What's Life Without the Sprinkles?

by Simon, Misty

  “And what did you want?”

  Looking into her eyes was too difficult. He’d wanted... Well, somewhere in his mind he’d thought he’d be able to come back here, hook up with Claudia again, take his son under his wing, and have the life he should have had ten years ago but hadn’t been smart enough to keep at that time. He had been delusional. And those delusions were shot down when Claudia would barely even look at him.

  But he couldn’t tell his sister that. So, instead, he said, “I just think I should get out of here. I’m not doing anyone any good.”

  “That’s not true.” May’s heart was in her eyes, as it always was, and he felt bad about giving her trouble. But there was no use hanging around.

  The phone rang in the living room. May gave him one more pleading look, then dove to pick up the receiver. He listened with half an ear as she said hello. Her side of the conversation made almost no sense and didn’t hold his attention as he foraged in the refrigerator for something to snack on before he went to pack his bags.

  When he backed out of the fridge, he bumped into something. Turning around he found a beaming May standing behind him with the cordless phone tucked against her chest.

  “I have a big favor for you to do,” she said breathlessly. “It’s something you can’t turn down.”

  He didn’t know if he liked that phrase, or the light in her eyes. This visit hadn’t gone at all the way he’d thought, and anything she added to it wouldn’t make things better.

  “Claudia’s on the phone and she wants to talk to you.” May kept the phone against her chest. “She wants you to do her a favor, and you better not say no.”

  That put his back up even more, but his curiosity was piqued by what Claudia could possibly want from him, someone she hadn’t more than a handful of words for just days ago. But he put his hand out for the phone and tried to wait patiently while May timidly handed the phone over.

  “Be nice,” she whispered.

  He yanked the phone out of her hand and put it up to his ear. “Hello, Claudia.”

  “Peter.”

  The line hummed with a tense silence. A silence he wasn’t going to fill, since he wasn’t the one who’d called.

  She cleared her throat. “I have something to ask, and please really think about it before you say no.”

  Why did everyone assume he was some coldhearted asshole? Yeah, he’d been dumb when he was younger, but he’d learned a few things since he was eighteen and ran from the prospect of a lifetime of raising a child.

  “What?” he said, a little more harshly than he’d intended.

  May whacked him on the arm, and he scowled at her.

  Claudia cleared her throat again, and something about the sound sparked low in his gut. She needed him. For something. What he didn’t know. But he did know she needed him, and this might be his way into her good graces. Perhaps he could even win her back if he did this thing for her, whatever it was.

  “I need you to do something for me.”

  He could list a number of things he wouldn’t mind doing to that fine curvy body he’d looked at all during lunch. He’d been an idiot to walk away. “What?” He made his voice lower, gentler.

  “Justin would like you to take him to a father-son dinner on Friday if you’re still in the area.”

  “But I’m just the sperm donor.” It slipped out before he could stop himself. He tried to correct his colossal mistake before she hung up on him. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. That’s not what I meant to say. Please don’t hang up on me.”

  “And why shouldn’t I? I ask you for one little thing after you made that great speech about what a mistake you made, how things should have been different. But as soon as I ask one little thing, you have a freak attack.”

  He could just imagine her arms crossed over that impressive chest and her lips pouting. It had been a look she’d perfected years ago.

  “I’m not having a freak attack.” He blew out a breath and turned away from May who looked like she wanted to take the phone from him and bop him on the head with it. “You just caught me off guard.”

  “So?” Her tone had turned harder, probably waiting for him to disappoint her, let her down again. He had a chance here, one he would be incredibly dumb to turn down.

  “Yeah, of course I’ll take him.” He asked for the details, and she gave them freely. May had a piece of paper under his hand and a pen ready and waiting before he even thought to ask. After writing everything down, he thanked Claudia and told her he’d be there to pick up Justin right on time. But he couldn’t help pushing just a little bit more. “How about we have dinner sometime this week? You know, while I’m here. Catch up on old times. You can tell me all about what you’ve been up to the last few years.”

  There was another telling silence across the line. Until finally she said, “I don’t think I’ll have time for that right now. I have a bunch of stuff to take care of for some different events coming up.” She hesitated, and he read a wealth of dismissal in that moment. “But thanks for helping out. Justin will appreciate having a male to take him to the dinner. I’ll call you if I think of anything else.”

  And just like that, she hung up the phone. He stood with May at his elbow for a long moment before clicking off the phone in his hand.

  “Thank you,” she said quietly.

  “Yeah, no big,” he said absently. But inside he was in turmoil. What was he going to do with the child he barely knew for the unknown number of hours this dinner would last? How was he going to interact with a ten-year-old he didn’t even know? He hadn’t been around children since he was one himself. This might not have been his best idea, but now he was stuck, and without the prize of dinner with Claudia dangling at the end.

  ****

  Claudia hung up the phone and leaned her head against the cabinet in the kitchen. What had she just done? She’d asked a favor of the man she’d sworn never to give even another thought. And now she felt beholden to him. When he’d mentioned dinner, it occurred to her that it might not be a bad idea for them to be on better speaking terms, if Peter was going to be a small part of Justin’s life again. But she didn’t want to give any of her limited time to a man she didn’t want to have anything to do with. She’d much rather spend that time with Nate.

  Nate, who was not available to talk to because of being out of town. He’d left this morning after giving her a kiss that would have to see her through to Saturday. Her lips were still tingling. No matter how much she wanted to pick up her cell and call him, just to hear his voice, she wouldn’t lay this on him when he couldn’t do anything about it. Especially since he’d felt bad enough about not taking Justin in the first place.

  Claudia had offered to take Justin, since things with Nate had fallen through, but Justin had thought about it and asked for Peter.

  Jeez, had that been a blow to her ego.

  Or maybe it was a testament to the way she’d raised him. Either way, it appeared she wouldn’t be going to this dinner and Peter would. She only hoped it would be fine, and that Peter would be the adult. Justin was smart and would know if his biological father didn’t have an ounce of interest in him. Her head hurt just thinking about all the complications that could crop up on this outing, and nerves pounded behind her eyes.

  Please let this work out. Justin deserved a break lately. He’d actually taken the news about Nate pretty well, even though Claudia had expected him to have some sort of complete breakdown. Hell, she was on the verge of some kind of complete breakdown. Now she might feel the need to go out with Peter, just to be nice to him after he’d so quickly agreed to help her out.

  Zoe saved her from her own thoughts by banging in at the back door and throwing herself lengthwise on the couch. Now here was something Claudia could do and not feel useless. Because as much as it appeared Nate wanted her, it was going to have to wait.

  But Zoe’s problems she could do. She’d put her cake fantasies aside for the moment and sort things out in her sister’s life. Maybe then s
he’d feel like she was worth something.

  “That bad, huh?” Claudia said, stroking Zoe’s hair as she sat next to her on the couch.

  Zoe groaned.

  “Hey, here’s something that ought to make you giggle. Apparently we’re going to be hearing the term ‘bastard’ around here a lot over the next few days. It might even replace ‘sperm donor.’”

  Zoe popped her head out of the cushions. “Bastard?”

  “Yep, your nephew heard from some idiotic kids that he’s a bastard, and the boy has decided to take the term to heart and embrace himself.”

  Zoe snickered. “Sorry. But bastard?”

  “Uh-huh. And he may even have convinced himself that we should call him Bastard Justin for the next little while. He likes it and thinks that because it’s technically true he should be allowed to use it.” Claudia smoothed Zoe’s hair from her forehead. “You can laugh all you want. I was barely able to keep it in when he was talking. Although things got a little nasty at the end. Oh, and Peter is going to be taking our dear Bastard Justin to the father-son dinner. I actually had to call and ask him—and deflect his dinner invitation. So if you think you have it bad, maybe that will help you feel a little bit better.”

  “Nice.”

  “I thought you might like that.” She ran a hand down Zoe’s arm.

  “Why are men such bast...well, I guess ‘jerk’ is probably the better word at this point.”

  Now it was Claudia’s turn to snicker. “I have no idea. Maybe just to make us insane? I can’t even seem to get some time to myself for Nate, either. And now he’ll be gone until Saturday. My cake is not happening.”

  Zoe sighed. “I think I might just go on a sweets-free diet.”

  “I guess it really was bad.”

  “You have no idea. But at least you have Nate to look forward to. Say goodnight to the bastard for me.”

  “Will do.” Claudia took a glass of wine out onto the deck and just sat for a little while, daydreaming in the dark to keep herself from dwelling too much on all that could go wrong tomorrow night at the dinner for Justin’s school.

  ****

  Nate fidgeted in his car the whole way home on Friday. He’d wrapped up things as early as he could, working through the whole night Thursday to get on the road early enough to try and make the father-son dinner. He’d brought a suit with him for meetings and had it cleaned this afternoon when the meetings were over, then dressed in it so he could go straight to the elementary school’s gymnasium and hopefully surprise Justin and let Claudia off the hook as the boy’s date for another year.

  It had killed him to tell the kid he couldn’t make it to the dinner. But he hadn’t wanted to make promises, in case things didn’t go as planned and he didn’t make it back in time. Nate was huge on keeping his promises.

  Plus, this way he got to see Claudia in a dress. God, he hoped she was wearing a pair of her killer heels. Nothing was like seeing her long calves pumped up by a pair of spike heels.

  And there he went again, fantasizing about her. It was as if, ever since she’d kissed him, some kind of floodgate had opened and he could view everything about her over the years through a new set of eyes.

  He wasn’t dumb. He’d always known she was a female. But he’d just never seen her as a woman until she’d laid her lips on his and damn near made his toes curl.

  He wanted to get back to her as much as he wanted to get to Justin, but in a different way, obviously. He was really hoping, though, that he could finish up the dinner with Justin and then finish out the evening with Claudia, fulfilling those promises she’d made with her eyes and her lips and her hands.

  He pressed down on the accelerator a little harder, drove a little faster, to get to her and to Justin. Whipping into the school’s parking lot, he snagged a lucky parking spot near the front. Damn traffic had made him over an hour late. He’d only get to eat dessert with his guy now. But at least it was something.

  He straightened his tie and patted down his hair while hustling to the side doors of the gym. He’d have one more hour with Justin, and then he could go home to Claudia and see if they could find a little time together. He was ready and raring for that time together.

  The rumble of a hundred men and boys greeted him when he yanked the door open. He stepped in and let it all wash over him. He’d never been invited to this event before, and it had meant the world to him that Justin had made the invitation. And now he was going to try to fulfill it for his guy the best he could.

  Everyone was seated except for a few people picking at what food was left at the buffet. He looked around, trying to spot the one woman in the crowd. He was baffled to not find her sitting at one of the round tables. Maybe they hadn’t come at all. That made him feel even worse.

  He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and was ready to dial Claudia to find out what had happened when he spotted Justin sitting next to an older gentleman. Nate had no idea who the man was, or why he would have brought Justin. But then he looked to the left and couldn’t believe his eyes. For there sat Peter, large as life, in the seat that should have been Nate’s.

  It took a second to reconcile the picture with his brain. Where the hell was Claudia? And why on earth was Peter sitting there in a suit and tie—and talking to the guy next to him instead of to Justin? It just didn’t compute.

  But then it did. Maybe Peter was trying to take a bigger part in his son’s life—because, even though Nate had never really thought of Peter as Justin’s father, in actuality he was. They had the same blood running through their veins, even if Peter had barely acknowledged it in over ten years. But this couldn’t be a bad thing, for Justin and Peter to bond a little.

  If Nate felt any kind of jealousy rising, he soon squashed it. The kid knew who he wanted to hang out with, and Nate hadn’t been able to make the dinner. Maybe Claudia had been busy, too, since she’d thought she’d have a night to herself. That left Peter, who just happened to be in town. Made sense to him.

  With that thought in mind, then, he didn’t want to ruin what could be the beginning of a new relationship. He started creeping backward, hoping no one would notice him as he made a discreet exit.

  He’d almost made it to the double doors when Justin’s head jerked up like a wolf scenting prey. His eyes zeroed in on Nate, and the slight frown on his young face turned into a full-fledged smile of relief. That couldn’t be good.

  The boy was up and out of his chair before Nate could blink. Peter spared him a quick glance before returning to his conversation with the man next to him. That didn’t look good, either.

  And then Nate’s arms were filled with boy. His heart was just filled, period.

  “Oh, Nate, thanks so much for coming. You don’t know how terrible it’s been.” When Justin stepped back from burying his face in Nate’s chest, he looked close to tears. That was saying something for his guy.

  “What’s up?”

  Justin blew out a sigh that ruffled Nate’s tie. “I don’t want to talk about it right now.” He turned pleading eyes on Nate, the ones Nate had never learned to resist. “Can you please, please, get me out of here?”

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Nate put a hand under Justin’s chin and looked into his troubled face. “What’s this about getting out of here? Don’t you still have an hour left before the dinner thing is done?”

  “I can’t stay here. Please take me home.”

  “But what about Peter?” Nate put his arm around Justin, but he wasn’t budging until he figured out what was going on.

  “Peter is a jackass.” Justin flushed and bit his lip.

  “I’m not going to call you on the language, but I’m going to need more than that, if you think I’m going to break you out of this joint.”

  Justin slipped his hand into Nate’s and gave him a squeeze. “He doesn’t have the faintest clue.”

  “That might be true, but what are we supposed to tell him and your mom about you leaving with me?”

  Justin clasped his hands
in front of his chest. “Please!”

  “It’s that important?” Nate didn’t feel good about stepping in where he wasn’t wanted, but he could clearly remember what an ass Peter had been when they were in high school. From what he’d seen, the guy hadn’t changed much. This must have been torture for Justin.

  “It’s really that important.” The sincerity in Justin’s voice was no joke.

  “Wait here. I’ll go see what I can do.” He left Justin standing at the double doors and tried to figure out what the hell he was going to say to Peter. What if the man didn’t realize Justin was having a horrible time?

  But he didn’t have to worry so much. As soon as he approached Peter and the other man looked up, the relief in Peter’s eyes was crystal clear. “Please, man, tell me you’ve come to save me. I don’t have the faintest damn idea what I’m doing here. All these fathers know their kids’ batting average.”

  Nate knew Justin’s. It was .178.

  “They know his favorite color and what his favorite food is.”

  Green. And Tastykakes, when he could get away with it, via Nate. Claudia wouldn’t let him near that over-processed treat. But Nate didn’t say any of these things, because Peter did truly look bewildered. Nate knew how tough this must have been for both the kid and the man. He wouldn’t say “father,” since all these things would be common knowledge for anyone interested in a child’s life. But Peter had never even met Justin until this week. Had no contact with him at all other than one birthday card when he was three.

  “Justin was thinking I could drive him home, since I’m here,” Nate said, looking down at the carpet and giving the guy the chance to gracefully bow out of the whole thing.

  Peter took it. “That would be great, man. If you don’t mind, I’ll head back to May’s. I have some packing to do. I think Justin was done here, anyway. I’ll just say goodbye on my way out.” He clapped Nate on the shoulder as he walked toward the double doors.

  It was that easy. Nate hung back for a second to let father and son say goodbye to each other. The body language was all wrong. Justin leaned away from Peter when the man put an arm over his shoulders. Peter seemed to take the hint and offered his hand for a more manly shake. Then he was out the door.