Sweet and Sassy Daddies

by Natalie Ann

  “We chose her clothes together. I put all the pants in one pile and the tops in the other and Caro decided which ones to wear.”

  Caro turned to see what Elli’s reaction would be.

  “That was a great idea.” Elli held Caro’s shoulders so she could see Elli’s expression. “Girls need to make choices for themselves. You did good, honey. I love that red blouse with the purple pants. And the yellow vest sets them all off perfectly. You look like a pretty flower.” Then Elli kissed the little girl’s cheek and though she froze slightly, she didn’t pull away, and that was a good sign.

  Beau ruffled Caro’s hair and added, “Yep. Dr. Sanders won’t know what hit her when we arrive at her office with our flower child. Our appointment got changed from next week to today. They called to say they had an unexpected opening, so I grabbed it.”

  Elli, watching his face to see how he honestly felt about the new arrangements, saw mainly relief, and it had her wondering. It wasn’t until later in the car, while Caro used her uncle’s headphones to watch a Disney movie, that he told her the horrible truth.

  ***

  “What? She slept on the floor. All night?”

  “I don’t know. I went to her room before I went to bed to take her to the bathroom like I promised, and she was missing. Christ, it’s hard on a guy when his kid’s bed is empty. But I didn’t panic. I went looking for her, and when I didn’t find her anywhere, then I panicked.”

  “Jesus. You must have been scared silly. What happened?”

  “I finally called out, and she crawled out from under the bed.”

  “Her bed?”

  “Yes. I hadn’t noticed, but she took a fuzzy throw I had left in her room on the chair and had wrapped herself up so when I actually bent down to see if she was under there, I only saw darkness.”

  “So, you’re saying she didn’t sleep in her bed?”

  “Right. I questioned her about it. I told her not to worry about peeing the bed again. I didn’t care, and I wouldn’t be angry, but she just shook her head. You know, even if she can’t talk, she has this mulish expression, and I knew exactly what she was saying.”

  “That she wasn’t taking any chances.”

  “Yeah. I put her back in her bed and explained she wasn’t to worry. She needed to stay there so she’d have a good night’s sleep. But the unspoken message came through loud and clear. When I went in this morning to get her, she was back under the bed.”

  “Oh, poor kid. Imagine being so scared that you hide under the bed so you won’t make a mess. You know, I might have an answer to the problem.”

  “God, I hope so. It’s disheartening when a three-year-old makes the rules.”

  “After we leave the doctor’s office, let’s go Macy’s to the furniture section for kids. I remember seeing a huge array of bunk type beds that have tents you can set up and all kinds of features. There’s some where a bottom mattress on a drawer attachment pulls out, and it’s like sleeping on the floor. But it’s a bed. Some had room for three kids to stay together and most had all kinds of shelves and hidden drawers so the little ones could hide their treasures away. There were even curtains they could pull closed and lights that they could turn on so it would almost be like a little room. Any child would be thrilled to sleep in one like that. I know, I would have loved it when I was her age.”

  Beau’s face lit up, and he nodded enthusiastically. “Sounds like a plan. She needs her own stuff in her room and not the guest-room furniture that adults would expect.”

  “It’s expensive.”

  “I don’t care. It’s worth the investment if she stays in her bed. I can’t take much more of this shock, of finding her missing. I never slept a wink after that. In fact, I gave up eventually and spent the rest of the night trying to find Roger.”

  Elli’s heart skidded to a stop, then sluggishly took up the beat again. Beau looked for his brother. Did that mean he didn’t want the responsibility of taking care of Caro anymore? The idea made her sad. How could he think his wanderlust brother, the same guy who walked away from his baby in the first place, would be a better father to Caro than himself?

  Chapter Fifteen

  Beau didn’t know why Elli suddenly became standoffish when they arrived at the doctor’s office. She cold-shouldered him no matter what he said, and it pissed him off. What did he do? He agreed to buy the bed she suggested for Caro. He even told her about looking for Roger so he could get the custody of Caro settled for good.

  No way, no how did he ever want Caro’s crazy mother or his lazy, idiotic brother to be able to walk into her life to claim her… take her away. The kid had wormed her way into his heart and attached herself like a new limb he now desperately needed to be happy. After he’d found her last night and had coaxed her from her hiding place under the bed, she’d crawled over to him, and he could see she was nude inside her blanket.

  He hadn’t noticed any strange odors when he’d walked into the room, and he knew she hadn’t had an accident, so why wasn’t she wearing her pretty new nightie she’d chosen at the mall. The blue fuzzy material had puppies all over it. In the store, she’d reached for the princess-like garment with stars in her eyes.

  After he’d helped her get changed for bed, and she had it on, he saw her hands rubbing the soft material continually while he read one of the storybooks that Elli had brought over from her own collection.

  She’d appeared fine when he’d turned out the light and left the door ajar. Driven from soft feelings of adoration, he’d ruffled her hair and kissed her forehead like his mom used to do for him and Roger when they were young.

  That was years before they’d lost her to cancer. Their dad hung around until they were old enough to take care of themselves, and then his heart gave out while sitting in his armchair in front of the news channel. He remembered Roger’s comment at the time. “I warned him about watching all that bad news, that the constant crap would be the death of him.”

  Typical Roger. No sorrow for the old man’s passing. Not like Beau, who’d hidden his wet eyes, swallowed his grief and took care of all the arrangements.

  His father had done the best he could, and Beau intended to do so as well with little Miss Caro. And kissing her goodnight seemed a step in the right direction.

  All tucked up in the bed, he’d thought for sure she was fine. Feeling good about the parenting chores done well, he’d gone into his office to concentrate on his programming. The game app he’d just finished working on had a glitch. The demanding design required him to really focus and that could only happen after he knew the kid was safe for the night.

  This evening he’d worked hard, his concentration had magically reappeared, and he’d found part of the problem that had held up production. He’d even called Neal, his office manager, the person he’d mainly worked with on the project, and discussed his solutions.

  “Christ, you’ve got it, Beau. That math will solve the glitch. The parents are going to love this game. The visuals you introduced are fun for the kids. The environment art, lighting, characters, animations, VFX, has all been set in place.”

  “Thanks, Buddy.”

  “I mean it. Now that you’ve corrected the programming, we can go ahead with the different designs, gameplay, narrative, visual, etc.” The enthusiasm in Neal’s voice gave Beau a lift.

  “I’ll be more than glad to get this one off my plate, Neal. So much is happening with my niece living here with me, I’m finding my time is limited.”

  “No doubt, man. I can’t imagine taking on a three-year-old kid in my pad and making things work.”

  “Ha! You can’t even let a girlfriend move in, never mind a kid.”

  “I know, right? Bloody women today are all about partying and getting wasted. I’m too old for that kind of crap anymore. I’ll be thirty-nine on Saturday. Time to settle down and meet a woman I can marry and have a family with.”

  “Good luck with that, mate.”

  “Hey, how about that new nanny of yours?”
/>   “You mean Elli?”

  “Yeah, she sounds like the type who’d make a good mom, and you said she’s a looker.”

  “She is pretty, but she’s pretty much mine. I need her as Caro’s nanny, so hands off.” Though Beau spoke jokingly, just the thought of Elli hanging out with his buddy Neal made him fume. The want to reach through the phone and give his friend a good shaking for even mentioning something so wrong made him squirm. Elli was his – his and Caro’s.

  “If you promise to get that program up and running soon, I’ll ask Elli if she has a single friend for you, how’s that?”

  Neal laughed and agreed. “Works for me, dude. I’m finding the pickings are becoming sadly depleted.”

  When the doctor’s receptionist broke into his reminiscences, he stood with Elli, who’d been keeping Caro amused, and they stepped into the doctor’s office.

  Dr. Sanders, gorgeous, young and highly intelligent, drew Caro away from hiding against Elli’s shoulder to pay attention to her. The examination lasted a short time before she suggested that Caro would like to go with her young, pretty nurse to the kitchen for an ice cream cone while she talked with Elli and Beau.

  Checking first with Beau to see if he agreed, Caro took the hand held out to her and followed the youngish nurse from the room, leaving the three adults to talk.

  Dr. Sanders started, “Her vocal cords appear to be functioning normally. When I asked her to hum, she was able to do so. There’s no apparent reason for her not to be able to speak. You say she cries. And there’s nothing strange in those sounds. I’m taking that as a sign that everything is working as it should be.”

  Beau added, “She gets really loud when she’s upset or scared.”

  “As is common for most children.” She turned from Elli to Beau. “Developmental speech and language disorder is a common reason for speech or language problems in kids. It’s a learning disability that is caused by the brain working differently. These kids may have trouble producing speech sounds, using spoken language to communicate, or understanding what other people say. Speech and language problems are often the earliest sign of a learning disability.”

  Beau spoke up, “Except she understands what we say, follows orders and nods in the right places when I speak to her.”

  “So, you sense that her hearing is okay. Hearing loss is often overlooked and easily identified. I tested her several times just now, and she seems to be hearing well. When I whispered a joke about the kitty, she giggled, and so I know she picked it up.”

  “She does hear fine. I turn the volume on the TV quite low, and she doesn’t seem to struggle at all to understand what they’re saying.”

  “Good. Normally, if a child’s speech is delayed, their hearing should be tested. Intellectual disability is also a common cause of speech and language delay. But again, from what you filled in on this form, she seems very intelligent, so I wouldn’t think there’s a problem there.”

  “Gosh, no.” Elli piped up here. “She just finished two of your puzzles in the playroom that had ages five to seven on them.”

  “Then we know she’s intelligent. You say she just came to live with you?”

  Beau nodded, “Yes, her mother dropped her off last week without a backward glance.”

  “Hmm. You have no idea what her home was like prior to her arrival, right? Extreme environmental deprivation can cause speech delay. If a child is neglected or abused and does not hear others conversing much, or it’s mainly in anger, which they’ll tune out; they will not learn to speak.”

  “I wouldn’t know whether she was allowed to spend much time with others, but we’ve had some indications that her previous life wasn’t easy.” Beau went on to describe her attachment to the floor, her bedwetting, sucking her thumb and sleeping habits.

  “Poor little angel. Life hasn’t been kind, but her memories can be overshadowed with new ones, happier ones. Would you know if she was premature? That can lead to many kinds of developmental delays, including speech and language problems.”

  As he shook his head in answer to the doctor’s question, he beat himself up for not getting a telephone number or some way of contacting Carrie, Caro’s mom. Not that he wanted her mixed up in their life, but she had all the answers to these questions.

  “And then there’s neurological problems like cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, and traumatic brain injury that can affect the muscles needed for speaking. This we can rule out as well as autism or any structural problems like cleft lip or cleft palate. Therefore, I’m going to go with what is known as selective mutism.”

  Beau looked at Elli who’s attention centered on the doctor. When she felt his eyes on her, she turned his way, and they communicated without speaking. Her eyes told him she agreed with this conclusion as much as he did.

  Dr. Sanders kept talking. “This happens when a child refuses to talk at all, especially in certain situations. It seems to me that Caro might be able to speak but previously has been told to keep quiet so often, that she stopped completely. I wouldn’t be surprised if she hides conversations from you, like talking with her dolls or singing little songs. Have you heard her do this?”

  Beau told the truth. “No. Never. She sucks her thumb most of the time. In fact, there’re sores beginning to show up on her right hand. I’ve noticed she’ll go for either side. I guess when one starts to hurt, she changes to the other. I hate seeing her do this because I believe it’s a sign there’s something lacking in their world.”

  “You’re right. Look, be patient with her. Keep her busy. Don’t slap her hand away or punish her for needing the security her sucking gives her. If she’s happy and engaged, she’ll slowly stop on her own. I’d check into a playschool, maybe once or twice a week where you can stay with her to begin with. Once she’s secure in those surroundings, maybe let her stay by herself and see how that works out. If she can make friends with kids her own age, that would be a huge plus and no doubt might get her talking.”

  Elli spoke up. “I’ve heard of a new playschool they’ve recently opened not far from here. I’ll phone and make an appointment.”

  “Good. So, Mr. Williams, I’ve done a cursory exam, and I think other than being slightly underweight, she seems healthy enough. If anything else pops up health wise, bring her back to see me. In the meantime, treat her gently and keep her busy. She’ll come around in her own time.”

  ***

  On their way to the mall once again, Elli still seemed standoffish but not quite so stiff as earlier. She even broke the awkward silence.

  “Caro liked Dr. Sanders. It’s good that she’s not afraid of strangers, makes me think nothing terribly bad happened to her at the hands of someone she didn’t know.”

  “That’s true. I never thought of it that way. She’s shy with people but not scared.”

  “Right. Seems to me the only person who’s made her life hellish had to be her mother, the woman who did nothing about her own child’s inability to speak. You’d think it might have upset her that Caro used her thumb as a soother in order to make her sad, fatherless world happier.”

  Beau’s head whipped around, and his mouth dropped open. What the hell? Elli’s tone had changed from conversational to confrontational, and she looked suddenly furious. As much as he hated conflict, he kind of looked forward to yanking her chain to see just how far she’d go before she lambasted him. At least he’d find out what bee flew up her behind.

  He decided to wade into the murky waters. “Meeting Carrie for the few minutes she’d hung around to drop off Caro might not have given me a good impression of the woman, but she didn’t come through as a monster either. Just a young girl wanting a new life and tired of her responsibilities.”

  “Right. Caro being a responsibility, not a-a daughter needing love. Come on, Beau. Don’t stick up for her. Anyone who could just walk away from a three-year-old and drop her off on a stranger like so much trash is trash herself. And, I don’t want to talk about this anymore.”

  Beau had n
o idea what just happened, but it wasn’t the end of their discussion – by no means. He had full intentions of getting to the bottom of her grievance. But it would have to wait. The minute they’d pulled up to the parking lot, and he’d stopped the car, she’d jumped out to go to the back and get Caro from her new car seat purchased the day before, effectively putting an end to the discussion.

  Chapter Sixteen

  “Has she settled in her new bed?” Elli had left Beau alone with Caro so he could say his goodnights.

  “Yeah, she’s like a little puppy – all frisky and grinning from ear to ear. We can get the rest of the bed built tomorrow. But her having the bottom roll out that way, like a hidden drawer especially for her was magical.”

  “I know, right? She kept opening and closing it, and when I showed her how we can hook it to keep it in position, she giggled and clapped her hands.”

  Beau moved over to her and held her arms, making her yearn to step closer on one hand and having the urge to slap him silly on the other. “What?” The leeriness in her tone made him grin.

  “Nothing bad. I just wanted to thank you for thinking of the special mattress cover that protects the bed if she pees. I watched her listening to you describe how it works, and that she never has to worry again about accidents leaving stains.” As he spoke, drawing her in by his sexy voice and slowly opening arms, she felt herself melt.

  His hug started off being friendly, but it went from sweet to freaking hot in seconds.

  She pulled away from him and lifted her finger in his face. “Don’t you try sweet-talking me, you traitor.”

  He looked frustrated, and his comment let her know he was. “What are you nattering about? You’ve had this… this thing going on since we went to the doctor’s office, and I demand to know what’s bugging you.”

  “You demand to know? Demand?” Elli waved the finger again. “Then just ask me.”