Page 9 of Full Strength

She hesitated but finally stood and followed me down the hall. I moved away from the training room and locker room hoping we would have some privacy.

I faced her, nervous for the first time since the gala. I thought we were passed this. I thought I could handle being around her better than some middle school boy around his first crush.

I cleared my throat and smiled. “How are you?”

She raised a shoulder. “Fine.”

I nodded. “Eli looks good.”

“He has been.”

“Good.” Holy crap, Fisher, pull yourself together. I was sinking and had no idea how to redeem this conversation. “I miss you guys.”

She blinked and looked down. “We’ve missed you.”

That was all I needed to hear to keep going. It gave me the courage to say what I’d wanted to the other night. “Addison, I’m so sorry about the papers you saw…” She started to talk but I took her hand. “Please, let me explain.”

She nodded as her shoulders dropped.

“I only contacted my attorney with general questions. I didn’t mention your name, and I couldn't have mentioned your ex since I don’t know who he is.” She gave me a tiny nod and I was relieved she was much more rational today. “I just wanted to know what rights you had. What would need to be done to get child support. I told him that you were a single mom and that you didn’t include the father’s name on the birth certificate. That was all. He sent back generic information about parental rights, child support, and that kind of thing. I was going to give you that information so you knew what your options were.”

I stopped, waiting for her to absorb the information. I just hoped she wouldn’t still be angry.

After a moment she sighed. “Do you think I’m not doing a good enough job?”

I was shocked. That was the last thing I’d expected her to say. “What? Of course. You’re incredible. I’ve never known anyone that works harder than you.”

She shook her head. “Then why would you do this? I don’t want or need child support. I don’t want my ex to have anything to do with Eli or me. Asking for child support would open us up for court battles, joint custody, even lawsuits. Why would I want to put Eli through that?”

I understood where she was coming from. That’s why I’d never pushed the topic before. “I know, Addi. This was just to make sure you knew your options.”

She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose between her forefinger and thumb.

“Okay.” I almost thought I was hearing things. She finally looked up to meet my eyes. “Okay, I get it Grant. I get that you weren’t trying to go behind my back and you were doing what you thought was best, but I need you to promise not to do something like this again. Eli is my responsibility. If I have questions or need help, I’ll ask.”

I held her gaze and nodded. “You promise you’ll ask?”

She nodded.

“Okay, then I promise I won’t do anything like this again. Can you forgive me?”

A tiny smile appeared on her lips. “I think I can.”

I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her into me. I’d missed this. We’d only been fighting, or whatever it had been, for a few days and I hated it. I wanted her in my life, and I wasn’t going to jeopardize that again.

“Thank you.” Relief washed over me and I kissed the top of her head and stepped back. “Can I see Eli now?”

She laughed and led us back to the team room. The moment I walked through the girls were all smiles and Lucy sighed before standing up and bringing Eli to me. I knew it was probably all in my head, but I swear he smiled brighter when he saw me.

“Hey buddy. I missed you.” I held him against my chest and kissed his fuzzy blond head. I loved this little man, and I had a feeling I was starting to fall for his momma.

He cooed at me and I knew he was telling me he missed me, too. I looked over at Addison and she was smiling at us with an expression I hadn’t seen before. I almost asked her what she was thinking but Chloe walked up behind her and stole her attention.

I sat down and positioned Eli in my lap so he was facing me. I picked up one of his toys and held it up for him. He laughed and tried to grab it but I held it just out of reach. He stretched a few times before I lowered it until his pudgy little fingers wrapped around the little giraffe. He immediately put it in his mouth and gnawed on it happily.

“Are you teething little man?” I laughed as slobber ran down his chin. Looked like Addison was in for a fun time.

“You’re really sweet with him.”