“Your dad is really making a difference in the world. I’m sure you will too. What do you want to do when you grow up?”
He shrugged. “I really like space, but I don’t think I’d want to be an astronaut.”
“Why?”
He kept fidgeting with his pieces. “Wouldn’t want to be away from my dad that long…”
My heart ached at his words because they were so sweet.
“I hate being away from him now. How would I feel on a different planet?”
“True.”
“And Dad said I can do everything, not anything. So, I want to do a couple things.”
“Got anything in mind?”
After he secured the wire on the battery, he worked on the next piece. “Sometimes I think about being a doctor like him…since he saves lives.”
“It’s a very important job.”
“But then I like animals, so sometimes I want to be a veterinarian.”
“Also a great job.”
He put his stuff down and took another bite of his sandwich. He turned to me, watching me as he chewed, wearing the same expression his father had. He stared for a long time, like he was completely comfortable with me. “Are you my dad’s girlfriend?”
I felt my cheeks blush at the question. “Uh…no. We’re just friends.”
“But you love him.”
Now I stilled, my heart stopping at the observation of a five-year-old. “Well…I love you too. I love a lot of people.”
“But you love him like Romeo and Juliet.” He kept eating, like he wasn’t making me incredibly uncomfortable.
I couldn’t afford to have him say this to his mother—or worse, to Deacon. “I guess I have a crush…”
“Yeah, I can tell,” he said with a laugh.
“But could you keep it a secret?” I whispered. “And not tell him?”
He considered the question for a moment before he nodded. “Okay.”
Hopefully, he would keep his word, and if he didn’t, Deacon wouldn’t take it seriously.
“But why don’t you want him to know?”
“It’s complicated…”
“Why is it complicated?” he asked. “’Cause I think he loves you too.”
I took a deep breath when I heard what he said, hoping his observation of his father was as correct as the observation he’d made of me. “It’s hard to explain…grown-ups are just weird sometimes.”
He finished his sandwich and wiped his fingers on his napkin. “Yeah, Mom and Dad are weird.”
“I know it must have been hard when they split up.”
He opened the plastic bag of grapes and dug his fingers inside. “I could tell Dad was really sad. And he’s a lot happier now, so I’m okay with it.”
Now I wondered if Derek was gifted but had inherited a type of intelligence that Deacon lacked—social intelligence. He accurately read his surroundings, people’s emotions, people’s behaviors. That was something Deacon would never have, no matter how hard he tried. “Just because your parents aren’t together doesn’t mean they love you any less.”
“I know,” he whispered. “I just wish I got to see my dad more.”
“Yeah…”
When he’d finished his grapes, he went back to his model.
“Well…” I grabbed the glass containers and returned them to the bag so I could have them washed. “I should get going.”
“You’re leaving?” He looked up, clearly saddened by my departure.
“Yeah, I have to go back to work.” I had to make deliveries and take care of my other clients.
“Oh…okay.” He turned back to his model.
When I glanced at the clock on the wall, I realized it was only one in the afternoon. Deacon would probably be in the lab until five. That meant Derek would sit there alone. “Actually, I’ll stay.”
“Yeah?” He looked up again, this time smiling. “Great. We can do this together. I also brought my coloring book and crayons.”
“Perfect,” I said with a smile. “We’ll have lots to do. But I have no idea how to help you with this.”
“I can show you.” Derek gave me instructions from then on, telling me which wires to grab, which copper pieces to attach, like a professor teaching a class. He seemed to know exactly what he was doing—with no experience.
I couldn’t believe a five-year-old was smarter than me.
But this was Deacon’s son, so I could believe it.
Deacon walked in the door, in jeans and a t-shirt. “Hey, little man. Sorry I—” He stopped talking when he saw me on the ground with his son, still working on the model, the coloring book and crayons on the other side of the coffee table. “Didn’t know you were still here.”
I stayed on the ground. “Derek was letting me help build his model.”
He looked over his shoulder at his father. “I think we almost got it, Dad.”
He came to the seating area and sat on the couch, propping his chin on his closed knuckles. He looked tired, like he’d been focused in the lab for hours without taking a break. He watched us, taking in the model before looking at me. “Yeah, you’ve made a lot of progress. But I told you that you couldn’t have help.”