Daddy’s Law by K.C. Crowne

Chapter 16

Theo

Iwoke up around 6:00 a.m.

Ava was still asleep, splayed out like a starfish with her arms and legs outstretched to either side of her. She’d taken full possession of the blanket —no wonder I was so cold last night— half of her duvet wrapped around her body.

As funny as it was to see her hogging the whole bed, she was absolutely radiant in the golden light of the rising sun. I could better admire the red tones in her hair, as well as the light, barely-there freckles across her upper cheeks. I could have lay there for another couple of hours, soothed by the sound of her breathing, but I did have to get up eventually.

I got dressed before padding to the kitchen to check her fridge. To my relief, Ava was well stocked with fresh fruits and vegetables. I wasn’t sure what she preferred to eat in the mornings, but I figured whipping up some cheesy scrambled eggs would be quick, a nutritious source of protein, and wouldn’t end up making too much of a mess.

I checked my phone while I waited for the skillet I fished from her cupboards to heat up over the stove. There was a text from Cory.

Hey dad! can u pick me up after five? Emilio and I want to go to the movies.

My first instinct was to tell him no. Emilio’s family was already being gracious and hospitable. Extending his stay would have been more of a burden to them. Surely Emilio’s parents had important matters to attend to.

But in the exact same breath, it was nice to know that Cory had made a friend. I was getting worried for him because of his apparent struggles with fitting in. Perhaps giving him more freedom would be good for him. It’d teach him responsibility and independence. Besides, it was just the movies, and Ava did vouch for Emilio.

Alright, buddy. Enjoy the movie. I’ll be there later to pick you up.

I returned to my original task of preparing breakfast. I smiled to myself. First going to the movies all by himself, and what next? Soon he’d be in high school. He’d eventually have his first real crush. He’d graduate and go off to college. Maybe he would take the military route like I did, though I knew my son’s love of art would likely take him down a different path.

My boy’s growing up.

“Theo?” Ava’s voice was muffled, full of sleep and a hint of worried confusion. She wandered into the kitchen, turning the corner. The relief on her face was instant. “Oh, good.”

“What?”

“I, um… I thought you might have left.”

I grinned, amused by her bashfulness. Her hair stuck up in places, and sleep lines stretched across her cheek. She’d thrown on an oversized shirt, one that had a cartoon goat on the front with red hair and a missing ear, underneath which read: Vincent van Goat.

She was too precious for her own good.

“Come,” I said, gesturing to the kitchen table.

Ava snorted. “Trust me, I did.”

I tried and failed to suppress a laugh. I walked over to her and kissed her on the forehead. “Breakfast?”

“Sounds lovely.” She sat down, shifting every now and then in her seat as she observed me. I could feel her eyes on me, studying my movements. “I can’t remember the last time someone cooked for me.”

“Is that so?” I asked, whisking a handful of freshly cracked eggs in a bowl with the tines of a clean fork.

Ava shrugged, her hair spilling over her shoulders. “My mom loved to cook. Well, she tried to, anyways. Most of the time it wasn’t edible.” She smiled fondly at the distant memory. “I’d eat it, either way. Didn’t want to hurt her feelings.”

I frowned. “Is your mother…”

“Oh, she’s fine. She’s in Florida now. I don’t get the chance to talk to her much.”

“Are she and Mr. Cruise—”

“Divorced? Yeah. They split when I was eight.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I think it was for the best.”

“You do?”

“Mm-hmm,” she murmured, picking her feet up off the floor to place on the edge of her chair. She hugged her knees close to her chest. “People think divorce is a bad thing, but I don’t agree. I’ve seen firsthand what an unhappy marriage can do. How it affects people.”

I cooked breakfast in silence, but I hung on her every word. “Your parents weren’t happy together.”

“Miserable. I mean, you’ve met my father.”

“I’m technically not allowed to judge my principals.”

“But he’s not your principal anymore.”

“Touché.”

“So? Your verdict?”

“Your father seems… difficult.”

Ava chuckled. “Okay. That’s one way to put it.”

With the eggs done, I plated up and set it down in front of her, sitting myself down in the vacant chair just beside her. Ava dug in, moaning in satisfaction. “So good,” she said around a mouthful.

“They’re just scrambled eggs and cheese.”

“Well, then they’re the best scrambled eggs and cheese I’ve ever had.”

“You flatter me.”

“I do my best.” She smiled at me, a twinkle in her eye.

Ava took a few more bites, a quiet realization dawning over both of us. The quiet that settled over the room wasn’t uncomfortable or tense, though I could certainly detect the question lingering in the air.

“What do we do now?” she asked quietly.

“How do you mean?”

Ava rolled her eyes. “You know how I mean. What do we do now? About us? Now that we’ve—”

“Slept together?”

Her cheeks turned light pink. “Y-yeah.”

I smiled. Did her adorableness know no bounds? “To be honest, I’m not sure. I didn’t think I’d ever meet anyone after… after my wife.”

Ava bit the end of her fork, sheepishly keeping her eyes cast down to her plate. “Can I ask what happened to her?” And then, very quickly, “Only if you want. You don’t owe me answers.”

I opened and closed my fist, staring off at nothing. I took a deep breath. “Cassandra was in a car accident.”

Ava’s face fell. “Oh, God.”

I nodded solemnly. “I was deployed to Afghanistan at the time. I was about a month away from coming home. I got the news that my wife was taken to the hospital. Critical condition.”

I could still remember the phone call. I was at base camp, preparing for a routine perimeter sweep. Jesse had called me from home. He’d retired from the Army about three years prior, and as a favor to me, he promised to look out for Cassandra and Cory while I was away.

“I did everything I could to get back as soon as possible,” I said, holding back the bitterness in my throat. “But I was in a remote region, and even though I was given permission to come home early given the fact that Cory was all by himself, it took time to organize my return. By the time I got to the hospital to see her…” I shook my head. It was self-explanatory.

Ava looked just as heartbroken as I was. “That’s so awful. I’m so sorry.”

“Yeah,” I murmured. “I left the Army shortly after. I needed to take care of my boy. Luckily an old friend had an opening at his security firm and gave me the job. The rest was history.”

She reached out and took my hand, lacing her fingers between mine. “Thank you for telling me. I know that couldn’t have been easy.”

I squeezed her fingers. “It wasn’t, but… You make it easy.”

Her smile was sweet and gentle. “I’m glad.”

“I’d like to see where this goes.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. But only if that’s something you want, too.”

“Of course, I do.”

“But before we give this —us— a try, we need to address a few things.”

“Like what?”

“Well, for one, I can’t be your bodyguard anymore.”

“Conflict of interest?”

“Exactly. I’ll have to let Jesse know and find you a replacement as soon as possible.”

“Can’t you just… not? Why can’t you do both?”

“I meant what I said last night, Ava. I find you very distracting.”

“Oh?” she said with a suggestive tone.

I held her gaze, dead serious. “It’s not a good thing. If I’m distracted, it could compromise your safety.”

Ava sighed. “How many times do I have to tell you? You’ve been with me for weeks and there have been no signs of danger.”

“True, but until your father considers whatever threats against him are neutralized, I can’t afford to let my guard down.”

“You won’t,” she said, sounding so sure of herself.

“Ava—”

“Nothing’s going to happen, Theo. I know you’d never let anything happen to me. And if you stay on as my bodyguard, doesn’t that mean you get to spend that much more time with me?”

I closed my eyes and thought about it. Protocol dictated that I find a replacement ASAP. One of the other guys at Pegasus Star Security would have to escort her around all day.

The thought of some other man protecting her rubbed me the wrong way.

It wasn’t that I didn’t trust my colleagues. They were all capable men, good at their jobs.

But would they care that Ava was sometimes late because she stayed behind to help her students? Would they notice that she liked to go to places with lots of sun? Would they willingly listen to her ramble on and on about art history?

I was the only one who could take care of her properly. I already knew her schedule, her comings and goings, her general likes and dislikes. I wanted to be the only one who got to pick her up every morning and see her to her door every night.

“Fine,” I said.

Ava beamed. “Good.”

“But we have to be smart about this. I expect you to follow my instructions if ever a situation arises.”

“I understand.”

“Additionally, I don’t know how the administrators of your gifted art program will feel if they know you’re seeing one of your student’s parents. What are we going to do about that?”

She nibbled on her bottom lip. “That’s a very good point. We’d have to keep everything under wraps until summer is over. Once the program finishes, technically speaking Cory won’t be one of my students anymore.”

“So, we’ll just have to wait and keep this between us. Agreed?”

“Agreed. I don’t want any scary helicopter moms coming after me about favoritism.”

“That doesn’t sound fun.”

“No, it doesn’t.”

“And one more thing.”

“Yes?”

“I think we should keep this from Cory as well. Just for now.”

“Do you think he might not approve?”

“No. He adores you.”

“And I adore him.”

“I just… I need to figure out what I’m going to say to him. How to explain things, I guess. I don’t want to upset him in case… in case he finds the idea of us together hard.”

Ava nodded. “I completely understand.”

I brought her hand up to my lips and kissed the back of her knuckles. “Thank you, Ava.”

She winked. “Of course.”

“Why don’t you go take a shower and get ready for the day? I’ll take care of the dishes.”

She stood up from her seat and started down the hall. “If you hurry, maybe we can take a shower together. You know, to save water.”

“I’ll be right there, sweetheart.”

“Good. I’ll be waiting.”

I made a mental note to call the Guinness Book of World Records later for the fastest anyone’s ever washed the dishes.