"Twenty...twenty-one..."
Lauren was counting out my reps. I looked at her. She smiled at me and glanced back down at her cell. I heard the telltale click of a picture being taken.
"Did you get my good side?" I asked. A bead of sweat dripped down the side of my face.
"Every sides a good side," Lauren said. She stretched out one of her long legs before tucking it underneath her. I set the weight down and took a couple deep calming breaths. I grabbed a white towel and ran it along the back of my neck.
"So tell me more about Jake and his mother."
I looked at Lauren in surprise. She looked back down at her cell and fiddled with some buttons. I sat down on the weight bench and leaned forward.
Well, Jake has my blonde hair and my eyes. Honestly, he's like a little clone of me. He loves sweets. He's really smart. He fingerpainted a picture of me."
"And this Shay girl?"
My fingers wrapped around the end of the bench. I spread my legs out and held my breath for a second. My muscles protested, but I pushed just a little more.
"I don't know much about her," I said honestly. "We were both at the same place at the same time and she was a warm body."
"Is she pretty?"
I stopped stretching. Lauren's eyes were filled with worry. I had never seen her look so disturbed over another woman.
"She's not ugly," I said truthfully. "But Kitty, you don't have to worry. You are the sexiest woman I've ever met. I'm all about you."
I got a smile for that. She stood up and jogged in place.
"So what are we going to do?"
"Do?" I asked. "About Jake?"
"Yeah."
I hesitated. "I don't know. Shay's in Chicago and I'm here, there, and everywhere."
"But you told me you were going to see him again. Don't you think he'll start asking questions?"
"He's already asking questions," I admitted.
"Well, you have rights."
An uneasy feeling settled in the pit of my stomach. I knew I had rights, but I also knew I didn't know much about raising kids. I also knew that Shay would protect Jake with her life if I even mentioned custody. From her point of view, I could see where it looked like I was just going to sweep in and grab what was mine.
Even so, the bottom line was that Jake was mine. I was fifty percent of the reason he was alive. I had already fucked up three oblivious years. I had to make up for lost time.
I was still screaming as the figure outside my window rapped again. Jake began to cry. I tried to pull myself together. Death couldn't be standing outside my window. Even so, I double checked my locks before rolling down my window a crack.
"Are you okay?" a deep voice asked.
A pair of green eyes peered in at me.
I glanced in my rearview mirror at Jake. "We're fine," I said slowly.
"You have a flat tire."
It took all my willpower not to faceplant myself into my steering wheel and throw a toddler tantrum. I exhaled loudly. "Thank you for letting me know," I said. I reached for my seatbelt.
"Do you have a donut and a jack?"
"I have a donut; I don't know about a jack," I said. The guy didn't seem to be in a hurry even though the sky was threatening to drown him in the torrential rain that was falling in sheets. "MOOOO-OOOMMMMY!"
I turned. Jake was straining against the belt that was holding him down.
"What?"
"Why didn't you tell me you had a donut? I'm hun-gry!"
The guy outside my window chuckled. I reached back and tugged at Jake's foot.
"It's not a donut to eat; it's to replace my tire."
"Does it have spwinkles?" Jake asked in confusion.
"No sprinkles," I said. I rooted around and came up with a napkin and a blue crayon.
"Draw me a picture, baby. Mommy will be back in a second and we'll go get you something to eat."
Jake grabbed the crayon in his fist. His tongue darted out of the corner of his mouth.
With my little one momentarily occupied, I unlocked the door. I prayed the guy outside my car wasn't a serial killer. He stepped back as I hopped out.
"What did I run over?" I asked. The guy followed me to the back of the car. I popped the trunk, tossed a million rolls of paper towels and a gallon of milk that must have fallen out of my grocery bags weeks ago aside and yanked up the compartment housing the donut.
"My umbrella," the guy said. "The wind took it just as you were backing up." He leaned over me and yanked the donut out easily. He set it on the ground and wiped at his face.
"I'll be back with a jack."
The guy took off. I huddled close to my trunk lid, desperate to stay out of the rain. After a few seconds, I ran back to the driver's door. I yanked it open and looked in on Jake.
He was singing to himself and making crazy circles all over the napkin. He looked up and smiled. I smiled back.
"Almost done," I promised.
I went back to the trunk. The guy in black headed back holding a jack.
"Go ahead and get in the car, miss. I'll get this."
I looked at him in surprise. No one in Chicago called a woman 'miss.'
"No, I feel bad. It was my fault. I squished your umbrella," I said. I reached for the donut. He rolled it away.
"It's okay. That little guy probably wants company."
I pursed my lips. I could argue, but it had been a long day. I was drenched and my chances of getting sick again were high. I squeezed my hair.
"Thank you," I said.
The guy had a nice, white smile. "No problem."
I headed back to the driver's side door and climbed inside. I turned around and looked at Jake. His sneakered feet were bouncing.
"Did the car eat the donut yet?" he asked. I smiled.
"Nope. It will soon."
A minute later the car began to rock. Jake's eyes widened. He looked at me to see whether or not to get nervous. I reached over and crawled my fingers up his leg.
"The itsy bitsy spider went up the water trough," I sang.
"DOWN CAME THE WAIN AND WASHED THE SPEEDER OUT!" Jake squealed. He kicked his foot out, but my fingers kept crawling.
"Out came the sun and dried up all the rain..."
"AND THE ITSY BITSY SPEEDER GOT CHICKEN NOO-GETS AGAIN!"
I laughed. "My spider's really hungry, isn't he?"
Jake nodded. "My tummy's burpin'," he said. He held out the napkin with his squiggles. "Beautiful!" I said. The car shimmied again. Jake's head fell back and he sighed dramatically. Waiting for a three-year-old was torture.
A few minutes later, the guy was back at my window. I hopped out of the car.
"All set," he said. "You're gonna need a replacement ASAP."
I nodded. "Thank you so much for your help Mr.---"
"Blake."
"Thank you, Mr. Bl--"
"Just Blake."
The guy tossed the hood from his coat back. A thick mass of wavy black hair covered his head. He smiled at me.
"Thank you, Blake," I said. I held out my hand. "I'm Shay."
He took my hand. "Drive safely, Shay," he said.
I don't know what made me do it. Maybe it was the fact that the guy had just changed my tire for me. Maybe it was the fact that he had called me miss...
"My son and I are going to McDonald's," I said. "Would you like to join us? My treat," I added hurriedly.
Blake's eyes crinkled. "I'd like that."
I told him which McDonald's I was headed to. We said a quick goodbye and I climbed back in the car. Jake was whimpering and beating his hands into the seat.
"Ready to eat, bud?" I asked.
Those were magic words. My bright, bouncy boy came back.
As I backed up and headed out of the lot, I prayed that I hadn't just done something stupid. My first priority was being a mom. Any wants and needs of mine were inconsequential. I would begin to worry about myself again the day Jake turned eighteen.
Or twenty one. Or thirty...
