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We both laugh.
“Nice to see you guys in a good mood with how tense things have been lately,” Avery says, stepping out onto the deck.
“I’m glad you made it. We were starting to worry.”
“There were a few things that came up that ended up making us late,” she says, not meeting my eyes.
I give Avery my best ‘we’ll talk about this later’ look then walk over and ruffle Leo’s hair.
“Nice to see you, Buddy.”
He gives me a shy wave. “Hi, Mr. Fip.”
“Mr. Jay, Mr. Wes, and I all pitched in and got something special just for you. Would you like to see it?”
“A prize? For me?”
“That’s right.” I hold out my hands to him. “Can I pick you up so you can see it from here?”
He nods enthusiastically.
I scoop him up and carry him to the railing at the corner of the deck. Avery follows close behind.
They both gasp when they see the toddler-sized playset and sandbox sitting in the middle of the yard.
“Ma, I can go play?”
“Of course you can, Little Bug. Phillip, do you mind carrying him down the steps? He’s just excited enough that I’m worried he’ll fall down those steps and hurt himself trying to get to it.”
I nod. “Of course.”
Having me carry him was a good call on her part. About halfway down the stairs, he starts squirming like a greased pig. It’s all I can do not to drop him.
As soon as I put his little feet on the grass, he’s off like a shot, squealing in delight.
Seeing him so happy from something we put together for him fills in the hole in my heart just a little bit more.
She wants something permanent just like you do. You’ll have a wife and a son someday, and if she ever wants more kids, there are two other people in the relationship who can give them to her.
You can be with her without ruining her life.
I watch Leo play for just a bit longer before heading up the steps to rejoin the other adults.
“You guys didn’t have to do this.” Avery smiles.
“We wanted to,” Wesley says. “We all felt bad that there wasn’t much for him to do here besides play in that little playpen or wander around in the yard. So last Sunday, we all got together while you were at work and got some things for him to keep at our houses.”
“You’re telling me that you have one of these at each of your houses?” she asks.
“Not exactly. Each of us picked a different kind of set, so someday, when we end up moving in together, we won’t have any duplicates.”
She bursts into tears—something she’s been doing a lot of over the past few weeks—and throws her arms around all three of us.
“This was so nice of you. You are the most wonderful men I’ve ever met.”
“You really like it?” I ask.
She sniffs. “Yes.”
