Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 74330 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 372(@200wpm)___ 297(@250wpm)___ 248(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74330 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 372(@200wpm)___ 297(@250wpm)___ 248(@300wpm)
A loud crack of thunder booms, making it feel as though the house is shaking, and I know what will happen next. I can’t hear the pad of their little feet over the storm as they race down the hall, but I know they’re coming. Sure enough, not a minute later, my bedroom door is being pushed open, and the bed dips as the twins crawl in beside me.
“Daddy?” Harlow asks.
“Yeah, sweetie?” I raise my head to look at her.
“Can we sleep with you?” Hayden asks from behind me.
“On one condition.”
“What?” they ask together. It used to freak me out, the way they talk at the same time, saying the same things and finishing each other’s sentences. Hell, sometimes they don’t even say a word. There’s some kind of freaky twin vibe that they just know and understand what’s coming next. At first, it freaked me the hell out, but now I’m used to it, it’s cool as hell. I especially like to watch others’ reactions to them. It’s very entertaining.
“I need snuggles.” I finally give them their condition.
A round of giggles and “Done” comes from both of them. Rolling to my back, I spread out my arms, pulling each of them into my embrace. Their little heads rest against my bare chest.
Another smack of thunder, and they both jump and snuggle in closer. “Daddy’s got you,” I croon to them.
My daughters are my world. I never imagined I’d be doing this dad gig on my own, and it’s tough most days. I have a lot of support from my parents and my late wife’s parents as well. I remember in those first days after losing their mother, my mom told me something that has stuck with me. It takes a village to raise a child. At the time, I thought she was crazy, but I don’t know how I would have done it without all their help.
“Sissy?” Harlow speaks up.
“Yeah?” Hayden asks.
“Let’s make up a story like Miss Waken said.”
“Once upon a time,” Hayden starts.
“—there was a bunny and a sheep that was bestest friends,” Harlow adds.
The girls continue on with their story as my mind wanders to Laken. I’ve seen her around town. I went to high school with her and her sister, Leni. I know who she is, but I don’t know her. However, she seems to be well acquainted with my daughters. I was shocked when Hayden crawled into her lap. I was ready to give her the lecture about stranger danger, one we’ve had many times, but she was so relaxed with her. And the way that Laken smiled at her, it was like a knife to my chest.
They’re missing out on the love of a mother. They’re missing her presence in their life, and that guts me. They’re very attached to both sets of grandparents, but Laken is the first adult other than family, and my best friend, Ryder, I’ve seen them act that way with. Then again, other than Ryder, they haven’t been around any other adults. At least none that they spend a lot of time with. However, it appears that their weekly visits to the bookstore with Nana Jackie have turned into something more between the three of them. So much so, they were able to convince Christine to take them this week. Mom usually has them on Thursdays, but she picked up a shift at the dentists' office to cover for one of the other receptionists.
“The end.” Hayden giggles.
“Did you like it, Daddy?” Harlow asks.
“The best story I’ve ever heard.”
“We hafta tell Miss Waken. Daddy, can we do One More Chapter?” Hayden asks.
“It’s getting late. How about you do another chapter tomorrow?” Children’s books, at least those for their age, don’t even have chapters. I don’t know where they come up with this stuff.
“No, silly.” Harlow giggles.
“Miss Waken’s store. That’s the name, right, Daddy?”
Schooled by my four-year-old daughters. “That’s right,” I tell them. How could I forget the name of the damn store? “How about we get some sleep, and we’ll see what tomorrow holds?”
“Okay,” they respond together. “Love you, Daddy.”
“I love you both to the moon and back.” I place a kiss on the top of one, then the other’s head, and snuggle them closer.
I push the sadness out of my mind even though it lives in my heart for my daughters and their mother they’ll never remember. I push the pain to the bottom of my chest that Holly is gone and missing our daughters and the incredible little humans they are. I see so much of her in them, sometimes so much it makes it hard to breathe. I miss her every single day.
Giggles. That’s my alarm clock this Saturday morning. I pretend to still be asleep as the girls giggle from their spots on either side of me.