Page 74 of Child of Mine

“Almost.” Lilah grabs my hand. Instead of pulling me into the park, she leans toward Henry and whispers, “Um, I don’t know where to go now.”

He takes her other hand. “That’s okay; I do.”

* * *

HENRY

I may not have Robert McCloskey’sMake Way for Ducklingsmemorized like Lilah does, but I have a map and I’ve prepared by marking not only the bronze statues of the mother duck and her eight ducklings, but just about every location depicted in the book. If I could fly a helicopter, we could take in the aerial views, but I’m happy as can be to stroll through the streets of Boston with my two girls.

When we find the statues, Lilah poses for a photo astride Mrs. Mallard. Then she calls out the name of each of the ducklings: “Jack, Kack, Lack, Mack, Nack, Ouack, Pack, and Quack!” After that, she wants to operate the camera, and I’m all for it. For one thing, my little girl seems to have the instincts of a documentarian because she’s taking the time to frame shots like a pro. For another, it gives me a chance to walk with her mom.

As Lilah crouches pondside to photograph Duck Island, she yells, “This is where Mr. and Mrs. Mallard spent the night!”

“But they didn’t find much to eat,” Bella recites.

I point to a kid on a bike. “And then Mr. Mallard almost got run over.”

“That was after they saw the swan boat, Daddy,” Lilah says.

Seems I’ve earned the title Daddy in Lilah’s mind, but I still have to convince Bella that I’m worthy of it because I’m convinced that it’s the only way into her heart. I have a feeling she’d let me into her bed if I really tried, but that’s no longer enough. I’m greedy, and I want it all.

“Right,” I say. “Let’s go check that out.”

We can’t ride the swan boat with Ribsy, but we do buy some peanuts and feed them to some real-life ducks. After that, we hike to check out Beacon Hill, the State House, and Louisburg Square. Lilah photographs each spot, and we all agree that there’s no water in any of these locations, as the ducks in the book discovered. Next, we troop over to the Charles River and find the little island where Mr. and Mrs. Mallard eventually settled.

“I wish we could go over there,” Lilah says, a whine creeping into her tone.

I want my kid to be happy, so my first instinct is to give her what she wants. There are boats to be rented, after all. But I remember reading that it’s important to set boundaries for kids and I want Bella to see that I’m not just trying to buy Lilah’s love, so I squat down and point at the island. “Well, first of all, we can’t fly.”

Lilah sticks her lower lip out in a pout. Cute, but could lead to a tantrum if I don’t do this right. “Second, we didn’t bring our swim trunks.”

She opens her mouth, but before she can suggest that we try wading across in our clothes, an even better argument comes to me. “And third, we don’t want to disturb any wildlife over there.” I point to the Esplanade where families have spread out picnics and folks are running and biking. “See, that’s a park for people. We should leave the smaller islands to the wild animals.”

“Okay.” Lilah sighs. “Can we go see if there’s a policeman named Michael?”

We don’t find a policeman, but we do find an ice cream truck and enjoy our cones while Lilah recites the part of the book where Mrs. Mallard teaches the babies how to behave like good little ducklings. After that, we walk back to the park, taking the route the ducks followed. By the time we make it back to the pond, Lilah’s getting droopy, so Bella takes Ribsy’s leash and I give Lilah a piggyback ride to the car.

Once we’re in the car, Lilah snuggles in next to me and whispers, “I’m glad we found you again, just like Mrs. Mallard and the ducklings found Mr. Mallard.”

“I am too, Lilah,” I say. I meet Bella’s gaze over her head, blinking back a sudden rush of emotion. “I am too.”

* * *

On the way back,Lilah falls asleep with her head on my shoulder and Ribsy falls asleep curled up on Bella’s feet, but the moment I park in front of the shop, child and dog perk right back up, scrambling out of the car to chase each other around the front yard.

I’m trying to figure out how to invite myself to stay, when a man exits the front door of the shop followed by two dark-haired girls. Lilah squeals and runs over to hug them before introducing them to Ribsy. By the time I’ve caught up with Bella, she’s hugging the guy. I have to suppress a growl. This woman has too many good-looking guys in her life.

It’s only when he extends his hand in greeting that I notice the scars covering the left side of his face. “You must be Henry. I’m Cal, Jess’s boyfriend.”

Relieved that he’s taken, curious about his scars, but most of all intrigued by the fact that he knows who I am, I shake his hand. “Good to meet you.”

He turns to Bella. “We’re here to see if we can kidnap Lilah. We’re watching the girls this weekend. Jess has the show, but they really want your daughter to join us for a movie night.”

“Oh, Mommy, please, can I?” Lilah presses her little hands together in front of her heart. I’m glad I’m not the one in the line of fire. I can’t imagine saying no to that face.

Bella just crosses her arms over her chest. “Lilah, you know that tone doesn’t work on me. In fact, it makes me think you might be overtired already.”

“I’m not tired at all,” Lilah promises, whine erased from her voice. “I just had a nap in the car.”

---