The After of Us (Judge Me Not #4)(24)

“Yes, you sure did,” Emma confirms. Her gaze flitters back to me. “And Will, seeing you here is even more of a surprise.”

“I bet,” I reply.

“So, what happened?” Emma says, just as she’s reaching up to push back her hair.

Her raincoat gapes open, and my eyes are immediately drawn to the hot little purple dress hiding under her coat. It’s not anything overly skimpy, but the clingy fabric hugs her lean curves in all the right ways.

Tearing my appreciative gaze away, I start to straighten Lily’s askew pink backpack, simply as a ruse to hopefully detract from my blatant ogling.

“Well,” I reply nonchalantly, glancing up at Emma. “I guess you could say there was a slight change in plans.”

Emma is trying to hide the blossoming smile on her lips. “Clearly,” she says.

Hmm, does that sly grin mean she’s happy I stayed, or is she simply glad for Lily’s sake?

“Miss Met-ger,” Lily interjects, tugging Emma’s raincoat sleeve. “Daddy says I get to stay with you today.”

In a voice used with little kids, Emma peers down at Lily and says, “Yes, you sure do, Lily. And I, for one, can’t wait. I have lots of fun things planned for you kids to do today.”

“Coloring?” Lily wants to know.

“Yes. And drawing and games. Does that sound good to you, Lily?” Emma inquires.

My daughter nods. “Yes, Miss Met-ger.”

“Hey, you know what?” Emma places her hand sweetly on Lily’s shoulder. “You can just call me Miss Emma if you want.”

“Okay, Miss Emma”

Squeezing Lily’s shoulder lightly, Emma says, “You sure look pretty for your first day.”

I appreciate what Emma is doing—bonding with Lily so she’ll feel comfortable when I leave her for the morning. I also feel a moment of dad pride that Emma noticed Lily’s outfit. Yeah, that’s right—I’m not a total misfit of a father. I managed to dress Lily in one of her prettiest outfits, a snow-white dress with a red roses print. Lil was also patient enough this morning for me to brush out her hair, leaving her platinum locks shiny.

“What do you say?” I prompt Lily.

“Thank you,” Lily says as she flips her glossy hair back over a shoulder. My daughter is such a girl already.

Lily’s cuteness doesn’t go unnoticed by Emma, and we share a smile.

Turning back to the door, Emma pushes, but the rain seems to have made it stick. And, hell, I am only too happy to help out.

Taking over, I prop the door open with my body and beckon for Emma and Lily to go in the school.

Once we’re all standing in the front hallway, Emma turns to me and Lil and says, “Since you guys are a little early I can show you the daycare area, if you’d like. Lily can pick ahead of time which table she’d like to sit at.”

“Sounds good,” I reply.

But just as I’m about to take Lily’s hand and follow Emma, the wall across from us garners my full attention. Or rather, the giant mural Chase and I painted on that wall several years ago, back when I was fifteen, has me faltering.

“Wow,” I murmur. “I can’t believe this thing is still here.”

Lily stares up at me curiously, and Emma comes to stand by my side.

With my eyes glued to the wall, I explain why I’m so taken aback.

Pointing to the mural, I say, “My brother and I painted that scene one summer when I was staying with him. Wow, it sure was a long time ago, though.”

I smile as I recall the hot summer day when Chase and I created the art in front of us now—a scene of a cartoon kid walking along a trail, on his way to a bright red schoolhouse. Cute and cuddly cartoon forest creatures cheer him on as he makes his way under a bright blue sky.

“It really is adorable,” Emma says. Her own eyes are now fixed to the wall. “I admire it every time I come into the school.” She places a finger on her lips, contemplative-like. “For some reason, though, I always thought Chase painted the mural by himself. I guess since he’s touched it up a few times over the years.”

The colors appear to be a bit faded, so I say, “Looks like it could use some re-touching again.”

“Yeah,” Emma says on a sigh. “Chase hasn’t done anything with it for a long while.”

“Yeah, well, he’s been really busy with work,” I say, in way of explanation. “His business keeps growing and growing.”

My eyes return to the mural, and I step closer to what was once my and my brother’s giant canvas. I touch a faded brown squirrel that conjures so many memories, and softly murmur, “This is the first thing I painted on the day we started the project.”

Lily comes over to the wall and touches the foot of the squirrel. That’s about as high as she can reach. “You color this, Daddy?” she asks.

I hoist her up on my hip so she has a better view. “Not just colored, Lil. I painted it, too.”

“All by yourself?” she wants to know.

“Not all by myself, no. Your Uncle Chase painted the sky… and the trees….” I move her to the different sections so she can reach out and touch every part of the painting.

Some of the animals are more faded than others, and paint is chipping away from parts of the sky. No doubt about it, the mural could definitely use some touching up.