Page 20 of The Best Bad Decision

She’s already booking the tickets when I pull my credit card from my wallet and hand it over.

“You don’t need to do that,” she pushes my hand away. “I’ve got this.”

“Maybe I don’t need to, but Iwantto, Amie. I want to take care of you. Both of you. If we’re really doing this, you have to let me contribute. Respect my boundaries too, remember?”

I try a smile, but I’m not sure how convincing it is. It must work at least a little, because Amie relents.

“Okay,” she sighs, shoulders slumping slightly. She plucks the card from my fingers and taps the number into the payment screen. My phone buzzes in my pocket to let me know the payment has been made.

“If you really want to, Maisy needs new shoes.” she turns to me, a devilish smile spreading across her face for just a moment before it drops. “And I have to start paying for childcare a few days a month when no one else can watch her.”

I earn more than enough, and I’ve never had anyone to spend it on before. I’m hardly a millionaire, or even flush with cash, but I’m more than comfortable enough to take care of Amie and Maisy. And I can’t think of anything else I’d rather spend my money on.

“Just send me the invoice, Amie. I’ll take care of it.”

twelve

Amie

Mum steps over apile of dinosaur toys into the absolute chaos that is my living room. There’s a cartoon playing on the TV, long since forgotten and ignored, and there are dinosaurs, planes and cars littering the floor. I nudge a model Airbus out of the way with my toe and pick my way through to Cam and Maisy.

“This is my mum, Suzanne. Mum, this is Cam.”

“Ah, the famous Cam. Nice to finally meet you, at last.” Mum rests a hand on Cam’s arm. He nods in response.

“Likewise,” he says with a smile. “I’d shake your hand, but I’m a little… stuck.” He tips his head to Maisy, who is lying across both of Cam’s arms, her little arms sticking out like the wings of a plane.

“Fly, Daddy!” she yells. Mum bends her knees to press a kiss to Maisy’s head before Cam swoops her around the room one more time.

“One more flight, and then we’re going, Maisy Mouse,” I call. Maisy giggles, kicking her feet, and Cam swings her around in a wide circle before setting her on her feet.

Ten minutes—and two more flights—later, all four of us are suited and booted and on our way to the park. Maisy and Cam walk ahead, Maisy sprinting as fast as her little legs can carry her, encouraging Cam to race with her. His long legs could easily eclipse the distance in just ahandful of strides, but he keeps his steps small and slow, letting Maisy win every race with an excited shriek.

“He’s good with her,” Mum says, nudging my arm with hers. “He’s really good with her.”

“He is,” I agree. “He loves her. She loves him so much already.”

“Does that scare you?” Mum and I catch up to Cam and Maisy, and the four of us walk through the gate to the playground together. Immediately, Maisy rushes to the swings, yelling for Cam to join her. Mum and I find an empty bench.

“Maybe a little,” I admit. It does scare me. It scares me a lot, actually. For three years, I’ve been a single parent. I assumed I always would be. I never imagined Cam would come back into my life, or that he’d be so open—so willing—to come into Maisy’s. I’ve been the only one making the rules for so long. But now he’s here—he’s her parent, too. And while he’s still learning her, and us, he has just as much authority to let her have a mid-week ice cream treat as I do.

“I freaked out last night,” I admit quietly. Mum doesn’t say a word, just rests a hand on my knee and silently waits for me to continue. “I went out—I couldn’t stay in the house anymore, I needed to get out and run, you know?” Mum nods.

“Anyway. Cam let Maisy have ice cream.” Mum’s eyebrows raise ever so slightly. “And when I got home, she was in the bath.”

“Oh, Amie.”

“I know. I just… panicked, I guess. She’d been such a brat all day, I felt like I couldn’t breathe. And he just took it all in his stride. Took care of her. And when I got back… I turned into a fucking crazy woman.”

“It’s understandable for you to have fears, honey,” Mum says. Her hand on my knee squeezes lightly. If anyone can understand the anxietyof being a single mum, it’s Suzanne Caine. Especially when it comes to letting someone else in. I tip my head to rest it on her shoulder, letting the familiar scent of her tea tree shampoo wash over me as her auburn hair blends with mine.

“It’s not just the ice cream. Or even the bath.”

“Did you talk to him? Tell him why you’re afraid?”

“A little. We talked about boundaries. And how I have to respect his, too. He tried to talk Maisy out of a tantrum and I jumped in, and maybe made it worse.”

“But you didn’t tell him the full story.”

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