean shirt.
“Crap!”
“Dada, bad word,” Alexis reminded him. His muscles rippled as he shifted and shoved his hand into his pocket. He pulled his hand out and held it face down to her.
“Sorry, sweetie,” he replied, handing her a coin. She slipped off her chair and ran to her money box, into which she proudly deposited her coin to go with the rest of the “bad words coins.” From the look on Alexis’s scrunched face as she lifted it, there were a lot.
Damon whipped off his shirt and sat there in a vest, careful not to spill a load onto his taut chest. I took a huge bite of my doughnut, and custard splattered over my chin. Alexis and Damon laughed at my predicament.
Alexis stopped laughing when I dabbed my finger in her whipped cream and planted it squarely on her nose. “Dada, look,” she said, turning to Damon and pointing at the end of her nose.
I dropped the dishes in the dishwasher as Damon ran and grabbed a fresh shirt. Alexis pulled her red jacket on, the one with the fur-trimmed hood. She held her Barbie sandwich box. Damon’s footsteps echoed as he ran back to us and kissed Alexis on her cheek. He said he’d be home later and asked if I could stop at the dry cleaners and pick up his things. The address was already on the countertop.
He dropped a bag onto the floor and mentioned the contents were ready for cleaning.
“Off you go,” I said. “I don’t want you using me as an excuse for being late.” I giggled and stood with Alexis in my arms, waving as Damon bounded out the door.
“Are you ready for kindergarten then?” I asked.
Alexis nodded and held her hand out for me. A ten-minute walk through the park and we arrived at the front of the brightly colored kindergarten. A large mural covered the front wall, and Alexis pointed to it. She explained all the pictures were of the kids in the school. It looked cool, although not many of the painted kids looked like the kids I saw running around.
“I’ll see you at lunch,” Alexis said and marched toward the kindergarten doors. “Good morning, Linda.” Linda turned to me and waved with Alexis, both of them smiling.
