by Hattie Lou
I look at Savannah knowing Olivia is going to say something to me about inviting them to my house. She needs to understand I was being nice to her daughter. I slide the door shut so Savannah doesn’t overhear us talking.
“Why would you tell her that she could go to LA?” She asks, standing in the kitchen with her hands on her hips.
“She was looking sad and was talking about a castle so I told her that I kind of live in one,” I say. We were just having a friendly conversation. There is no harm in talking.
“Don’t make my daughter any promises especially when you can’t keep them.”
“She can visit me whenever she wants to. I have no problem with that.”
“You don’t get it.”
“Get what?”
“What do you know about my daughter? What's her middle name? What’s her favorite movie?”
I stare at her having no clue where she’s going with this. “What?”
“Exactly. You don’t know her.”
“Yeah, I don’t know stuff about Savannah but what does that have to do with her visiting me?”
She shakes her head. “Savannah is going to remember this conversation until she visits you. You made that little girl a promise that she will never forget. Now a few weeks down the road when you are back in LA and forget all about her, I will be the one who has to be here as she keeps repeating the promise you made her that you aren’t going to follow up on.”
“I will.” I protest.
“Okay. Say Savannah and I do go to LA then who watches your mom?”
“Bring her with you guys. I have a lot of room at my house and I would like for Mom to visit me in LA.”
She pinches the bridge of her nose. “You expect me to take Katherine, who has dementia, on a plane that will be crowded with a bunch of people? Do you have any idea how she will react to being closed in on a plane for hours?”
“I can get a private jet,” I say. I have the money. It’s not a problem for me.
She rolls her eyes back. “You can’t put her on a plane, Luke! She would hate to be on one. There is no way she would last a few hours on a plane.”
“Okay, but we can think of something,” I tell her.
“Think all you want, but Katherine isn’t going to go anywhere else other than the places she is used to. She doesn’t adapt to new things. They tend to bother her. You should do some research on dementia. I don’t think you fully understand her condition.” She says, before walking out and leaving me alone in the kitchen.
Chapter Ten
Olivia
I step into the kitchen to see Savannah and Luke already sitting at the table eating breakfast. They’re talking about some episode from SpongeBob they watched this morning.
“She’s up!” Savannah says when she sees me standing in the doorway. “Can we go now?” She asks Luke, excited.
He takes a sip out of his mug before answering. “Let your mom eat breakfast first.”
“Okay, I will get dressed while we wait.” She says, getting up out of her chair. She walks over to me and gives me my morning kiss like she always does before going to her room.
“Where exactly is Savannah going today?” I ask, pouring myself a cup of coffee. I don’t hide the fact that I’m mad that Luke is taking her somewhere without asking me first. I’m her only parent. I am the only one who makes decisions for her, not him.
“We are going to the park. You are coming with us. Mom is with Ben today so I figure we should go out to the park. It’s a nice warm day.”
“We” makes it sound like we are some sort of family. I want to yell at him for making plans with Savannah without talking to me first, but it’s nice for Savannah to have someone to talk to. She has Ben and Steve, but she doesn’t see them often since they are always busy.
“Katherine,” Luke says, watching me.
“What about her?” I ask, confused about why he is talking about her.
“Savannah’s middle name is Katherine. You named her after my mom. Her favorite movie is Cinderella. She likes watching the movie because she loves the heels she wears at the ball. She hopes one day to have the same heels.”
I turn around to face him and cross my arms. “So, you took an interest in my daughter because what I said a few days ago? Why? So, we can visit your mansion in LA and you can show off how rich you are?”
“No. I’m just trying to be nice to a little girl who could use a friend other than her mother.” He reaches into his shirt pocket and grabs his sunglasses. “This park isn’t going to be pack, is it? I don’t want anyone to recognize me.”
I walk away and roll my eyes back at him. This guy is really into himself.
Luke wanted to drive to the park in his Lamborghini but I told him no. There’s no way I’m going to allow my daughter in a race car. He surprisingly understood my concern and agreed. We took my car and I drove to the park.
The three of us make our way to the gates as I’m holding Savannah’s hand, she reaches for Luke’s. He doesn’t hesitate and lets her.
“Swing me!” She says as I look at Luke who is clueless to know what she’s talking about.
“She wants us to lift her up in the air by her hands. You take one of her hands and I take the other.” I explain.
Luke looks at me still confused.
“Uncle Ben does it all the time,” Savannah says.
He looks around the park to see if there are a lot of people which there aren’t because it is early Sunday morning. “Fine.”
She giggles as we pull her up high as she swings her legs back and forth. She runs straight to the swings when we let go of her hands. I follow behind her knowing she loves when I push her.
“Can Luke push me, Mommy? He’s stronger.”
“Sure,” I say, stepping away as Luke is standing there grinning thinking how Savannah likes spending time with him.
I take a seat on the bench and watch them. She laughs as she keeps telling him that she wants to go higher. I reach in my purse and grab a book that I haven’t gotten a chance to finish reading yet. I bought the book a few months ago but never got a chance to read it.
I read five chapters before Luke comes to join me on the bench. He’s out of breath. “That girl got a lot of energy.”
I place a bookmark on the page and close the book. “You haven’t seen nothing yet. Wait until she has a lot of sugar. She is worse than a hurricane, especially on Halloween. It takes hours just to get her to fall asleep.”
He laughs. “Remind me to never give her any candy.” We sit in silence for a few minutes as we watch her play with another girl who seems to be around the same age as her. “Does she ever ask where her dad is?” He asks.
I take a deep breath as I watch her. “She asked me once, not too long ago. I felt paralyze. How am I supposed to tell her the truth? I know one day I will have to tell her everything, but I’m not sure when and how to tell her. The thought of that conversation worries me.”
“You can only tell her the truth. It’s going to hurt her no matter what.” I turn my head to Luke who is already staring at me. “What?” He asks.
“Nothing,” I say. This is the first time we are having a conversation where I’m not waiting for him to say something rude to me. He’s talking to me like an actual human being and not like some Hollywood jackass.
Savannah comes running over to join us on the bench. She sits in between us as she rests her head on my shoulder. I run my fingers through her hair. “What do you want to do now?” I ask. It’s not often that Savannah and I get to spend much time alone. She doesn’t seem too bothered by the fact that I’m always with Katherine since I am there for her whenever she needs me.
“Can we go to Pete’s?” She asks, looking up at me with her brown eyes. She got that from Ethan. They are the perfect color. Every time I look at them, they remind me of the times I used to spend staring into Ethan’s eyes. It used to be my favorite thing to do. I would spend hours as we laid on his bed. We didn’t have to say a word. It was
like we were talking with our eyes instead of using words.
“Sure, honey”, I say. “Do you want us to drop you off first?” I ask, Luke knows the place is going to be packed at this time of the day. Lunchtime is one of the busiest hours at Pete’s.
“What’s Pete’s?”
“A little restaurant down on Maple. It’s her favorite place to go. They have arcades. She likes to collect the tickets.”
He looks around before nodding. “I’m hungry again. I will come. Any suggestions of what I should order?” He asks Savannah causing her to giggle.
She nods. “Chicken nuggets!” She shouts with excitement. “Do you think you can play some games with me? Mommy isn’t good. She never wins.”
I laugh at her for telling Luke that I’m no good at playing games.
He looks at me. “Is that true?”
“You found the one thing that I’m weak at.”
Luke sits across from us as he reads the menu with his sunglasses and baseball hat on. He doesn’t bother to take them off. The inside of the restaurant is dark, but he doesn’t want to take a chance that someone might recognize him.
A waitress comes walking over to our table to take our order. “What can I get you guys?” She asks, looking around the table. Her eyes fall onto Luke. Women are still drawn to Luke even when he’s wearing a disguise. “What can I get you?”
“I would like a soda and chicken nuggets. Someone told me you guys have the best chicken nuggets.” He says, flirting with the waitress.
I roll my eyes back. Luke can flirt with any woman, but he shouldn’t do it in front of Savannah.
The waitress turns around and walks to the back to give the cook our order.
“What?” He asks, looking at me.
I turn to Savannah. “Honey, go wash your hands before we eat.”
“Okay, Mommy.” She says, running off to the restroom.
“Can you please not do that in front of my daughter?”
“Do what?” He asks like I’m stupid. He knows that he was flirting with our waitress.
“Hitting on that woman.”
He laughs and it makes me want to hit him. “I wasn’t flirting with her. She was flirting with me. I just came here because Savannah wanted to eat. I can’t control the way women act around me.” He says, grinning.
“You were the one that was flirting back with her.”
“Sounds like someone is jealous.”
I nervously laugh at him. “Me?” I ask, pointing to myself. “Why would I be jealous?”
“I don’t know. You tell me.”
Before I can respond to his comment, Savannah comes back to the table. “All clean!” She says, showing me her hands.
“Good job.”
The waitress returns with a tray of our food. She hands Luke his food first. Of course, she is still trying to get his attention. Luke doesn’t take his eyes off of me. He is being a smartass by not trying to flirt with her in front of me. “Honey, do you want ketchup with your food?” He asks me.
The waitress looks at me for the first time with a look of jealously. “No, I’m good.”
She walks away without saying anything.
“Better, hon?” He asks, smirking.
“Let’s just eat.” I tell him, not wanting to get into it in front of Savannah.
Once we finished eating our lunch, Luke and Savannah went straight to the arcades and played games together for over two hours. I stayed at the table where I could watch them. Seeing Luke playing with her and making her laugh made me realize how much I wish Ethan was still here. She will never have a memory of Ethan. I got to spend a lot of time with him, but it wasn’t enough.
Chapter Eleven
Olivia
The week has come and I have been dreading it. Ethan’s parents called and asked if it would be okay if they could take Savannah for the summer since she doesn’t have any school. I couldn’t say no.
Ethan was close to his parents. They were extremely supportive of his decision to join the military. They didn’t get angry when Ethan called them the night of my eighteenth birthday to tell them that we eloped in Las Vegas. They are sweet people. He was an only child so his parents are all Savannah has. They flew out two weeks before I gave birth to her. They were very helpful and always called to check in to see if either of us needed anything. I am grateful to have them in Savannah’s life.
“You promise to behave and listen to everything they say?”
She rolls her eyes back and groans. “I promise.”
Luke walks into the room during our conversation. “What’s going on?”
“Grandpa and grandma are taking me for the summer. We are going to travel.” She says, excited.
I’m happy for her but I am also worried about her not being near me. What if she gets scared without me being there? Who will calm her down when she has a nightmare? I hope she doesn’t get sick or hurt herself. No one will know how to be there for her like I do. I have been with her since she was born and carried her nine months in my stomach. She hasn’t been out of my sight for more than a few hours a day and now I have to learn how to survive the whole summer without her. It’s going to be rough.
“Oh yeah? Where are you going?” He asks, curious.
The question takes me by surprise. Ever since the day he promised that she can see his mansion in LA, he has been talking to her a lot. I like that she has another person to talk to, but it worries me how she might be getting used to him being here. When she gets back from spending the summer with Ethan’s parents, Luke won’t be here. He will be long gone. By then he will probably not remember our names.
“Grandma promised to take me to Disneyland!”
His mouth hangs open. “Lucky you! Everyone wants to go there.” Luke says as he continues to talk to her.
I listen to their conversation as he tells her the cool places he used to go to with his parents when he was younger, including several trips to Disneyland.
“Honey, you should start packing now so you don’t forget anything when they pick you up tomorrow.”
She quickly gets up and takes off running to her room, leaving me and Luke alone in the kitchen. I wipe the counter off using Clorox wipes as Luke stays seated at the table.
“She isn’t in the room anymore.” He says.
“I can see that,” I say, as I continue to wipe the counter off.
“How do you really feel about her leaving you for the summer?” He asks like we are friends.
“I think it’s good that she is going out there and exploring what the world has to offer. I’m sure she will have fun with them.”
He reaches for his mug. As he presses the cup to his lips. “Bullshit. You don’t want her to go. You want to keep her here where you can have your eyes on her at all times.”
I hate that Luke suddenly thinks he knows me when we barely speak. I also hate the fact that he is right. I want her to stay here with me by my side. “It’s not that I don’t trust Joann and George. They have been amazing with her. It’s just that I don’t like her being away for the summer. It’s her first time.”
“When I was younger, I asked my parents if I could go away to summer camp. They were all for me going, but when I got there, I was miserable.”
“Because you hated summer camp?” I ask, turning to face him.
He shakes his head. “No. I didn’t like being away from my parents. I know you don’t see it now, but Mom and I were close when I was growing up. I guess what I’m trying to tell you is that Savannah is happy about going away, but at night when she is dozing off to sleep, she will be thinking about how much she’s misses you.”
There is something about hearing those words that makes me feel a little better. I want Savannah to have fun, but I also want her to remember that I’m here if she needs me.
Luke
“Are you going to sit here and mope all day?” I ask. Savannah left two hours ago with her grandparents. She will be gone for the whole summer, but it’s not that long whe
n you think of it, but looking at Olivia, she is acting like she will be gone for a year. I would hate to see how she reacts when Savannah is off to college in a different state.
She scoffs at me. “Do you have kids?” She asks, knowing that I don’t. If I did, I’m sure Mom would have already told her about her grandchildren. Mom kept hinting around how she couldn’t wait for me to have kids of my own not too long before Dad passed away.
“No.” I snicker.
“Didn’t think so. You can’t understand the emotions that I am experiencing right now. I don’t know what I’m going to do without her. Her and Katherine always kept me busy. With your mom sleeping, I got nothing to do. I feel so useless.” She says, having a pity party for herself.
“Come on,” I tell her, pulling her up off the couch by her hand.
“What are we doing?” She asks.
“When I wanted to have a pity party for myself, Mom would always force me to do something that would distract me. I have noticed that the deck needs to be cleaned.”
“Are you saying that it’s dirty and it’s my fault?” She asks, annoyed.
“Not at all. I’m here to help. She is sleeping so let’s get some work done instead of sitting on our asses and being miserable.”
I go to the shed and grab the hose while Olivia moves the chair onto the grass so we don’t get them wet. I pick the table up and she starts hosing the deck down.
“Make sure to get the window,” I tell her, pointing to the window in the kitchen.
“You can help. I’m too short to reach the top window.”
“Just try to aim higher,” I tell her as I stand back and fold my arms across my chest.
She shakes her head. “I thought you wanted to help.”
“I do but you are doing a good job. You’re doing a better job than Francine.”
“A girlfriend of yours?” She says, getting annoyed with me for not helping her.
I can’t help but laugh at her. Me date Francine? She’s around Mom’s age, married with grandkids. “She’s not my girlfriend. She’s my maid.”
“You have a maid?” She asks as she turns the water off.
