Page 11 of If You Love Me

“I bet that was a great dream.”

“It was. Do you dream of her, Daddy?”

“I do. Your mommy was very special to me, Summer. I’ll never forget her.”

“Do you think she’ll ever come home?”

I sighed. “I don’t know. It’s been a long time. What Idoknow is that she loved you so much. She was so excited to watch you grow up. I can guarantee she would have spoiled you with mommy and me dates.”

She giggled. “Well, maybe Ms. Iona can do that since she’s gonna be my new mommy. We already do things together.”

“Maybe.”

That reminded me that I needed to go file the divorce paperwork. I’d been dragging my feet on it for the longest. It just seemed so final. Since we couldn’t locate Evenie, I had to go through a process called divorce by publication. While she had been gone for ten years, I couldn’t simply remarry. I would have to post the divorce documents in the newspaper or at the courthouse. It was either that or have her legally declared dead, which I wasn’t ready for.

I couldn’t do that to Evenie’s parents. They still held on to every shred of hope that their daughter would come home. I understood that. She was their only child, and they couldn’t accept that she may never make it home.

Shaking the thoughts from my head, I stood from the bed. “Let’s go make you breakfast. Iona should be here to get you in a little bit.”

“She’s already here, Daddy. I ate.”

Of course she was. If Iona was nothing, it was punctual. I followed Summer Rose into the kitchen, where she was uncovering my plate. She looked up at me with a smile before floating into my arms for a kiss.

“Good morning, my love.”

“Good morning. How did you let me oversleep?”

She giggled. “You have an alarm, sir. I figured you were tired, so I let you sleep in and made sure my little friend here was situated.” She winked at Summer. “I got this, baby. I’m gonna be your wife soon, so let me do my wifely duties.” She stood on her toes and kissed me again. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

“I know. Now eat up so you can get ready for work. Summer, baby, what do you want for lunch?”

I took a seat and said a prayer before digging into my plate. As I ate, I watched her and Summer make my baby’s lunch and pack it into her lunchbox. It made me smile that they were so happy together. I could see us having a good life here.

The two of them never let me have a dull moment. They were always playing around and joking with each other. Summer loved to cuddle up with her on the couch while we watched movies. She loved when Iona did her hair or painted her nails. They had their girls’ days, leaving me completely out of the mix, and I was okay with that.

Iona practically lived here at times, but she wasn’t officially moving in until after our wedding. While she loved being with us, she said she still wanted to maintain her independence for a little while longer.

There were times when Summer and I spent the night at her place, but it was a very rare occasion. It wasn’t that she didn’t have a nice place. She had a beautiful townhome not too far from the school. I just felt the most comfortable in my own home, in my bed.

My thoughts were interrupted by the ringing of my phone. Excusing myself from the table, I went back into the bedroom to answer. When I picked it up, I saw that it was Nina.

“What’s good, Nina?” I answered.

“Hey, Tyrion. I hate to bother you, but I need a favor.”

“What’s that?”

“Can Jersey come over after school? I have to work overtime, Jamie is on a business trip, and my mom isn’t feeling well. I can pick her up around seven.”

“You know my goddaughter is welcomed here any time. She can spend the night if you need her to.”

“I appreciate it, but I’ll come get her. She has a dentist appointment in the morning. You know how her and Summer get. They will be up giggling all damn night.”

I chuckled. “I know. They love to pretend to be sleep when you catch them.”

“Listen, they are every bit of me and Evenie. Ms. Cheryl used to fuss at us so much for being up late and struggling to wake up the next morning.”

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