AllFreeNovel
Share Us
An awkward silence falls over the room, and I’m at a loss for what to say to her. Last night had been amazing, and I felt like it had opened a door for us, and now she won’t even look at me. Kayla and Sophia come into the room just as Tanya closes the fridge.
“Alright, sweet pea, give your daddy a hug and a kiss. We’ve got to get going.”
Sophia skips over to me, and I kneel down so that she can wrap her arms around my neck. I hold her close to me for a moment, not wanting to let her go. I wish we were at the point where they didn’t have to leave. I want them to be living with me already, but I understand that Tanya wants to take things slow. No matter how much I want to move things along, I will move as slow as she needs me to. I won’t risk losing her again. I almost didn’t get to meet my daughter, and now that I have, I can’t even imagine what my life would have been like.
I let Soph go and stand. Kayla ushers her out of the apartment, and as Tanya tries to rush past me, I put my hand on her stomach.
“I’m not sure what’s happened between last night and now, but when you’re ready, I’ll listen to whatever it is.”
I kiss her temple, breathing in her scent for a moment before pulling back.
“Let me know when you make it there, please. No matter how late.”
I step to the side, and she looks at me before walking out and following our daughter. It kills me to watch them go.
The week goes by slowly, and by Wednesday I’m ready to cancel all meetings and drive to Willow Creek. I’ve barely spoken to Tanya or Sophia this week; my schedule has been jam-packed with meetings. I miss my girls and knowing that they are just an hour away is worse than before, when I didn’t know what happened to Tanya. They are just out of reach now.
I glance at the clock and see that it’s just before five in the evening, so I decide that the rest of the work can wait until tomorrow. I want to get home at a decent hour and FaceTime Sophia so she can see her stuffies. So far, she’s only called one other time to see them.
After I pack the things I want to take home, I wave goodbye to Jillian and head out. On days like this one, where I’m exhausted and want nothing more than to lay down, I’m even more grateful to have Steven under my employment. I didn’t want to have to fight five o’clock traffic.
As soon as I get into my apartment, I notice that the cold chill is back. Even though Soph and Tanya didn’t stay here with me, they were still present, warming it up simply by being near to me. I send Tanya a text to see if I can call to talk to her and Soph, and as soon as I get the go ahead, I hit the button and wait for them to pick up.
Soph’s sweet face fills the screen.
“Hi, Daddy!”
I smile at her.
“Hey, baby girl. How was your day at school?”
I listen as she prattles on about everything that she did at school. Happy that I can just sit and listen to her talk. I show her the stuffies that I set up along the cushions of the couch in my office and she has me put the phone up to each one so she can inspect them. Once she has looked over each and every one, her mother calls her to take a shower.
“You go take your shower. Hand Mommy the phone so I can talk to her, okay?”
I watch as the cabin flashes by on the screen as Soph runs through the rooms, and I listen as Tanya tells her to make sure she washes everything. She puts the phone up to her face for a moment.
“Just one second, Chandler.”
She puts the phone back down, and as I wait for her to walk to wherever she is going, I shift around in my seat. I feel like a teenager again. Nervous to talk to my crush. She sits down, and I can see the stairs behind her, which tells me she is in the living room. Far enough away from Sophia that she can’t hear us talk, but close enough so Tanya can still hear her if needed.
“Sophia said you wanted to talk to me.”
Something is still wrong, and I can’t wait to see her in person to find out. If we are to get married, even if she thinks it’s just for the status, I need to make sure she’s happy.
“Are you finally ready to tell me what’s wrong? You’ve been acting off since Sunday.”
She studies me through the phone, something that I’ve noticed she does a lot.
“I was upset Sunday, but I didn’t want to say anything in case it was just a timing thing, but the last few days have shown me that it wasn’t.”
I clench my fist around the phone. I don’t like that she has been upset with me and never said anything.
“So why haven’t you called me? Communication is important in a relationship, Tanya. You can’t just be mad at me and expect me to figure it out on my own and fix it.”
My tone is ruder than I intended it to be, but I don’t like mind games.
“I don’t know how to be in a relationship, Chandler! You keep on acting like this should all be as if nothing ever happened to me. Like I should have known you and remembered everything from nine years ago as soon as I saw you, but that’s not going to happen. All I know are the last nine years.”
