Page 75 of Seven Summers Ago
“Pfft,” she releases under her breath. “You’re crazy. I’m not jealous, if that’s what you’re insinuating.”
“No, not jealous.” I scratch at my stubbled chin.
She turns around and ambles to the back door. “Just promise me you’ll bring her back in one piece,” she calls over her shoulder.
“I thought you said you trusted me?”
She spins to face me. “I do. I do.” But it sounds to me like she’s trying to convince herself.
I give her a half smile before heading toward my Chevy, the car seat in one hand. But I stop and call, “Hey, does Charlie know how to swim?”
“What?” Rosie gasps. “I thought you were taking her to the cove to look at the sea lions?”
I chuckle. “Yeah, I am. Just asking in case…” I let my words trail off, my skin tingling with amusement.
“In case what?” she blurts.
But what was humorous only moments ago suddenly kicks me off my feet as the reality hits me. These are the things I should know as a father, if my kid can swim or not.
I rearrange my expression. “I was only teasing.”
She shakes her head, rolling her eyes. “Not funny,” she mutters. “But, to answer your question, yes, she knows how to swim. There was a pool at the apartment we lived in before I met West. And he’s paid for her to have private lessons for the past year.”
Learning about her and Charlie’s past feels surreal. My mind can’t help but wonder if this was a nice apartment. And where did they live before that? Did Rosie have enough money to take care of Charlie?
The guilt slams into me and my heart races. I tighten my grip around the armrest of the booster seat. What if Rosie is only with this West guy because of the financial stability? I’ve been saving money. I can afford to take care of her and Charlie.
“Rosie.” Her name whooshes out of me on an exhaled breath.
Her brows knit together in worry. “You okay?”
I try to inhale and hold it, then release it. But the air constricts in my lungs. This isn’t the time to have this conversation. Charlie is in my truck waiting to have a fun day.
I swallow. “I’m fine,” I force out. “But later we should talk about…child support.”
Her mouth pops open and her expression constricts. “I never asked you for anything before, and I’m not going to start now.”
I shake my head. “It doesn’t matter whether you’re asking or not.”
“Just focus on your time with Charlie. We can talk later.” She smiles. But it’s the forced kind, not the one she used to gift me with.
She’s noticing my shortness of breath, my tightening grip. She can probably hear my heart thudding hard against my chest from where she’s standing. She’s giving me an out and like a coward, I take it. Having a panic attack now could result in canceling my day with Charlie and I can’t risk it.
“Yeah, okay. Later.” I give her a nod and head straight for my truck without looking back.
After I park in an angled spot at the lot for the cove, Charlie hops out and I take her by the hand. Milo is only a couple years younger than me, but as if engraved in my memory, I’m back in that mode.
Originally, I had wanted to take Charlie to the beach for her first surfing lesson. I missed out on plenty of her firsts and can’t stand the thought of someone else teaching her, but I thought I better save that for when she’s a little older.
“Have you seen sea lions before?” I ask Charlie as we walk hand in hand down the pathway.
“Yep. But only at the zoo.” She does a little skip and a jump.
“You’re gonna love these guys. They’re pretty cute. And there’s always a lot of them. If we’re lucky, they’ll put on a good show for us.”
“Yay, I can’t wait.”
We round the corner and walk down to the cove. It’s already crowded. But not surprising. Once someone posted about this place on social media, it completely popped off. It’s only a matter of time before the population of Golden Harbor outgrows the town. There’s only so many houses and restaurants, and our roads in town aren’t wide enough to accommodate much more traffic.
