“That’s a start.” He let out a breath into the phone. “Thank you. That’s all I needed to hear.”
CHAPTER 14
Deacon
CALL ME DICK
A few days after I’d seen Carys at the coffee shop, Kendra was over again. She bent down to pick up something off the floor.
“What’s this?” she asked.
It was a pacifier. I couldn’t believe I hadn’t noticed it before.
“Where was that?”
“Underneath this table. I went to slide my shoes under there and found it.”
I had a small table where I dropped my keys near the door of my apartment. It was right next to the wall mirror—the one Sunny had loved to look at herself in. I had no idea she’d dropped the binky, which had been clipped to her shirt that day.
Taking it from Kendra, I looked down at the dusty rubber tip. My chest felt heavy. It hadn’t even been two weeks since I’d vowed to stay away from them, but I missed Sunny. I missed Carys. I missed them.
“Why do you have a pacifier here?”
Still gazing down at it, I said, “It belongs to the baby next door—Sunny. I had to watch her in an emergency one day. She must have dropped it.”
“Oh.” She cocked her head to the side. “What’s their deal anyway?”
“What do you mean?”
“Why is there no father in the picture?”
The first time Kendra met Carys, I’d mentioned my neighbor was a single mother. Carys’ story really wasn’t any of Kendra’s business. So, I shrugged. “It didn’t work out.”
“That’s too bad. The baby is so young to not have a father around. Especially given her condition. It’s such a shame.”
My body stiffened. Then a rush of adrenaline ran through my veins. “Why a shame?”
“You know…”
My tone was harsh. “No, I don’t. Why is it a shame?”
“The fact that the baby has something wrong with her.”
My blood started to boil. “There’s nothing wrong with her.” I gritted my teeth. “Nothing. Do you understand?”
“Jesus. I didn’t mean any harm.”
“She might look a little different, but there’s nothing wrong with Sunny. It’s time people like you started realizing that. She’s just like any other baby. And happier than most people. There’s no reason she can’t grow up to be just like any other adult. She has an extra chromosome. That’s it.”
“Okay.” She held out her palms. “I’m sorry if I upset you.”
“You didn’t. I just felt I should educate you on that.”
Her voice softened. ‘Understood.”
Things went quiet for several minutes before Kendra escaped to the bathroom.
I felt a little bad for snapping at her, but I understood Carys’s frustration now. Down’s didn’t have any impact on who Sunny was, only how people saw her.
* * *
Kendra and I watched a movie in silence, and it was early evening by the time we even spoke to each other again.
After we shut off the TV, she took me by the hand and led me to my bedroom. We hadn’t had sex in a while, and she’d given me every indication earlier today that her expectations were set on getting some. But I didn’t know if I could go through with it. Not only was I not feeling it tonight, but how would I deal with Kendra making noises Carys could hear? No freaking way was I going to put Carys in that position. But if I was serious about moving on, I couldn’t stay celibate forever.
When Kendra and I started kissing, it felt…off.
Then the sound of crying next door killed any last shred of hope. Even though my bed was now on the opposite end of the room, away from Carys’s wall, I was still able to hear Sunny pretty clearly.
After I pushed back, Kendra rolled her eyes. “Well, this is déjà vu.”
I sighed. “Yeah. I suppose it is.”
“What…does that baby have a radar that detects whenever we’re about to have sex?”
“I know. It’s pretty funny,” I said.
She crossed her arms in a huff. “I don’t think it’s funny at all. Glad you do.”
Kendra was probably more pissed that I found the timing amusing than the interruption itself.
“You know what?” She hopped off the bed. “I need to leave.”
“You’re gonna leave because the baby’s crying?”
“No, Deacon. I’m leaving because you find this funny—that our privacy doesn’t really matter to you. I’m also leaving because you reamed me a new asshole earlier for feeling sorry for that poor little baby.”
Remaining silent, I didn’t try to convince her to stay as I followed her out of the room. I watched as she slipped on her shoes.
She threw her coat over her shoulders dramatically. “Call me when you’re ready to stop laughing at me or reprimanding me.” She slammed the door behind her.
I was a dick, because as upset as she was, it didn’t really faze me. In fact, her leaving was a relief. Continuing to see Kendra had been more about trying to move on from Carys than anything else. Kendra was merely a distraction, and she deserved more than that. So let her be mad, and let her find someone else to spend her time with.