Page 47 of As the Years Pass
“Bye, Daddy!” she calls as she runs off and up the steps to the open school doors. I wave, then get back into the car where Ian is still focused on his donut. He licked off all the strawberry frosting, and now he’s nibbling the rest of it. I won’t be surprised if it ends up on the floor, but at least it’s free of frosting so the mess will be minimal.
When I pull up at Leslie’s parents’ house, I get Ian and his things and walk up the front steps to ring the bell. Her mother answers, as she usually does.
I don’t hate her, but she’s not a warm person. She’s very cold, very distant, and she has this way of looking at you that makes you feel less than.
“Is Leslie here?” I ask, though I know she is. Her car is in the driveway this morning.
Ian runs inside. “Hello to you too!” she calls after him, then looks at me. “I’ll get her.”
She closes the door in my face, and I wait there for Leslie to come to the door.
I don’t know why her mother never liked me. Her father is indifferent, always has been, but her other family seemed to like me just fine. Aunts. Uncles. Cousins. It’s just her parents who give me a hard time, and she always denied it so I never got even an inkling of what the issue was.
“You wanted to see me?” Leslie asks when she opens the door.
“Yeah,” I say firmly. “We need to talk about the schedule with the kids.”
“I told you we would.”
“Right. After the New Year, and that’s where we are. I can’t accept a job until I know my schedule with them, Leslie.”
“Well, I haven’t figured it out yet.”
“How hard is it to figure out? Let me take them half the week, you take them the other half.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Why the hell not?”
“Sh,” she hisses, stepping out and closing the door. “It’s important for the kids to have a routine, Adam. Especially with Judy being in school and Ian starting daycare soon.”
“Why is he starting daycare soon? Why didn’t you tell me about this? It’s not fair for you to make decisions like this without me.”
“Must have slipped my mind.” She throws her arms up and drops them at her sides.
She’s so flippant about it, like it doesn’t matter. This isn’t usually her, so maybe she’s having a bad day. There have been plenty of times she’s made decisions without me, but I don’t think she does it on purpose. But that doesn’t stop me from being angry about it right now.
“You know, there are dead beat dads out here who don’t even want to see their kids. You should be grateful you’re not stuck with one of them. All I want is to see my kids.”
“If you’re going to be rude, you can leave.”
It’s on the tip of my tongue to threaten her with court, but I know how that will go. It’ll take forever. I could go months, maybe years, without seeing them while it’s all sorted out. And in the end, I could see them less than I see them now. I can’t have that. I won’t risk it.
I sigh. “I just want to spend time with my kids, Leslie.”
She watches me for a moment, then says, “I have a lot going on right now, Adam. I can’t talk about this.” Then she heads inside, and I guess the conversation is over.
When I get back in my car, I make it down the road before I’m pulling out my phone and calling Emmet.
“Hello?”
“What are you doing?” I ask.
“Nothing. Why?”
“You want to grab breakfast? Preferably somewhere that serves alcohol.”
He chuckles, the sound raspy from sleep. I think I woke him up.
