Page 30 of Sin Wagon
Walking toward her room, I push the door open and step inside. She’s sitting on the bed, still in the towel, trying to paint her toenails. She looks ridiculous.
“You don’t listen at all, do you?” she asks.
A chuckle leaves me and she scowls. “No. I was a very stubborn child. What are you doing?”
“My polish has chipped and I want to wear sandals. I’m trying to touch up my toes but my belly is in the way,” she pants.
“Can I help you?”
She narrows her eyes, sizing me up, and I stare back, getting lost in her pretty eyes.
“Fine.” She holds the nail polish bottle out and I step forward, taking it from her.
I drop to the ground on one knee and grab her small but swollen foot, setting it on my thigh. Then with the precision of Picasso, I paint her toenails, covering up where the bright blue polish has worn off. I switch feet and repeat the process then grab both and lightly blow on them to dry.
Delilah watches with eager eyes, and I smile as I softly exhale across her skin.
“Oh,” she whispers.
“You okay?”
“Yeah. Sorry, they get pretty sore and the cool air feels nice.” Her cheeks pinken.
My hands glide around her left foot, my fingers gently kneading her arches while I apply slow, deliberate strokes. She closes her eyes, her head dropping back as she leans on her arms.
“That feels amazing,” she murmurs. My heart swells with happiness, a smile forming on my lips as I witness her pure contentment. I massage up to her ankles, feeling the knots melt under my fingertips. The room is silent, except for the gentle hum of the air conditioner and the occasional sighs of pleasure.
“You’re making it hard to stay mad at you,” she says, her voice filled with a dreamy, soft tone. I lean down, gently kissing the top of her foot.
“There’s no reason to be mad, Little Doe. I tried to contact you. I had the wrong number. I’ve wanted nothing more than to spend more time with you. I was serious when I said I can’t stop thinking about you.” My hands continue their work, easing the strain of carrying our child. I look up at her peaceful face, and in this moment, everything feels perfect.
“You’re my uncle. It’s wrong. This can’t ever be more than what it already is.” She sighs. “What you already are. A dad to Little Boba, that’s it.”
“Little Boba?” I ask.
She giggles, and the sound makes me smile. “When I found out I was pregnant, Derek downloaded this app that tells you how big your baby is and it said the size of a boba pearl. The name just stuck.”
“Little Boba it is. Delilah, I’m not going to push and I don’t want to make you uncomfortable, but I don’t care that we’re family. It’s not blood. We don’t share genes or even a last name. The only thing that makes us familyis Jonas.Our parents gotmarried when we were teens. We’re brothers and I love him, but I’ve wanted to know you better for so long I won’t let this chance pass me by.”
“You don’t think it’s weird or fucked up?”
“No,” I say instantly. “Do I think it’s unconventional, yes. But we didn’t know when we met. And we met in a very normal, everyday way. We didn’t sneak around and lie to our loved ones. Until last night, we were unaware. We’re not at fault.”
“So what are you saying, Wells? What do you want from me?”
“I want you to give us a chance. Let me take you out, we can become better acquainted and see if we can make this work. I am committed to putting in the effort if you are. It doesn’t matter that we’re step-family, it doesn’t matter about our age difference, nor the long distance. I care about you and our baby.”
“Okay,” she murmurs.
“Okay?”
“Yeah. I liked you and was excited to see you again. And I want to give Little Boba a family if I can, so I’ll try. But I’m warning you now, Wells. I won’t tolerate being ghosted again. And pregnancy has made me kind of an asshole.”
“That’s true!” Derek calls through the door. “She’s way more bossy and snappy.”
“Stop listening at the door like a fucking creep!” Delilah laughs.
“I wanted to make sure you didn’t kill your baby daddy. But now I’m headed down to the pool to get some sun. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” Derek calls, his voice fading as he gets farther away. The door clicks shut a few seconds later.
