Page 148 of Summer with the Single Dad

Justine walked up behind them. “This is Emerson, or Emme for short,” she said, placing a gentle hand on Emme’s shoulder. “And this is Aya.” She did the same to Aya.

Aya thrust out her hand, which had a stack of homemade Christmas cards. “These are for you guys.”

Justine’s father took them, his gray eyes going wide. “Oh, très magnifique. These are beautiful. Are you an artist?”

Aya shrugged, growing shy. “Maybe one day.”

“Oh, you will do very well. You have a talent,” Guy went on.

“Can I get anyone anything to drink?” Bennett asked. “You’re staying the night, so feel free to have more than one.” He chuckled, but that only earned him a smile from Justine’s dad.

“I’ll have red wine if you have it,” her father said.

“Water for me,” her mother replied.

“Red wine,” both her sisters said, taking seats on the loveseat side-by-side.

Justine’s parents took the couch, and Justine found a spot on one of the chairs. The girls perched on each of her knees while Bennett fixed them all drinks.

“H-how is your residency going at Mayo, Daniela?” Justine asked, directing her question to her younger sister, the OB-GYN.

“It’s fine,” Daniela replied.

And that was it.

Fondant!

Bennett brought the first round of drinks into the living room just as Justine’s father launched into a big discussion about a procedure he read about taking place in Spain regarding a partial penis implant. Bennett’s eyes went wide and he sought out Justine. Was this really an appropriate conversation to be having around his ten and seven-year-old?

“They gave him someone else’s penis?” Aya asked, bewildered?

“Not all, just some of it,” Guy replied directly to her

“But how?” she asked, on the edge of Justine’s knee like she was watching a fast-paced movie and not listening to a urologist discuss genital transplant surgery.

“By removing the inguinal canal, vas deferens, and ductus deferens from a suitable cadaver donor. They transplanted them into a living human who had undergone immense disfiguration from a tractor accident.” He spoke so fluidly, as if he were discussing the weather or the latest sports stats.

Aya ate it up with both hands. “I don’t know any of those words, but I want to know more,” she said, wide-eyed.

“Maybe later,” Bennett said quickly.

Fondant. Fondant!

He handed Justine’s parents their drinks, along with one for her sister Tasha. Then he returned to the kitchen to grab the rest. Once everyone had a drink, he pulled up the ottoman and sat next to Justine and the girls. He offered one of his daughters to climb into his lap, but they both said they were fine with Justine.

The conversation didn’t get any easier. It remained stilted and forced until the girls grew bored and wandered upstairs.

“Tasha, any new and exciting surgeries? Build anyone new legs lately?” Justine asked. Bennett could feel her growing weary of how tense the room was. She was probably screaming “fondant” in her head.

Tasha shook her head. “Not really. I had to amputate both legs from the knee down on a guy the other day though. He got crushed in a trash compactor at work when he climbed in to retrieve his phone.”

Everyone besides Justine’s mom made cringey faces and sounds.

Tasha just shrugged.

“May I use your washroom, please, Bennett?” Hui Ying asked, gracefully standing up. Just like her two other daughters, not a hair was out of place on her head. Her bun—like theirs—was simple at the back of her head. The only difference was that Hui Ying had salt mixed with her pepper.

“It’s just down the hallway on the right,” he said, pointing for her. She thanked him, then disappeared.

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