The Absence of Olivia(19)
I continued to smile because I was glad I’d resolved the situation in my mind, but I knew I still had to resolve it with Devon. I sighed, resigning to get the kids to their respective schools, complete my work for the day, and hopefully come up with a solution by the time he returned home that evening.
With Ruby on the school bus and Jax safely delivered to preschool, I headed toward my tiny studio. I paid more for rent on my tiny studio space than I did for my apartment, but it was my most favorite place to be.
I unlocked the deadbolt and reached to my right, flipping on the lights. They flickered on, brightening up the small space. I walked to the left side of the open room to where my desk was, which only served as a catch all most of the time. Hanging on the wall above my mess of a desk were some of my most favorite photos I’d ever taken. Liv’s face was there, along with the faces of her children. A picture of Liv and Devon on their wedding day. There was also a black and white photo, shot downward, framing a man and woman’s legs, tangled in bed, a sheet covering them until the knees, then just feet. It was intimate, yet tasteful. Elliot had been asleep when I’d snapped the photo. I’d always just loved the way our bodies fit together – even our legs. Every time I saw the photo, my heart ached a little. I missed Elliot, or I missed having someone to be with. Elliot and I were never built to last; we wanted different things. But he was a good man and I was lucky to spend the years with him that I did. Every time I saw that picture I thought about taking it down, but in the end, it gave me more warm and happy feelings than sad.
I jumped when the phone rang, then took in a deep breath to calm my nerves.
“Evelyn Reynolds photography, Evelyn speaking.”
Thus began my day of running my own business. Three new clients made appointments for shoots, and I scheduled two more appointments to proof photos with existing clients. I was deep in editing the photos of Shelby I’d taken the day before when I heard the alarm on my phone go off, signaling it was time to leave to pick up Jaxy.
My mind was swirling with thoughts of the conversation I’d had with Shelby, the fight I’d had with Devon, and the memories I’d shared with Elliot. The drive to Jaxy’s school seemed to fly by, and truthfully, I didn’t even remember it when I arrived. I tried not to drink too much coffee, but it was apparent I needed something to snap my mind out of its funk.
Jaxy came bounding out of his preschool, his usual enthusiasm shooting him along like a rocket aimed right for the backseat of my car.
“Hey,” I said with a smile as he settled into his booster seat. “How was school today?”
“Great! I colored a picture of a tiger. But I wanted a purple one, so I made it purple.”
“Very creative,” I said with pride, hoping that perhaps some of my creativity had rubbed off on him.
“My teacher told me tigers weren’t purple and she made me color another one black and orange.”
“Really?” I didn’t like the idea of preschool teachers stifling his natural instincts to be different. “What did you do?”
“I colored the new one every color of the rainbow.”
“That’s my boy!” I turned and held my hand up, smiling as his little palm slapped against mine in an epic high five. I watched as he leaned back into his seat, pulling his seatbelt over his chest, clicking it into place. “I made my teacher mad a lot today.”
“What do you mean?” I asked, finding his face in the rear view mirror as I pulled out onto the street.
“Well, earlier, we were supposed to draw a picture of our family. My teacher said my picture was wrong.”
“Wrong?”
“Yeah. I drew Daddy and Ruby, and Mommy with a yellow circle over her head. One of those hollow thingies.”
“You mean a halo?” I asked, my voice thick with emotion at the thought of tiny Jax drawing his angel mommy.
“Yeah, a halo. Then I drew you standing next to us and when I showed my teacher, she said you weren’t a part of our family. I told her you were, but she just shook her head at me and told me I was wrong.”
“She what?” Surely there must have been some mistake. “She told you I wasn’t a part of your family?”
“She said that unless my daddy was married to you that you weren’t family.”
Before I could rein in my emotions, the car was pulling a U-turn, heading back in the direction of Jaxy’s preschool. I parked in the parking lot and then opened Jaxy’s door, holding his hand as we walked into the building. I headed straight for his classroom, but stopped outside the door, kneeling down to look in Jax’s eyes.
“I want you to stay out here in the hallway, okay?”
“Are you gonna punch her?” His eyes were wide and worried.
“No, I’m not going to punch her,” I said as I rolled my eyes. “No more action movies for you, buddy.” I rubbed my hand up and down his arm, trying to comfort him. “I’m just going to talk to her for a minute. But I need you to stay out here.” He nodded his head, still looking worried, so I ruffled his hair as I walked past him and into his classroom.
I saw his teacher sitting at her desk, stacking some papers into a neat pile. She heard me walking across the room and her eyes came up to meet mine. She looked perplexed for a moment, but then I saw the recognition come over them. She stood, a tight smile pulled across her face.